Symposia

S4E5 - Chris Aukstikalnis & Sage Tanguay Signing Off

Wed, 23 Jul 2025 16:28:57 -0000

Episode Notes

Sage Tanguay's last episode as Producer at Brown College featuring a reflective conversation with Chris Aukstikalnis on her nearly three decades on Monroe Hill. Best wishes for the future!

Music in this episode is provided by Blue Dot Sessions.

Symposia is a production of Brown College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

S4E4 - Adrienne Ghaly & Cristina Griffin: The Reading Habits of College Students

Wed, 19 Mar 2025 19:15:22 -0000

Episode Notes

A conversation with Brown College Faculty Fellow Adrienne Ghaly and her fellow UVA English Professor Cristina Griffins, specially introduced by Kalela Williams, the Director of the Virginia Center for the Book.

The Virginia Festival of the book is March 20th through 23rd in Charlottesville, VA. More information can be found at https://www.vabook.org/

Music in this episode is provided by Blue Dot Sessions.

Symposia is a production of Brown College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

S4E3 - Louie Palu: Q & A

Fri, 20 Dec 2024 19:14:26 -0000

Episode Notes

Q & A that followed Photojournalist Louie Palu's presentation to Brown College. We'll also hear from Brown College resident Daniel Hong, who plans on entering the media industry after graduation. Brought to you in cooperation with the Virginia Quarterly Review.

You can read "The Next Cold War" on VQR's website or in their Fall 2024 issue. You can experience Louie Palu's portfolio on his website: LouiePalu.com

Special thanks to Paul Reyes and everyone at VQR and Brown College who made this event possible!

Music in this episode is provided by Blue Dot Sessions.

Symposia is a production of Brown College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

S4E2 - Louie Palu: The Next Cold War

Fri, 20 Dec 2024 19:14:15 -0000

Episode Notes

Photojournalist Louie Palu's presentation to Brown College about the Distant Early Warning system, war preparations in the Arctic, and how indigenous technologies offer the essential tools for the first battle: simply surviving the frigid climate. Brought to you in cooperation with the Virginia Quarterly Review.

You can read "The Next Cold War" on VQR's website or in their Fall 2024 issue. You can experience Louie Palu's portfolio on his website: LouiePalu.com

Special thanks to Paul Reyes and everyone at VQR and Brown College who made this event possible!

Music in this episode is provided by Blue Dot Sessions.

Symposia is a production of Brown College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

S4E1 - Alumni Reflections

Tue, 17 Sep 2024 18:47:17 -0000

Episode Notes

A collection of memories, testimonies, and well wishes about Brown Residential College from alumni to current and future residents!

If you're an alum and would like to reach out and share your story, email symposia@virginia.edu!

Music in this episode is provided by Blue Dot Sessions.

Symposia is a production of Brown College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

S3E4 - Sister Revolutions: Give Me Liberty

Mon, 06 May 2024 12:00:00 -0000

Episode Notes

Give Me Liberty: Charlottesville and the American Revolution from 1776 to 2026

Historian Benjamin Bernard and producer Sage Tanguay hand the microphone to their University of Virginia students to interview history-lovers and experts in Charlottesville. How did Charlottesville experience the Age of Revolutions? In the lead-up to 2026—which will represent the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence—what should citizens of our sister cities know about revolutionary historical memory today?

Sister Revolutions is a limited-run documentary series made possible by the Charlottesville Sister Cities Commission, Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia, and America 2026. You can learn more about each of these organizations on their websites: www.cvillesistercities.org, https://browncollege.virginia.edu/ and www.america2026.eu

Sister Revolutions is produced and hosted by Benjamin Bernard and Sage Tanguay
With production assistance from Sophia Moore
French Transcription and Translation by Oriane Guiziou-Lamour
Music in this episode was provided by Blue Dot Sessions

This episode featured the voices of:

Iris De Rode
Emily Hemlinger
Kirt Von Daacke
Brennen Muller
Kay Slaughter
Lara Howell
David McCormick

Special thanks to

Elizabeth Smiley of the Charlottesville Sister Cities Commission
Ben Larsen of WTJU for running sound at our launch event
Bertrand Van Ruymbeke of America 2026
Prof. Ari Blatt, Chair of the University of Virginia French Department
Florent Werguet, Head of international relations for the City of Besancon
Hugo Toudic Associate director of the University of Chicago center in Paris

Sister Revolutions is hosted by Symposia: a production of Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

S3E3 - Sister Revolutions: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity

Mon, 29 Apr 2024 12:00:00 -0000

Episode Notes

Sister Revolutions III: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity (1776–1848)

How did the provincial military town of Besançon experience the French Revolution? University of Virginia historian Benjamin Bernard and producer Sage Tanguay consider the transition from monarchy to democracy in a city that produced many of France’s leading social thinkers of the early nineteenth century. This episode features discussions with French and American doctoral students and historians--as well as an extended interview with Léonel de Moustier, a descendant of François-Elie de Moustier, who was the French ambassador to America during the French Revolution.

