The COVID-19 pandemic doesn’t seem like it would be fodder for comics. But the recently released anthology “COVID Chronicles” takes on the heavy topic in more than 60 comics. They range from single New Yorker-style panels up to 17 pages. And the topics go from funny to deadly serious. Here to talk with us about “COVID Chronicles” is Kendra Boileau, assistant director and editor-in-chief of Penn State University Press. The book is published under its Graphic Mundi imprint, where she’s the publisher. We also have with us Penn State Brill Professor Emerita of English Susan Squier, who studies the ..read more

The COVID-19 pandemic doesn’t seem like it would be fodder for comics. But the recently released anthology “COVID Chronicles” takes on the heavy topic in more than 60 comics. They range from single New Yorker-style panels up to 17 pages. And the topics go from funny to deadly serious. Here to talk with us about “COVID Chronicles” is Kendra Boileau, assistant director and editor-in-chief of Penn State University Press. The book is published under its Graphic Mundi imprint, where she’s the publisher. We also have with us Penn State Brill Professor Emerita of English Susan Squier, who studies the ..read more

More people have felt anxious and isolated during the pandemic. At the same time, mental health services have been harder to access. Aimee Burns, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Blair County, talked with WPSU's Min Xian about COVID-19’s impacts on the mental health care system and shared her personal story of living with mental illness. Here’s their interview: Min Xian: Welcome to Take Note on WPSU. I’m Min Xian. With pandemic restrictions on social interaction, many mental health services were limited over the past year, while more people experienced isolation ..read more

On this episode of Take Note, we talk with Nyla Holland, an active member of the 3/20 Coalition in State College and the former president of Penn State's Black Caucus. She spent her four years at Penn State as an activist at the university and the local community. In the fall, she will continue her education at Penn State in pursuit of a master's degree in public policy where she'll continue as an activist. Here is the interview: Welcome to Take Note on WPSU. From my home studio, I’m Jade Campos. Nyla Holland has been a fierce advocate for social justice in State College and at Penn State duri ..read more

Scott Weidensaul is a naturalist and writer, the author of about 30 books, including one out in March of this year, “A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds.” In the book, Weidensaul takes readers across the word to see the incredible feats of migrating birds. We learn that some birds travel thousands of miles at a time and many of them make those treks in the darkness of night. Weidensaul also writes about the added challenges birds are facing from loss of habitat and climate change. A native of Pennsylvania, Weidensaul got his start writing about birds and nature in a colu ..read more

The pandemic has been challenging for many artists. On this episode of Take Note we talked with Joy Ike, a full time singer-songwriter from Philadelphia, about how she's made music during quarantine. For just over a decade, Joy has been traveling the country doing house concerts and performing in festivals. But during shutdowns, Joy had to adapt to creating music in a new way. That included producing a whole song and music video from her apartment. And now, she is helping other artists grow. Check out her music here. Here is the interview: Shelby Lincoln: Joy, thanks for joining us today. Joy ..read more

“But what about me?” --that’s common pushback around movements that focus on the rights of specific marginalized populations like Black Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate. Karen Armstrong, director of Inclusion, Equity, and Diversity at Penn State Outreach and Online Education, talks with WPSU's Lindsey Whissel Fenton about why this type of activism elicits such strong reactions and the fallacy that supporting the rights of one group takes away from another . For Penn State diversity resources, click here . Here's that interview: Lindsey Whissel Fenton: Welcome to Take Note. For WPSU, from my ho ..read more

Psychologist Guy Winch is a leading advocate for integrating the science of emotional health into our daily lives. He’s written several books, including How to Fix a Broken Heart . Winch talked with WPSU's Lindsey Whissel Fenton about the disenfranchised grief experiences of romantic heartbreak and the death of a beloved pet and about what we can do for ourselves and for each other during these experiences. To watch Guy's Ted Talk How to Fix a Broken Heart , click here . Here is the interview: Lindsey Whissel Fenton: Welcome to Take Note for WPSUm from my home studio, I'm Lindsey Whissel Fento ..read more

Psychologist Guy Winch is a leading advocate for integrating the science of emotional health into our daily lives. He’s written several books, including How to Fix a Broken Heart . Winch talked with WPSU's Lindsey Whissel Fenton about the disenfranchised grief experiences of romantic heartbreak and the death of a beloved pet and about what we can do for ourselves and for each other during these experiences. To watch Guy's Ted Talk How to Fix a Broken Heart , click here . Here is the interview: Lindsey Whissel Fenton: Welcome to Take Note for WPSUm from my home studio, I'm Lindsey Whissel Fento ..read more

On this Take Note, we hear about the Colored Conventions Project. For much of the 19th Century, African Americans gathered in cities across the United States to participate in state and national-level political meetings that went far beyond slavery and conventional racial narratives to discuss education, labor, and what true equal citizenship would look like. We’ll hear from Gabrielle Foreman and Jim Casey, two Penn State professors who’ve spent the past 10 years collecting the historical records of these meetings. They’re co-directors of the Colored Conventions Project and co-authors of the b ..read more