Duets

About Duets

A podcast exploring the human side of research collaborations between Duke faculty and undergraduate students.

Publisher

Trinity College at Duke

Category

education

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

6 Aug 2024

Latest episode

21 Aug 2025

Latest episodes

12 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   21 Aug 2025

   Finding the Flow: Hip Hop Pedagogy and Transformative Student Engagement

   Professor Kisha Daniels and Duke undergraduate student Selena Collins’ collaborative service-learning course, Critical Pedagogy of Hip Hop, connects Duke students and Durham Public School middle and high schoolers. Working in partnership with public school educators, Duke students create engaging learning environments that celebrate language, critical thinking and social justice through hip hop music. Rooted in relationship-building and student empowerment, the course work confirms how community-based, collaborative learning can strengthen student engagement and inspire the next generation. Episode Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maximov Music Composition: André Mego, T’20 | MMS’21 Production Sponsor: Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University Recording Date and Location: May 2025, Bryan Center Studios

2. 

   21 Aug 2025

   Beyond the Frame: Art as Reckoning and Reimagination

   Duke faculty Pedro Lasch and UNC faculty Sherrill Roland’sartistic collaborations ask: How does art reclaim our humanity?After spending ten months in prison for a crime he didn’tcommit and for which he was exonerated, Roland returned tohis art practice not just to heal, but to challenge. Through afellowship with Lasch’s Social Practice Lab — which bringstogether scholars, artists, and activists — Roland created theexhibit “Processing Systems: Numbers,” a reckoning with howwe see, name and remember those impacted by the criminaljustice system. Lasch has spent nearly two decades usingmirrors to interrogate the politics of perception and power. Hisongoing series, Black Mirror / Espejo Negro, layers iconicEuropean paintings with pre-Columbian sculptures ontodarkened glass, letting the mirror reflect and challenge ourviews on their history. These two artists do not make art thatjust hangs on walls, but that asks us to reimagine the world inwhich we live. Episode Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity CommunicationsAudio Editor and Mixer: Marc MaximovMusic Composition: André Mego, T’20 | MMS ‘21Production Sponsor: Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke UniversityRecording Date and Location: May 2025, Bryan Center Studios

3. 

   21 Aug 2025

   Bridging Campuses and Classrooms: University Partnerships That Power Community Schools

   Since their first meeting six years ago, Alec Greenwald from Duke University and Yolanda Dunston from North Carolina Central University have been united in a shared vision: Supporting public schools that serve as hubs of opportunity, healing and innovation. Through the university-assistance framework, Duke and NCCU act as a unified partner for local public schools, providing targeted support based on direct input from the school’s community, including its students, families and teachers. The partnership helps facilitate the integration of university-assisted academic programs and social services, and demonstrates how when universities join together, they can use collective resources to strengthen local communities. Episode Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maximov Assistant Content Editor: K’Mari Peede, Dr. MAC Fellow, Trinity Communications, Summer 2025 Music Composition: André Mego, T’20 | MMS ‘21 Production Sponsor: Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University Recording Date and Location: June 2025, Bryan Center Studios

4. 

   21 Aug 2025

   Coding for Community: Innovation and Engagement in Computer Science Education

   Professor Shaundra Daily and Trinity ’25 alumna Reagan Razon’s collaborative research is rooted at the intersection of computer science, education, access, and innovation. Their community engaged programs include the student-led nonprofit CS Sidekicks, which brings CS education and mentorship directly to Durham Public Schools, and the L.I.F.T. Lab, where students explore engineering concepts through the light of their personal experiences. These programs aren’t just teaching technical skills — they are rewriting the code on how research can spark lasting change. Episode Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maximov Music Composition: André Mego, T’20 | MMS ‘21 Production Sponsor: Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University Recording Date and Location: April 2025, Bryan Center Studios

5. 

   21 Aug 2025

   Drawing Durham: Documenting the Indie Comics Scene Through Story and Memory

   Professor Adam Rosenblatt and undergraduate student Shreya Joshi’s collaborative research uses oral history and visual storytelling to document Durham’s independent comics scene. From in-depth interviews with self-published creators and small-press artists, to exploring the key spaces that sustain the local indie comics community — like the Durham Public Libraries —this community-engaged research preserves the stories, places, people and culture that shape North Carolina’s creative pulse. Episode Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maximov Music Composition: André Mego, T’20 | MMS ‘21 Production Sponsor: Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University Recording Date and Location: March 2025, Bryan Center Studios

6. 

   21 Aug 2025

   Behind the Data: Mental Health and the Justice System in Durham County

   Faculty team Maria Tackett and Nicole Schramm-Sapyta's seven-year project is transforming our understanding and responses to the needs of people navigating Durham’s criminal justice and healthcare systems. Working with student researchers and in collaboration with the Durham County Detention Facility, Justice Services Center, and Duke Health, they’ve compiled one of the most comprehensive datasets of its kind, covering over 23,000 individuals with mental health diagnoses who were locally incarcerated between 2014 and 2023. This year, the project has expanded to include personal interviews and focus groups centering the voices of those who have experienced incarceration while managing mental illness or substance use disorders. The goal? Better interventions, support for smart policy decisions, and stronger partnership between health and criminal justice systems in Durham and beyond. Episode Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maximov Music Composition: André Mego, T’20 | MMS ‘21 Production Sponsor: Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University Recording Date and Location: April 2025, Bryan Center Studios

7. 

