The North Star

JeffriAnne Wilder, Ph.D.
  • 5.0 (3)
  • Education

Welcome to The North Star—a podcast produced by the Oberlin Center for DEI Innovation and Leadership, and a space for candid conversations on leadership, legacy, and navigating complexity.In each episode, we’ll talk with changemakers, scholars, and disruptors who are asking bold questions and reimagining what leadership looks like—in education, in community, and in the world we’re building next.Whether you’re leading a team, building a movement, or just trying to make sense of today’s challenges, The North Star is your companion for reflection, insight, and action.

  1. Oct 16

    Who Gets Left Behind in the AI Revolution? | Rev. Christopher Hope

    Will AI leave behind the same communities that every past technological revolution left behind? In Massachusetts alone, Tufts research projects that AI could put 260,000 jobs at risk over the next five years. And the people building these tools rarely reflect the communities that will feel the impact first. In this Season 4 episode of The North Star: Intersectional Equity in the Age of AI, JeffriAnne Wilder, Ph.D., talks with Rev. Christopher Hope, an ethical AI strategist, ordained minister, and Boston University lecturer in AI and business ethics. Rev. Hope founded The Hope Group, which advises organizations and cities on equitable AI adoption. He also founded The Loop Lab, a nonprofit that pays young adults from underestimated communities to train for careers in media, tech, and AI. His work began after the unsolved murder of Kensley David, a young man he mentored, which taught him that “talent was never the gap in our communities, but access was.” Rev. Hope shares:  His vision for a “digital beloved community,” building on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s idea of the “Beloved Community”.The push for the AI Civil Rights Act at the city level, why “discernment” is the essential literacy of this century.How The Loop Lab removes barriers for young adults, and what faith leaders can do to shape the future of AI.Find out more:  The Hope Group: https://hopegroup.ai/The Loop Lab: https://www.thelooplab.org/Rev. Christopher Hope’s Substack: https://revchrishope.substack.com/🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌐 Follow the Center on social media: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram 🌎 Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group

  2. Oct 1

    Is AI Holding Women Back at Work? The Hidden Gender Bias in Artificial Intelligence

    In this Season 4 episode of The North Star: Intersectional Equity in the Age of AI, Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder sits down with Dr. Amy Diehl, Chief Information Officer at Wilson College, gender equity researcher, and co-author of Glass Walls: Shattering the Six Gender Bias Barriers Still Holding Women Back at Work. They discuss why women and people of color are missing from the AI conversation, and why the most immediate harms of AI are not doomsday scenarios. Those harms are already here: AI-generated deepfakes that overwhelmingly target women, the loss of entry-level jobs largely held by women, and a "competence penalty" that judges women more harshly than men for using the same tools.  Amy shares:  How all six Glass Walls barriers show up in AI, from male privilege in tech design to the invisible emotional labor front-line workers perform to clean up after chatbots. Practical steps leaders can take right now: holistic AI training, clear transparency policies, holding vendors accountable, and her simple "flip it to test it" check for bias. THer vision for 2036: government safeguards, privacy by design, and sociologists, philosophers, and humanities scholars working alongside technologists to build AI that serves everyone.Find out more:  Amy Diehl’s Book: Glass Walls: https://amy-diehl.com/glass-walls-shattering-the-six-gender-bias-barriers-still-holding-women-back-at-work/ Fast Company — “Women Are Sounding the Alarm on AI. Leaders Should Listen”: https://www.fastcompany.com/91584377/women-are-sounding-the-alarm-on-ai-leaders-should-listen-ai-dangers-women-technology 🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌐 Follow the Center on social media: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram 🌎 Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group

  3. May 8

    Beyond the Byline: Student Journalism, Solidarity, and the Fight for Structural Equity

    In this bonus episode of The North Star, guest host Chloe Caldwell sits down with Isaiah Johnson, Oberlin College & Conservatory Center for DEI Innovation & Leadership Changemakers fellow, Opinions Editor of the Oberlin Review, and co-founder of Oberlin's chapter of the Young Democratic Socialists of America. Isaiah reflects on what it means to be an agent of change from the inside — navigating the tensions between conviction and compromise, platforming community voices through student journalism, and building solidarity in spaces like the Third World Social Justice Co-op (TWIC). From the ethics of what to publish to the lessons of the 2024 election cycle, Isaiah offers a candid look at how young leaders learn to hold power responsibly — staying connected to the communities they represent, resisting arrogance, and understanding that lasting change is built on relationships, information, and a willingness to show up even when the path forward is complicated. 🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌐 Follow the Center on social media: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram 🌎 Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group

