Alumna Cassie Thierfelder '10 joins Jim on the podcast to discuss developing and advocating for just and equitable policy. Cassie is the Advocacy and Government Relations Manager at United Way for Southeastern Michigan and gives us insight into the range of advocacy issues that affect the Detroit region including education policy, racial inequity, community organizing and civic engagement.

1998 alum and 2018 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, the Honorable Manvel Trice III joins Jim on the podcast to share his experience as a lawyer and judge in Saginaw County. Judge Trice discusses how important it is to help others and enhance the quality of life in your community.

Alum Ryan Tarrant '00, President and CEO of the Bay Area Chamber of Commerce, joins Jim Dwyer on the podcast to discuss the current political climate as well as the role of the Chamber of Commerce in a community. Ryan gives some great insight on how to be involved in all the activities that create a great community.

Anthony Flores ’15 is a counselor in Virginia, where he uses his talents and training to help people deal with trauma and stress. In this episode, Anthony educates us on how stress really affects us and how prevalent the stigma on mental health still is today. Anthony shares tips and insights that apply to everyone in maintaining their mental health.

Chris Pryor ’95, ’00, pastor of Victorious Believers Ministries, joins the podcast to share incredible insight on spirituality and leading his congregation. Chris worked in the corporate world for 13 years and uses his life experience to relate his faith and movement to the lives of people today. Chris emphasizes the importance of a healthy balance in faith, work and family. Chris packs his interview with insightful advice on life and self-development.

Command Sergeant Major (R) Gretchen Evans ’13 joins the podcast to share her phenomenal story of how she managed to regain her motivation to live after the trauma of her near-death experience in Afghanistan caused her to lose her hearing and military career in an instant. Evans candidly shares her story, the good and the bad, along with specific ways she fought back from the despair and created a new life for herself.

Darrin Flowers ’07, 7th and 8th-grade teacher at the University of Detroit Jesuit, discusses with us the importance of creating relationships with students outside of subjects in the curriculum. Darrin felt called to become a teacher during his time substitute teaching where he saw the lack of black male figures in all the schools he went to. He shares how diverse students’ backgrounds can be and how much their life outside of the classroom affects their learning and, therefore, how he chooses to teach them.

Kathryn Kigera '08, Director of Quality Initiatives in Early Learning at the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education, joins Beyond the Valley to talk about how parents and educators can best manage their distance learning efforts while classes remain online or shift into hybrid forms. Kathryn talks about her own path from SVSU to Washington D.C., best practices for reinforcing curricula and how families and educators can work together to maintain the important relationships children have with their teachers and schools.   Links to resources mentioned by Kathryn in the episode: DC Child Care Connections: https://dcchildcareconnections.org/ OSSE Distance Learning Resources: https://osse.dc.gov/distancelearning

David Abbs '83, Partner and Wealth Advisor at Abbs Retirement Planning Advisors, joins Beyond the Valley to discuss how we can best cope with the financial impact that the COVID-19 pandemic may be having on our lives.  For more information, please visit https://www.abbsadvisors.com/.

As part of our continuing coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, three-time alumna Dr. Smriti Pant joins the podcast to talk about her work at a drive-through testing center in Saginaw run by Great Lakes Bay Health Centers. She gives details on when members of the public should seek testing, how we can avoid contracting and spreading the coronavirus and how the public can support essential healthcare workers in this trying time. For more information about Great Lake Bay Health Centers' COVID-19 testing stations in Saginaw, Bay and Huron counties and how you can support GLBHC, please visit https://greatlakesbayhealthcenters.org/.