Sam Richards and Laurie Mulvey
World in Conversation
Dare to explore your own beliefs.
A Freedom Rider Remembers
Experience the Civil Rights Movement through a first-hand account.
The Life and Work of Andrew Wyeth
Find out what it’s like to grow up in the “first family of American art.”
The Lasting Impact of Child Maltreatment
How does chlildhood abuse impact life as an adult?
Linda Patterson Miller
Writers of the Lost Generation
How did the relationships of America’s great writers affect their work?
The Sex-Wise Parent
The way you talk with your children about sex could save them from serious harm.
The “T” Community
Gain a better understanding of what it means to be a transgender person.
America’s Role in the World
Learn about the relationship between foreign policy and nuclear weapons.
Discover what’s being done to stop the spread of infectious diseases.
- 13 Indigenous Grandmothers
- Activism/Civil Rights Movement
- American Indian Identity
- Art & Design, Publishing
- Art, Caregiving
- Art, Filmmaking
- Black Middle Class
- Child Abuse
- Chinese Culture
- Climate Change
- Climate Change
- Collegiate Athletics
6:03World in Conversation Project
1:51Race Around the World
3:50Black and White
5:10Boundaries Web Exclusive
1:59Life’s Work Web Exclusive
1:52Parent Reactions Web Exclusive
0:35Recommended Reading Web Exclusive Recommended Reading Web Exclusive
When is it necessary to focus on issues of race, culture, and diversity? At what point does it become problematic?
ABOUT THE EPISODE
The World in Conversation Project relies on student facilitators and the Socratic method to generate candid dialog on some of today’s most difficult social issues—from race to the Middle East to college drinking culture. Sam Richards and Laurie Mulvey, co-directors of the project, talk about their race relations work and why it’s sometimes necessary to break the rules in order to break down barriers.
For a captioned version of this interview, go to YouTube.
ABOUT THE GUEST
Dr. Sam Richards and Dr. Laurie Mulvey are both faculty members in Penn State’s department of sociology. They are also co-founders and co-directors of the World in Conversation Project. The Project’s mission is to create an ideologically neutral environment for dialog where individuals can voice their candid thoughts and concerns about issues ranging from race to gender to the relationship between the West and the Middle East.
Each year, nearly 7,000 Penn State students discuss these contentious and dynamic issues in small groups co-facilitated by their peers. And now, through the use of video conferencing technologies, they are bringing students together for dialog from Gaza, Qatar, the West Bank, Kuwait, Iran, Israel, and the U.S. Their work has been reported on in The New York Times, MSNBC, The Christian Science Monitor, and PBS, as well as other media outlets.
Richards and Mulvey are not only colleagues and co-directors, but also spouses. This complex partnership provides an integrated foundation for their day-to-day work and their evolving mission.
More About the Project
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PENN STATE CONNECTION
WHERE TO WATCH
Thursday, August 18 at 9pm
Friday, August 19 at 10:30pm
Big Ten Network
Monday, July 25 at 12:00pm and 3:00am
ABOUT THE HOST
Veteran interviewer Patty Satalia hosts in-depth conversations with a broad range of remarkable people.