  4. Apr 24

    Legacy In Action

    In this special episode of The North Star, the mic gets turned around as Executive Director JeffriAnne Wilder, Ph.D., takes the guest seat, interviewed by Changemakers fellow Chloe Caldwell. JeffriAnne reflects on what it means to carry Oberlin's almost 200-year legacy of inclusion into the present, pushing back on resting on historical laurels and asking what the college is doing right now to honor that legacy. She opens up about the tensions she's navigated between motherhood and academia, the importance of disrupting hierarchy to build true belonging, and why she believes Oberlin's legacy comes most alive through its students. Candid and wide-ranging, the conversation closes with a rallying call to the next generation: trust your gut, don't wait until you feel ready, and know that leadership isn't a title reserved for a certain age. It's something happening all around us, every single day.  🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌐 Follow the Center on social media: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram 🌎 Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group

  5. Apr 3

    Leading with Purpose: Libraries, Equity, and Community Power

    In this episode, we speak with Eboni A. Johnson, STEM Librarian and Head of the Science Library at Oberlin College and President of Oberlin City Council, about her unexpected journey from a reluctant prospective student to a leader shaping both campus and community. Eboni reflects on how mentorship, representation, and access to information have defined her path, and how libraries serve as powerful sites for equity and social justice. She also shares her entry into local government, her work advancing housing access and Oberlin’s nationally recognized Social Equity Plan, and what it means to lead with integrity. Grounded in the belief to “do your best and do right by people,” this conversation highlights how leadership can emerge in unexpected ways and how it can create lasting impact. 🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌎Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group 🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌐 Follow the Center on social media: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram 🌎 Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group

  6. Mar 13

    Gen Z, Activism, and Burnout: How One Student Is Redefining Leadership and Home

    In this special Season 3 episode of The North Star, JeffriAnne Wilder PhD welcomes third-year student and Changemakers Fellow Chloe Caldwell, the first student guest and future host of the new Gen Z Edit, to share how Oberlin College has become her “second home” 2,000 miles from Montana. Chloe reflects on choosing Oberlin College for its conservatory and history of progress, the community she found through music, friendship, and leadership, and how the Changemakers Fellowship reshaped her understanding of leadership from status to service. She also discusses her investigative podcast work on town–gown dynamics, why empathy and genuine dialogue are the most pressing needs in both Oberlin and the broader U.S., and how Gen Z’s political coming-of-age amid social media, polarization, and COVID has fueled both urgency for change and a deep insistence on well-being and balance. 🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌐 Follow the Center on social media: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram 🌎 Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group

  7. Feb 27

    Making Human Resources Human: Sinaya Surla on Inclusive Excellence, Firsts, and Future-Ready Workplaces

    In this Season 3 episode of The North Star, Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder talks with Sinaya Surla—Oberlin College’s inaugural Human Resources Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion—about what it means to make HR truly human. Sinaya reflects on her journey from Multicultural Resource Center staff member to policy shaper, sharing how seven-generations thinking, employee resource groups, and clearer conflict-resolution pathways are helping center staff voice, equity, and belonging across campus. She also lifts up her doctoral research on writing retreats for women of color and the power of doing “less” as a strategy for sustaining long-term social justice work at Oberlin and beyond. 🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌐 Follow the Center on social media: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram 🌎 Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group

  8. Feb 13

    Dr. Alicia Smith-Tran on Imposter Syndrome, Care, and Inclusive Classrooms

    In this Season 3 premiere of The North Star, JeffriAnne Wilder, PhD talks with Alicia Smith-Tran, PhD—Oberlin College alumna, former varsity basketball player, and associate professor of Sociology and Comparative American Studies. Dr. Smith-Tran traces her path from reluctant campus visitor to faculty member dedicated to building classrooms where first-gen and marginalized students belong. She shares research rooted in lived experience and reflects on balancing student support with her own well-being as a scholar and parent. A conversation about carrying Oberlin's legacy of inclusion forward—one story at a time. 🔗 Find out more about Dr. JeffriAnne Wilder. 🌐 Follow the Center on social media: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram 🌎 Visit Oberlin College's website. Podcast Produced by: Paradigm Media Group

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out of 5
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About

Welcome to The North Star—a podcast produced by the Oberlin Center for DEI Innovation and Leadership, and a space for candid conversations on leadership, legacy, and navigating complexity.In each episode, we’ll talk with changemakers, scholars, and disruptors who are asking bold questions and reimagining what leadership looks like—in education, in community, and in the world we’re building next.Whether you’re leading a team, building a movement, or just trying to make sense of today’s challenges, The North Star is your companion for reflection, insight, and action.

Information

  • Creator
    JeffriAnne Wilder, Ph.D.
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    25
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The North Star
  • Show Website
    The North Star