What can Puerto Rican Studies & Bad Bunny’s music teach us about the future of research?

Join us for Episode #4 of the Futures Initiative podcast, dropping January 20th, as Faculty Chair Shelly Eversley sits down with Director of the Center for Puerto Rican Studies (Centro), Dr. Yomaira Figueroa Brim and FI Fellow/PhD Candidate in English, Vallerie Matos for an insightful conversation on Puerto Rican and Diasporican cultural movements.

As a US colony, Puerto Rico offers genealogies of resistance, and models unrelenting efforts towards sovereignty, decolonization, and liberation.This episode explores how Puerto Rican history and cultural production can expand knowledge-making and scholarship in higher education. Guests discuss how the archival work at Centro and the artistry of Bad Bunny are exemplary projects of equity and innovation.

Subscribe to the Futures Initiative's YouTube channel or listen wherever you get your podcasts to catch this essential conversation about the future of higher education and why the classroom is where democracy learns to think.

Why does Queer Studies matter for us all?

Join us for Episode #3 of the Futures Initiative podcast, dropping December 16th, as Faculty Chair Shelly Eversley sits down with Professor of English and Director of CLAGS, Matt Brim and Distinguished Professor of Psychology, Kevin Nadal for a vital conversation about the integration of Queer Studies across academic disciplines and everyday life.

At a time when queer and trans communities are under direct attack by governmental policies and dangerous rhetoric, this episode explores why Queer Studies should be an integral component in all levels of education. Our guests make a powerful case for why Queer Studies is an essential field of study for everyone regardless of age, gender, and sexual orientation.

We'll also dive into the interdisciplinary possibilities of Queer Studies in the academy and beyond.

Subscribe to the Futures Initiative's YouTube channel or listen wherever you get your podcasts to catch this essential conversation about the future of higher education and why the classroom is where democracy learns to think.

Join us for Episode #2 of the Futures Initiative podcast, dropping November 18, as Faculty Chair Shelly Eversley sits down with Professor and journalist Moustafa Bayoumi and Distinguished Professor Michelle Fine for a vital conversation about academic freedom in our current moment.

At a time when what we say, what we teach, and what we study on college campuses faces unprecedented challenges, this episode explores why our classrooms must remain spaces where we can engage the deep and difficult subjects that shape our world. Our guests make a powerful case for why academic freedom isn't just an abstract principle—it's essential for the kind of education that prepares students to think critically and to navigate complexity.

We'll also dive into why universities should protect students' rights to peacefully protest and what's at stake when we restrict the free exchange of ideas on campus.

Subscribe to the Futures Initiative's YouTube channel or listen wherever you get your podcasts to catch this essential conversation about the future of higher education and why the classroom is where democracy learns to think