Sister Revolutions is produced and hosted by Benjamin Bernard and Sage Tanguay
Production assistance from Sophia Moore and Ben Larsen
French Transcription and Translation by Oriane Guiziou-Lamour
English voiceover by Nathan Moore, Tracey Gerlach, Russ Perry, and Dan Hennicke

The music in this episode was provided by Blue Dot Sessions and by violinist Daniel Sender, Charlottesville Sister Cities grantee performing music by Michel Blavet (1700-1768).

This episode featured the voices of:

Leïla Tnaïnchi
Oriane Guiziou-Lamour
André Ferrer from the Société d’émulation du Doubs and Professor Emeritus at the University of Burgundy Franche-Comté
Gaëlle Cavalli from the Citadelle of Besançon
Lionel Estavoyer
Léonel de Moustier
Amandine Royer

Special thanks to

Elizabeth Smiley of the Charlottesville Sister Cities Commission
Gaspard de Moustier
Bertrand Van Ruymbeke of America 2026
Prof. Ari Blatt, Chair of the University of Virginia French Department
Florent Werguet, Head of international relations for the City of Besançon
Hugo Toudic Associate director of the University of Chicago center in Paris

Sister Revolutions is hosted by Symposia: a production of Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

S3E2 - Sister Revolutions: Enlightenment

Mon, 22 Apr 2024 12:00:00 -0000

Episode Notes

Enlightenment: Besançon, 1740–1788

Besançon feels in many ways like an eighteenth-century city. In this second episode of “Sister Revolutions,” historian Benjamin Bernard and producer Sage Tanguay explore the intellectual and architectural efflorescence of the Enlightenment in Franche-Comté through interviews with historians—and a visit to Claude Nicolas Ledoux's imaginative Saline Royale (royal salt works) in the nearby village of Arc-et-Senans.

Sister Revolutions is produced and hosted by Benjamin Bernard and Sage Tanguay With production assistance from Sophia Moore French Transcription and Translation by Oriane Guiziou-Lamour And English voiceover by Lewis Reining and Nathan Moore The music in this episode was provided by Blue Dot Sessions

This episode featured the voices of:

Andre Ferrer from the Societe d’emulation du Doubs and Professor Emeritus at the University of Burgundy Franche-Comte
Pascal Brunet public architectural historian
Gregory Le Moing at the Royal Salt Works of Arc-et-Senans
Sarah MacDonald and Yves al-Ghazi

Special thanks to

Elizabeth Smiley of the Charlottesville Sister Cities Commission
Bertrand Van Ruymbeke of America 2026
Prof. Ari Blatt, Chair of the University of Virginia French Department
Florent Werguet, Head of international relations for the City of Besancon
Hugo Toudic Associate director of the University of Chicago center in Paris

Sister Revolutions is hosted by Symposia: a production of Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

S3E1 - Sister Revolutions: Conquest

Mon, 15 Apr 2024 12:00:00 -0000

Episode Notes

Conquest: When Besançon Became French, 1670–1740

Join historian Benjamin Bernard and producer Sage Tanguay as they learn about the French conquest of Besançon in the late seventeenth century through visits to Besançon's Saint-Jean Cathedral and its citadel. They explore the significance of this period for the “sister city" relationship between Charlottesville and Besançon.

Sister Revolutions is produced and hosted by Benjamin Bernard and Sage Tanguay With production assistance from Sophia Moore French Transcription and Translation by Oriane Guiziou-Lamour And English voiceover by Tracey Gerlach The music in this episode was provided by Blue Dot Sessions

This episode featured the voices of:

Dr. Katlyn Carter from the University of Notre Dame
Mathieu Fantoni from the Cathédrale Saint-Jean de Besançon
Gaelle Cavalli from La Citadelle Besancon
Noelle Antolin and Styvie Bearns

Special thanks to

Elizabeth Smiley of the Charlottesville Sister Cities Commission
Bertrand Van Ruymbeke of America 2026
Prof. Ari Blatt, Chair of the University of Virginia French Department
Florent Werguet, Head of international relations for the City of Besancon
Hugo Toudic Associate director of the University of Chicago center in Paris

Sister Revolutions is hosted by Symposia: a production of Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

Coming Soon: Sister Revolutions

Thu, 11 Apr 2024 21:38:57 -0000

About

Sister Revolutions is a public history community documentary podcast sponsored by the City of Charlottesville’s Sister Cities Commission (CSCC) and hosted by Brown College's Symposia podcast.

