The Booce Teaches Podcast

Episode 10: Zen Compass: The Teacher Navigator with Dr. Noreen Barnes

In this episode, Dr. Noreen Barnes, a retired Theatre Graduate Program Director and Professor Emeritus at Virginia Commonwealth University, shares her journey of falling in love with theatre as a high school student. She also discusses the impact of her teachers and professors on her academic and professional development. Our conversation reflects on our shared love for all things theatre, creativity, and conscientious teaching, aiming to inspire students to discover their passions and make a positive impact on the world. As always, we wrap up with our favorite game of Top-Five, this time focusing on playwrights.

Episode 11: The Rooted Gardener with Dr. Vernon Hurte

In this episode, Dr. Vernon Hurte, now the Senior Vice President for Student Affairs and University Life at Towson University, shares insights into his journey as an inclusive-centered higher education administrator. He provides his academic and career journey as a testament that we can all blossom and grow where we are planted. Dr. Hurte particularly talks about why he chose Bowie State over Morehouse as a high school student, taking his family into consideration. He also reflects on the influence of his grandfather's legacy, who quietly supported those in need before embarking on holiday traditions without seeking attention. Interwoven into this conversation is the importance of fit, trust, and accountability for mentees and mentors. As always, we wrap up with our favorite game of Top-Five, this time focusing on multiple genres.

Episode 12: Communication Extraordinaire: Finding Your Voice Through Grief and Humor with Dr. Kim Payne

In this touching and humorous episode, Dr. Kimberly Payne, Organizational Development Manager at Old Dominion University, discusses her journey as a student, from her time at Norfolk State University trying to fit in and navigate life as an undergraduate student while coping with personal losses (trigger warning), to her professional experiences in radio and television production. She shares how mentors, including her parents and professors, guided and supported her through life's challenges. Throughout the conversation, she shares the importance of being authentic, addressing students' unique needs individually, and finding balance through hobbies and self-care. As always, we wrap up with our favorite game of Top-Five, this time focusing on favorite songs across genres and favorite moments in Hip Hop.

Episode 13: Renaissance of Precision with Dr. Corey D.B. Walker

In this illuminating episode, Dr. Corey D.B. Walker, Dean of Wake Forest University School of Divinity, Wake Forest Professor of the Humanities, and Director of the Program in African American Studies, takes us through his academic and life journey from Norfolk, VA, to North Carolina. This conversation includes topics on the fullness of Black community life, the importance of family and love, and the significance of academic and intellectual rigor in Black activism. As usual, this episode concludes with a conversation about Top Five Hip Hop artists with a slightly extended twist.

Episode 14: Gems of Experiences: Black Girls Being Seen with Dr. Erin Burke Brown

This is a transparent episode with Dr. Erin Burke Brown, Director of Professional Development for the Graduate School at Virginia Commonwealth University. She shares her academic journey through private school education and how she navigated that space, led by her mother’s mantra, “Education is the way out.” In this conversation, there is a confrontation or even a peeling back of Black middle-class structures and what it means to make it out of certain circumstances. There is also the shared lament that comes with being a Black woman in academia. The conversation continues, reflecting on unexpected mentorship support and paying it forward with others as Dr. Brown navigated undergraduate and graduate school as the nonprofit and higher education employment worlds. The conversation ends with a lively discussion about R&B artists.

Episode 15: Cuisine Connoisseur of Faith with Chef Amory James

This episode is about a faith-filled journey, especially for theological students, to accountability and responsibility through discovery, discipline, and openness. Chef Amory James, Director of the Community Kitchen and Meals on Wheels at Feed More, shares this culinary journey that began as an alternative to the family business, funeral service. Generously, he offers a blueprint for others to follow in the culinary field by sharing this journey from being a line cook to eventually becoming the director of an entire kitchen operation. He advises listeners to seek out opportunities to serve others in their communities, set boundaries with themselves and others, and find joy in their journeys to our purpose work. As usual, the conversation ends with the Top Five R&B artists.

Episode 16: Artistic Prophet | Venerating Our Clouds of Witnesses with Pastor Lisa Janes

This is yet another inspiring conversation, especially for theological students, with Pastor Lisa Janes, who is a painter, printmaker, librarian, and pastor. Pastor Janes reflects on the significant role her ancestors played in shaping her identity. Her academic and personal journey began in a nature-filled environment. She shares her passion for all things artistic, as well as the faith journey that led her to earn degrees in both art and theology. Through her diverse expressions of the beauty in the world, Pastor Janes offers insight into the mind of a painter. As always, the conversation concludes with the Top Five.

Episode 17: Connected and Listening: Embracing Wellness in the Heart of Tidewater

This is another theology-inspired conversation, especially for theological students, with Pastor, counselor, and soon-to-be Dr. Lucretia Mason Underdue. Pastor Mason Underdue invites us into her journey as a counselor, beginning as a teenager by being a listening ear and offering advice to her friends and loved ones. Not only does she share her complicated college story, but she also offers advice to check in with our well-being and motivation. Through laughter and joy, Pastor Mason Underdue reminisces about her love of music and even being a part of a girl group. Like the others, the conversation concludes with a Top Five journey into her love of gospel and R&B music.

Episode 18: Beauty for Ashes: The Open Book with Rev. Paula Watson

In this faith-inspiring episode, especially for theological students, Chaplain Paula Watson reflects on her Houstonian journey as a student, mother, teacher, minister, and children’s hospital chaplain. With an open book perspective, she shares the important moments in her life and the mentors who have guided her along the way. Chaplain Watson reveals how her personal experiences enable her to support others as a compassionate bridge during their own struggles. She also emphasizes the vital role her family has played in shaping her path. As always, the conversation concludes with the Top Five.

Episode 19: Recovering Memories with Tom Bannard

Recovery is a process. Tom Bannard almost immediately opens this conversation with his journey through recovery. He offers a blunt and candid view into his life as a student and later the Rams in Recovery Coordinator. He shares the impact of having too much time on one’s hands as a college student. He then chronicles how, with support, he has been able to redirect his life and support others in their recovery journeys, beginning at two nonprofits, CARITAS and the Healing (prior to their combination), and later at Virginia Commonwealth University. As always, the conversation concludes with the Top Five, with a stark difference between the 90s and early aughts and more recent (circa 2021) artists. Trigger warning: substance use discussion.