Playlist: Rachel Sapin's Portfolio
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National Society of Black Engineers Hosts First STEM Program in Denver
From Rachel Sapin | 04:18
Data from the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering shows the U.S. is not producing enough engineers to meet future demand. And they say engineers being produced do not reflect the nation’s increasing racial diversity. Non-Hispanic whites still comprise the largest group of STEM workers, while Non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic workers are half as likely as all workers to have STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) jobs. But efforts are being made to rectify this. The National Society of Black Engineers hosted a site for the Summer Engineering Experience for Kids Academy (SEEK) for 3rd through 5th graders at Maxwell Elementary School in Denver, this Summer. KGNU's Rachel Sapin went along and brings us a report.
Data from the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering shows the U.S. is not producing enough engineers to meet future demand. And they say engineers being produced do not reflect the nation’s increasing racial diversity. Non-Hispanic whites still comprise the largest group of STEM workers, while Non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic workers are half as likely as all workers to have STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) jobs. But efforts are being made to rectify this. The National Society of Black Engineers hosted a site for the Summer Engineering Experience for Kids Academy (SEEK) for 3rd through 5th graders at Maxwell Elementary School in Denver, this Summer. KGNU's Rachel Sapin went along and brings us a report.
Earthships Attempt to Make Their Way to Denver
From Rachel Sapin | 08:41
Fully self-sustainable homes known as Earthships have existed since the 1970s on the fringes of American cities and in towns where land is plentiful. Their most prominent communities exist in Taos, New Mexico.
But Denver/Boulder area residents are trying to change that. They want to make these unusual structures a fixture along the Front Range’s metro skyline as well, despite concerns from city officials.
Fully self-sustainable homes known as Earthships have existed since the 1970s on the fringes of American cities and in towns where land is plentiful. Their most prominent communities exist in Taos, New Mexico.
But Denver/Boulder area residents are trying to change that. They want to make these unusual structures a fixture along the Front Range’s metro skyline as well.
Despite the enthusiastic reception among many residents for more sustainable homes in the city, Earthships face a unique battle with Denver’s Community Planning and Development Department as they are homes that can exist entirely off of a municipal grid.
Hear what these Denver/Boulder residents had to say about Earthships.
A Fiddle Lesson At Jalopy
From Rachel Sapin | 03:54
The Jalopy Theater has been lauded as a folk mecca in Brooklyn pretty much since it opened its doors in the summer of 2007. In addition to hosting the Brooklyn Folk Festival every year, the 160-year-old Red Hook storefront features weekly old-timey jams on its vaudevillian stage.
- Playing
- A Fiddle Lesson At Jalopy
- From
- Rachel Sapin
The Jalopy Theater has been lauded as a folk mecca in Brooklyn pretty much since it opened its doors in the summer of 2007. In addition to hosting the Brooklyn Folk Festival every year, the 160-year-old Red Hook storefront features weekly old-timey jams on its vaudevillian stage.
Jalopy is also a breeding ground for new local bands. Many get their start in the Jalopy school where classes are taught in banjo, fiddle, and singing, to name few.
I sat in on a fiddle class at Jalopy in November and learned from Adam Moss how a traditional folk ballad is passed on.
You Gotta Know These Guys
From Rachel Sapin | 05:08
Name a corner on Carroll Gardens in South Brooklyn and Joe Igneri has probably hung out there.
The 50-year-old Carroll Gardens native has lived on these blocks his entire life. On a small stretch of Henry Street, he now manages the Pozzallo Society, one of the oldest organizations of its kind for Italians in Brooklyn. In its heyday during the mid-1950s and ’60s, the Pozzallo Society had around 500 members. Its numbers have dwindled to a little more than 200 today.
See the video here: http://audiofilespodcast.com/pozzallo/
- Playing
- You Gotta Know These Guys
- From
- Rachel Sapin
Name a corner on Carroll Gardens in South Brooklyn and Joe Igneri has probably hung out there.
The 50-year-old Carroll Gardens native has lived on these blocks his entire life. On a small stretch of Henry Street, he now manages the Pozzallo Society, one of the oldest organizations of its kind for Italians in Brooklyn. In its heyday during the mid-1950s and ’60s, the Pozzallo Society had around 500 members. Its numbers have dwindled to a little more than 200 today.
But the culture from the sandy shores of the Sicilian province of Pozzallo is preserved in the card games and the espressos in the society’s long, wood-paneled room. This is what Igneri strives to keep going in a changing neighborhood. Luckily, he has the help of newer residents, like 30-year-old Ryan Lucas who owns a cafe next door. While Lucas hasn’t won the men of Pozzallo over to his artisanal coffee, he still looks up to these remaining Italian stalwarts and wants them to stick around.
See the video here: http://audiofilespodcast.com/pozzallo/
A Borough of Churches
From Rachel Sapin | 04:20
North Williamsburg is best known by some these days as a party spot. But just a few blocks down from the bars of Bedford Avenue, something is fading from the neighborhood amid changing demographics: traditional, older churches. Here’s a look at why some houses of worship in Williamsburg are shutting down while others survive.
- Playing
- A Borough of Churches
- From
- Rachel Sapin
North Williamsburg is best known by some these days as a party spot. But just a few blocks down from the bars of Bedford Avenue, something is fading from the neighborhood amid changing demographics: traditional, older churches. Here’s a look at why some houses of worship in Williamsburg are shutting down while others survive.
RTD's West Corridor Line Revives Denver Metro Public Transit
From Rachel Sapin | 07:08
In 2010, I transcribed interviews from individuals involved with the Platte Valley Trolley Restoration, and their memories of the trolley that ran from Denver to Golden from the late 1800s until 1950. In partnership with KGNU Community Radio and the Jefferson County Public Library, this piece is about the trolley’s connection to Denver’s West Corridor Light Rail project, a 12.1 mile light rail transit corridor that follows much of the historic trolley’s path, as it runs from Denver through Lakewood into Golden. Much of the story focuses on how the new line will affect the suburban, rural neighborhoods it will run through in Lakewood, where many residents have the line going through what was once their backyard. The West Corridor Rail Line is set to open in May of 2013.
In 2010, I transcribed interviews from individuals involved with the Platte Valley Trolley Restoration, and their memories of the trolley that ran from Denver to Golden from the late 1800s until 1950. In partnership with KGNU Community Radio and the Jefferson County Public Library, this piece is about the trolley’s connection to Denver’s West Corridor Light Rail project, a 12.1 mile light rail transit corridor that follows much of the historic trolley’s path, as it runs from Denver through Lakewood into Golden. Much of the story focuses on how the new line will affect the suburban, rural neighborhoods it will run through in Lakewood, where many residents have the line going through what was once their backyard. The West Corridor Rail Line is set to open in May of 2013.
Boulder Vox Pop on Defense Budget
From Rachel Sapin | 01:20
Interview with a range of individuals in Boulder on the subject of whether the United States military defense budget should be reduced to help decrease the country's deficit.
- Playing
- Boulder Vox Pop on Defense Budget
- From
- Rachel Sapin
This vox pop was featured on a February 2011 edition of KGNU's economic series, "It's the Economy."