Through four episodes released weekly in Spring 2024, historian Benjamin Bernard, Ph.D. and audio producer Sage Tanguay explore the legacy of the American and French Revolutions through the sister city relationship between Charlottesville, Virginia, USA and Besançon, France.

The series features extensive conversations with scholars, public historians, curators, and community members at historic and civic institutions in both cities. Available wherever you get your podcasts!

This project was made possible by: Brown Residential College The Charlottesville Sister Cities Commission WTJU 91.1FM and the Virginia Audio Collective, The UVA Department of French The America2026 project (america2026.eu) Laurent Bruneau

S2E4 - Southern Poetry Anthology Reading

Wed, 13 Dec 2023 16:53:03 -0000

Welcome to a poetry reading at the Monroe Hill House! John Casteen, the Director of Studies at Brown College is our host for the presentation by poets featured in the Southern Poetry Anthology IX: Virginia.

Robert Wood Lynn is a writer from Virginia. His debut poetry collection Mothman Apologia was the winner of the 2021 Yale Younger Poets Prize and 2023 Kate Tufts Discovery Award. His work has been featured in American Poetry Review, Poetry Daily, Poetry Magazine, The Yale Review and other publications. A 2023 National Endowment for the Arts creative writing fellow, he teaches creative writing at Juilliard. Leah Naomi Green is the author of The More Extravagant Feast (Graywolf Press, 2020), selected by Li-Young Lee for the Walt Whitman Award of the Academy of American Poets. She teaches environmental studies and English at Washington and Lee University specializing in Environmental Literature and Creative Writing. Her work has appeared in or is forthcoming from The Paris Review, Tin House, Poem-a-Day, VQR, The Southern Review, Orion, Shenandoah, Ecotone, and Pleiades among other publications. Amy Woolard is Chief Program Officer for the ACLU of Virginia, where she works on civil rights & civil liberties advocacy in Virginia. Her debut poetry collection, NECK OF THE WOODS, received the 2018 Alice James Award from Alice James Books. Her poems have appeared in The New Yorker, The Paris Review, Poetry, Boston Review, Ploughshares, Fence, & elsewhere, while her essays and reporting have been featured in publications such as Slate, The Guardian, Pacific Standard, and The Rumpus, as well as Virginia Quarterly Review, which awarded her the Staige D. Blackford Prize for Nonfiction in 2016.

S2E3 - George Butler: Artist Reporter

Fri, 01 Dec 2023 19:12:57 -0000

On this episode of Symposia, Brown College Principal Jim Coan and producer Sage Tanguay sit down with George Butler - an illustrator in reportage who uses art to document the humanitarian crisis of war and climate disasters from places like Ukraine, Syria, and Afghanistan.

In coordination with the Virginia Quarterly Review, Brown College hosted George Butler for a presentation of his work in September 2023.

Produced by Sage Tanguay and Jim Coan with assistance from Sophia Moore and Eshe Sherley.

S2E1 - Gerard Koskovich: Queer Antiquarian Books and Ephemera

Tue, 14 Nov 2023 17:24:11 -0000

A conversation between Dr. Benjamin Bernard and his long-time friend and fellow book-lover, Gerard Koskovich. Gerard is an antiquarian book dealer who specializes in LGBTQ, gender and sexuality literature. He also is a collector of Queer ephemera and has assisted museums and universities in the establishment and curation of their own LGBTQ archives.

You can find more information about Gerard at https://www.abaa.org/booksellers/details/gerard-koskovich-queer-antiquarian-books

This episode was produced by Libby Eveland, with assistance by Sage Tanguay

Emily Rutherford: Q & A

Tue, 07 Nov 2023 20:54:51 -0000

The Q & A portion of Emily Rutherford's Lecture More info: https://emilymrutherford.com/

S2E2 - Emily Rutherford - "Historians Will Say They Were Just Good Friends: University Histories, Queer Histories"

Tue, 07 Nov 2023 20:45:47 -0000

An exploration of what we really mean when we describe people in history as "just being good friends." Where does platonic love end and romantic love begin...does it even matter? And how can we better understand the historical significance of these relationships? Dr. Emily Rutherford presents an interesting look at the relationships between women in early residential colleges.

For more information: https://emilymrutherford.com/

S2E1 - Hauntings: A Brown College Tradition

Wed, 06 Sep 2023 16:00:00 -0000

Every fall, the residents of Brown College put on a philanthropic haunted house on Monroe Hill. Students do everything from construct the pathway, to creating the costumes, and performing in the house as guides and actors. We documented some of the process in 2022 and are now releasing this episode to hype everyone up for this year's event!

Symposia is a production of the Community Media Initiative at Brown College and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

This episode was produced by resident Sophia Moore. The interviews were conducted by Sage Tanguay. Special thanks to all of the participants who spoke with us last year!

