In our first episode of 2021, Josh speaks with Etel Haxhiaj; a Worcester resident, former refugee and Albanian immigrant, single mother, and candidate for District 5 on the Worcester City Council. Etel and Josh discuss opportunities for putting residents at the center of decision-making and how a public budget is a moral document.

Molly & Sarah from Pop It finish their conversation with Josh and go even deeper discussing identity, lived experience, and start a challenging conversation about systems of prostitution.

Join hosts of two Worcester-based podcasts, Public Hearing and Pop It for a crossover episode! Molly, Sarah, and Josh talk about everything from Worcester politics to public education to buses using solar powered WiFi thingies to connect communities to the internet.

How should School Committees support public education and how can residents hold them accountable? Season 1 of Public Hearing has been about systems that impact youth; with pretty much every episode highlighting education in one way or another. In our Season Finale (woo hoo!), Josh talks with Tracy O’Connell Novick, a member of the Worcester Public Schools School Committee with kids in WPS (crazy, right?) and how we think about, fund, and prioritize issues in public education. Thanks for a great first season!

All politics is local. However, there are a lot of folx who don’t know too much about their local elected officials and what can actually be done at the local level. In this Sidebar episode of Public Hearing, Josh talks with Danaah McCallum and Doug Arbetter about the importance of voting in local elections, the challenges that many communities face, and ideas to improve our systems of government.

What are students actually looking for when it comes to changes in public education? Is our community truly centering and valuing the voices of the kids experiencing the systems that we’ve built for them? Today, we’re talking with two young organizers; both alumni of South High School in Worcester. And while we talk at a local level, this conversation echoes into so many other districts where students are working to have their voices heard. #PublicHearingPodcast

Continuing our conversation with Dr. Mariel Novas, we dive into catalyzing community connectivity, racism as smog in the air, and finding time for joy in the midst of turmoil.

So far in Public Hearing Season 1, we’ve talked with people working across different systems including public education, juvenile justice, and child welfare as well as with individuals who have lived some of these experiences. In this episode, Josh talks with Dr. Mariel Novas; educator, innovator, immigrant, and community builder, about the cross-section of these systems and how intersectionality plays a role in the movement of our nation (and whether that movement is backwards or forwards).

The child welfare system is a continuum of services that is setup to ensure children are safe and families have the appropriate resources to provide for the needs of their kids.. but does it? In our episode today, Josh talks to Danaah McCallum, a woman with over 20 years of experience working with the Department of Children and Families, about the complexities of this work and how it intersects with other systems. What do you think about the child welfare system?

This week we sat down with Keyshawn O'Connell—a recent college grad from College of the Holy Cross—who talked to us about some of his experiences growing up in Worcester, attending the public schools, and getting involved with programs like Recreation Worcester, Dynamy Youth Academy (Upward Bound), and Bottom line.

Keyshawn shares his thoughts on how we might strengthen educational spaces for youth including increasing teacher diversity and giving young people a voice at the table.

How much does opportunity outside of public education impact a students ability to be successful? This week, we talk with Frankie Franco, Community Engagement Specialist for the City of Worcester's Division of Youth Opportunities. Growing up in Worcester, Frankie shares his experiences navigating the public schools, the opportunities he had to join programs like Upward Bound, and how his brother had a different journey.

How might we redesign the juvenile justice system so it is antiracist, developmentally appropriate, and transformative? We spoke to Katie Byrne who works for the Department of Youth Services as part of the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI). JDAI has made significant progress in decreasing the number of youth in juvenile detention over the past 10 years, but when you break that down by race and ethnicity, some groups have decreased more than others.

On our first episode of Public Hearing, we spoke with Jennifer Davis Carey, Executive Director of the Worcester Education Collaborative, about the landscape of public education and how it serves (or doesn’t serve) the needs of young people and their families here in the U.S. We also hear from Savonne Pickett, a Worcester-based artist who participated in the Black Lives Matter street mural. Savonne talks to Josh about her experiences with Public Education, Art, and how important it is to have mentors who care.