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Week in Review: Jamming in Berryland

I love strawberry season, and my family already went berry picking at a farm across the James River. After the great jam shortage of 2016, I may have gotten a little carried away—we came home with three gallons of strawberries. So I made my jam, some popsicles, ice cream is in the works, I’ve got plans for some strawberry margaritas, a mile-high strawberry pie, and strawberry shortcake, of course. But I still have about a half gallon, so please send any suggestions for strawberries my way.

If the only thing you want sent your way is the latest in higher ed news, scroll down for more.

What’s new this week:

In a piece for Fortune, Barbara Trish of Grinnell College examines what Trump still doesn’t get after 100 days in office.

Working for Worcester, which started in a College of the Holy Cross dorm room, celebrated its fifth annual Build Day last weekend, and this NBC Boston segment highlighted some of the projects that Holy Cross students and Worcester residents teamed up to tackle.

To celebrate International Jazz Day, Grinnell professor Mark Laver wrote a piece for Times Higher Education to explain why jazz music and arts education are so vital for the public good—they are the public good.

Following Russia’s labeling of Jehovah’s Witnesses as an extremist group, Holy Cross professor Mathew Schmalz explained who Jehovah’s Witnesses are, and why a government would criminalize them in a piece for The Conversation.

This week on Inside Higher Ed’s Call to Action blog, don’t miss posts on the language of higher ed marketing and brand loyalty advice for higher ed leaders.

What we’ve been talking about:

Erin took a weekend off from social media and rounded up her thoughts on the blog in a Quick Hit. (Spoiler alert: she survived.)

Kristine offered three reasons why your busiest times may be the best times to take a break, get out of the office, and grab a coffee.

 

Spent the afternoon at the new @WGBH studio at the Boston Public Library. They’re broadcasting live behind us.

A post shared by TVP Communications (@tvpcomms) on

 

What’s next on our calendars:

Erin will be guest lecturing on media pitching at the Department of Defense’s Defense Information School at Fort George G. Meade on May 11.

Teresa will serve as a panelist to discuss responsive leadership during American University’s summit for higher ed thought leaders, the NEXT University: A Summit for Innovators, on May 22.

Erin will be facilitating a session on understanding media relations for the American Council on Education’s National Women’s Leadership Forum in Washington, DC, on June 22.

What we’re recommending:

Erin Hennessy
Teresa and I often talk about our favorite periodical, which we jokingly call “United States Weekly.” Us Weekly was sold recently to American Media, the company that owns the National Enquirer, the Globe, Radar Online and others. It might seem odd at first glance—why would a company that owns a supermarket tabloid also want a glossy celebrity magazine that caters to a high-end reader (Us Weekly‘s average reader income exceeds that of Vogue)? Anne Helen Peterson, one of my favorite writers at Buzzfeed, looks at the deal and specifically what American Media hopes to get out it in this fascinating piece.

Cristal Steuer
The Atlantic’s Emma Green spent eight months researching and reporting on this story that takes you way beyond the headlines of the two Mississippi College students accused of trying to join ISIS. From the love story between Jaelyn Young and Muhammad Dakhlalla to interviews with family members and FBI officers posing as ISIS recruiters, the story gives you an in-depth look at how these two students “found themselves at the center of America’s debate over radicalization.”

Kristine Maloney
For longer and with more consistency than any other show, 60 Minutes has been on my can’t-miss TV list. This week I was inspired by the story of an ex-hedge fund manager who founded a school in impoverished Somaliland with the goal of training the country’s future leaders. Nearly 90 percent of the school’s first graduating class was accepted to international colleges, most in the U.S.—the first step to improving life in their own country, a responsibility the students take very seriously. Unfortunately, because Somaliland is recognized by the State Department as part of Somalia, the next group of students set to attend college here may be prevented from doing so due to President Trump’s travel ban. My hope is that this isn’t the case, but regardless of where these promising young leaders end up studying next, I think they’re ones to watch.

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