S1E7 - Jazz Across The Atlantic: Damien Groleau and John D'earth

Sat, 03 Jun 2023 23:25:07 -0000

A conversation with leader of the UVA Jazz Ensemble, John D'earth, and guest musician Damien Groleau - visiting us all the way from one of Charlottesville's Sister Cities: Besançon, France! You can find more information about Damien and his music on his website, www.damiengroleau.fr More information about John and the UVA Jazz Ensemble can be found on the Music Department website, music.virginia.edu.

Special thanks to David McNair for providing the recording we heard at the very end from the performance at the Paramount Theater. You can find video of the full concert performed at Old Cabell Hall on the UVA Music Youtube channel, under the Live Tab.

Symposia is a production of the Brown College Community Media Initiative and the Virginia Audio Collective. This episode was produced by Sage Tanguay and Ben Bernard, with production assistance from Sophia Moore. Subscribe to Symposia and our sister show Circle of Willis, wherever you get your podcasts.

Our theme music is provided by Blue Dot Sessions.

S1E6 - Tess Farmer - Well Connected: Everyday Water Practices in Cairo

Fri, 28 Apr 2023 20:34:29 -0000

A conversation with Brown College Faculty Fellow Tess Farmer about her new (and first) book "Well Connected: Everyday Water Practices in Cairo". We discuss the importance of an anthropological approach to infrastructure development.

Tess Farmer is an Assistant Professor in Department of Anthropology and the Program in Global Studies at the University of Virginia, and also serves as the Track Director for the Global Studies-Middle East South Asia undergraduate major.

You can find her new book at the UVa Bookstore!

This podcast is part of the Community Media Initiative at Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia, as well as the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM. Produced by Sage Tanguay with assistance from Sophia Moore Featuring music from Blue Dot Sessions

S1E5 - Brown Talk : Alexander Templeton - Effective Altruism

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 18:37:32 -0000

A Brown Talk presented by Brown College resident Alexander Templeton on Effective Altruism at the Monroe Hill House on Friday, February 10th, 2023.

This podcast is part of the Community Media Initiative at Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia, as well as the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM. Brown Talks are facilitated by Rory McAlevy Hosted by Jim Coan Produced by Sage Tanguay with assistance from Sophia Moore Featuring music from Blue Dot Sessions

S1E4 - French Cultural Exchange at UVa

Wed, 08 Feb 2023 18:02:43 -0000

A conversation with French Department Chair Professor Janet Horne and Dr. Vincent Michelot, the French Embassy's Cultural Attaché for Higher Education about their development of the Lyon Study Abroad program at UVa - featuring conversations with current students Liam Mann and Michelle Wurmser.

This podcast is part of the Community Media Initiative at Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia, as well as the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

Featuring music from Blue Dot Sessions Produced by Sage Tanguay and Ben Bernard with production assistance from Briton Graber and Sophia Moore

S1E3 - Alan Lightman - Science and the Humanities

Mon, 02 Jan 2023 05:00:00 -0000

A speech given by Alan Lightman in October 2022, recorded at the Dome Room at the Rotunda of the University of Virginia. Alan Lightman is hosting a new docuseries called “Searching: Our Quest for Meaning in the Age of Science.” It will broadcast on public television and begin streaming online at PBS.org on January 7th, 2023.

This podcast is part of the Community Media Initiative at Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia, as well as the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.

Featuring music from Blue Dot Sessions Hosted by Jim and Veronica Coan Produced by Sage Tanguay Our Production Assistant is Sophia Moore

S1E2 - Matriculation : The Academic Transition to College

Mon, 19 Dec 2022 17:00:00 -0000

Brown College Residential Faculty Fellow Dr. Ben Bernard sets out to demystify the academic transition into a 4-year University such as UVa. Through a series of interviews, Ben and his guests will discuss what they feel are the most pertinent differences between high school and collegiate academics. We'll hear from a writing and college admissions tutor, professors at UVa who have dedicated their work to First Year education, and the students themselves.

This podcast is part of the Community Media Initiative at Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia, as well as the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM. Featuring music from Blue Dot Sessions Produced by Sage Tanguay Hosted by Ben Bernard Our Production Assistant is Sophia Moore

S1E1 - Desh Girod : Jim Crow Foreign Policy

Mon, 05 Dec 2022 17:00:00 -0000

A lecture about a pivotal moment in United States Foreign Policy. Desh Girod is an associate professor in the Department of Government at Georgetown University. Recorded on 9/27/2022 at the UVa, hosted by Brown College.

This podcast is part of the Community Media Initiative at Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia, as well as the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM. Produced by Sage Tanguay Hosted by Sophia Moore and Tessa Farmer Featuring music from Blue Dot Sessions