Pop It Sarah Connell Sanders

Worcester Arts Council supports our efforts to elevate the voices of womxn & girls in the community through podcasting. Our most recent podcast pop-up took place in Great Brook Valley at the first POW! WOW! Worcester event of the summer. Artist Stephanie Benenson of Harbor Voices was on site to oversee an art installation titled "Not Alone" that combined recordings (5:30-15:20) and lasers to deliver a powerful message about mental health. Thank you for taking the WAC 2021 Funding Priorities survey.

SchoolHouse aims to improve both the quality and safety of K-8 education by working hand in hand with parents to create local “pods” that provide a tailored learning experience. Nevertheless, a powerful New York Times op-ed recently referred to pods as “the latest in school segregation.” Shara explains why microschools are the right model for her right now. 

Mairéad Dickinson Connolly has always admired Ali Wong, but motherhood has given her a fresh appreciation for the critically acclaimed comedian. We discuss Mairéad's own standup career and her new role as a show producer.

Fern L. Johnson, senior research scholar and professor emerita of English at Clark University, and Marlene G. Fine, professor emerita at Simmons University co-author “Let’s Talk Race: A Guide for White People,” a new book that confronts why white people struggle to talk about race, why we need to own this problem, and how we can learn to do the work ourselves and stop expecting Black people to do it for us.

Rollerskating is more than just a pandemic pastime. We're examining Worcester's skate scene and talking about history, culture, and representation with Derek Thompson from Chez-Vous. Thank you to organizers Ellen Walsh and Ellen Benson for nurturing the local rollerskate community. And also to Naghmeh Eskandri, Penelope Angiulo, Jeanne D. Arc, and Lady LaRouge for their insights.

It is Molly's one true destiny to someday appear on Jeopardy. When we found out Worcester native Brendan Sargent was going to be on the show, we had a lot of insider questions for him. How did you study? How sensitive was the buzzer? How did your charming anecdote land at the start of the episode? Brendan has graduated from Christ the King musicals to the LA comedy scene. Check out his web series "Dear John" to experience MTV Cribs for the bathroom enthusiast.