Groundwork

A timely one-hour special, hosted by NPR’s Scott Simon, that tells stories of American democracy at the local level. We listen in as people wrestle with issues alongside — and in opposition to — their neighbors. Episodes in Upstate New York, North Carolina, Texas, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Alaska.

This piece was created by Tae Woo Lee in the Fall 2012 course, Introduction to Audio Documentary at the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University.

A commentary by an Asian student.

This piece was created by Harry Guilfoyle in the Fall 2012 course, Introduction to Audio Documentary at the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University.

In this piece, CDS producer Harry Guilfoyle takes a look into the inner workings of the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation, a charitable trust established by Mary Duke Biddle for the benefit of liberal arts and community outreach programs at Duke University and in the states of North Carolina and New York. Speaking with current and former employees of the foundation as well as with the foundation’s board chairman, the producer discovers the motivations behind the foundation, and tries to answer the question of how a foundation that gives relatively small grants measures its impact on society.

This piece was created by Marleen Jones-Pool in the Fall 2012 course, Introduction to Audio Documentary at the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University.

Host Intro: Since 1972, Duke University has had a student organization for the LGBT community, but it wasn’t until 1994 when they got an official space for themselves. The Center for LGBT Life provides many services, among them support, mentoring, and advocacy, for students and faculty at Duke that identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, questioning, and even straight. In this piece, Janie Long, director of the Center, tells interviewer Marleen Jones-Pool about the several services and events done by this small center on Duke’s West campus.

Music: “Proud” by Heather Small

Sound: Coming Out Day @ Duke 2009 – YouTube video
NC Pride and Parade Festival – YouTube video

This piece was created by Madeline Miller in the Fall 2012 course, Introduction to Audio Documentary at the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University.

In this piece we hear from student activists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who see big decisions regarding their lives as students being made by people who do not represent their interests. The most recent incarnation of this problematic situation is found in the Strategic Directions Planning Committee, which is constructing the five year plan for the University system and was crafted by University President, Tom Ross, to appeal to the state’s conservative and corporate elite.

Special Thanks to Zaina Alsous, Jake Lerner, and Ivanna Gonzalez

Music by Dan Melchior and Eagle Altar