   7 Aug 2024

   Research is Never Really Finished

   <p>Episode 6: Mathematics and Biology professor Veronica Ciocanel and student Daniel Block (T’24) discuss their shared experience of being math students at Duke, what it means to let go of a project’s ownership and how to use the scientific method to investigate the existence of the Tooth Fairy.</p> <p><br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Credits</strong></p> <p><strong>Senior Editor and Producer: </strong>Cara August, Trinity Communications </p> <p><strong>Audio Editor and Mixer: </strong>Marc Maximov </p> <p><strong>Music Composition: </strong>Grace Davis, T’26 </p> <p><strong>Production Sponsor: </strong>Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University </p> <p><strong>Recording Date and Location:</strong> April 2024, Bryan Center Studios </p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Full Transcript:</strong> https://trinity.duke.edu/news/duets-episode-6-research-never-really-finished</p>

8. 

   7 Aug 2024

   Living in the Both

   <p>Episode 5: Asian American & Diaspora Studies professor Eileen Chow and student Huiyin Zhou (T’24) discuss the fruits of inter-generational collaboration, the power of collective poetry writing and the different kinds of intimacies that emerge from being able to comfortably switch between languages.</p> <p><br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Credits</strong></p> <p><strong>Senior Editor and Producer: </strong>Cara August, Trinity Communications </p> <p><strong>Audio Editor and Mixer: </strong>Marc Maximov </p> <p><strong>Music Composition: </strong>Grace Davis, T’26 </p> <p><strong>Production Sponsor: </strong>Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University </p> <p><strong>Recording Date and Location:</strong> April 2024, Bryan Center Studios </p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Full Transcript:</strong> https://trinity.duke.edu/news/duets-episode-5-living-both</p>

9. 

   7 Aug 2024

   Turn the Lights On

   <p>Episode 4: Dance professor Iyun Harrison and student Leah Esemuede (T’24) discuss how the body is politicized in the ballet world, the vital role of artistic skills on overall student success, and the decisions a choreographer must make when staging a dance piece — including the importance of lighting design.</p> <p><br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Credits</strong></p> <p><strong>Senior Editor and Producer:</strong> Cara August, Trinity Communications </p> <p><strong>Audio Editor and Mixer:</strong> Marc Maximov </p> <p><strong>Music Composition:</strong> Grace Davis, T’26 </p> <p><strong>Production Sponsor: </strong>Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University </p> <p><strong>Recording Date and Location: </strong>March 2024, Bryan Center Studios </p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Full Transcript:</strong> https://trinity.duke.edu/news/duets-episode-4-turn-lights</p>

10. 

    6 Aug 2024

    Don’t Choose the Group, Choose the People

    <p>Episode 3: Cultural Anthropology professor Christine Folch and student Andrew McCallum (T’24) discuss the value of friendship and camaraderie in research, how forgotten stories can be uncovered in archival records, and the cultural significance of South America’s most popular beverage, yerba mate — whose North American cousin hides in plain sight on Duke’s campus.</p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Credits</strong></p> <p><strong>Senior Editor and Producer:</strong> Cara August, Trinity Communications </p> <p><strong>Audio Editor and Mixer:</strong> Marc Maximov </p> <p><strong>Music Composition:</strong> Grace Davis, T’26 </p> <p><strong>Production Sponsor: </strong>Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University </p> <p><strong>Recording Date and Location:</strong> April 2024, Bryan Center Studios </p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Full Transcript:</strong> https://trinity.duke.edu/news/duets-episode-3-dont-choose-group-choose-people</p>

11. 

    6 Aug 2024

    This Thing We Call Democracy

    <p>Episode 2: History professor Gunther Peck and student Hannah McKnight (T’22) discuss the importance of curiosity in democracy work, their shared experience as 20-year-old volunteers at voter registration drives, and the need for collective action to create meaningful social change.</p> <p><br /></p> <p>Credits</p> <p>Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications </p> <p>Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maximov </p> <p>Music Composition: Grace Davis, T’26 </p> <p>Production Sponsor: Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University </p> <p>Recording Date and Location: December 2023, Bryan Center Studios </p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Full Transcript:</strong> https://trinity.duke.edu/news/duets-episode-2-thing-we-call-democracy</p>

12. 

    6 Aug 2024

    Keep Hope Alive

    <p>Episode 1: Chemistry professor Kathy Franz and student Sophia Kuhn (T’24) discuss the artistic side of chemistry, the rapid pace of technological advancements in the field and the value of persistence in overcoming challenges, especially when experiments don’t go as planned.</p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Credits</strong></p> <p><strong>Senior Editor and Producer:</strong> Cara August, Trinity Communications</p> <p><strong>Audio Editor and Mixer: </strong>Marc Maximov</p> <p><strong>Music Composition: </strong>Grace Davis, T’26</p> <p><strong>Production Sponsor: </strong>Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Duke University</p> <p><strong>Recording Date and Location: </strong>March 2024, Bryan Center Studios</p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Full Transcript:</strong> https://trinity.duke.edu/news/duets-episode-1-keep-hope-alive</p>

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Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.