We’re thrilled to be launching the third season of text.soul.culture this week! Tune in to hear a conversation between Nicole Greenwald, Vice President of Brand & Enrollment, and our podcast hosts, Shauna Gauthier, Alumni Outreach Coordinator, and Dr. J. Derek McNeil, Acting President and Provost. Nicole, Shauna, and Derek reflect on the vision for this podcast, on how that vision aligns with the larger mission of The Seattle School, and on their hopes for this new season.
Shauna: “I want to hone in, in this next season, on dropping down into the topics that have this weightiness to them that have to do with this particular period of time in the world.”
Derek: “More lately, I think of text.soul.culture as being a vehicle of service. So I’m sure I’ll be asking a lot more questions about serving. […] This season will be around us trying to figure out how do we serve?”
If you’ve listened to past episodes, you’ll notice some differences in Season Three, including changes in production and episode structure. At the end of this episode, Nicole talks with Beau Denton, Content Curator, about some of these updates. We hope these changes reflect continued growth and innovation, while remaining true to our original mission for the text.soul.culture podcast: Grounded in the hope of fostering faithful dialogue, we are guided by a commitment to understanding narrative, wrestling with intersections, resisting reactivity, and fostering radical hospitality.
Beau: “As an institution, we prioritize human dialogue. And that’s so different than one person speaking a monologue or writing a blog on their own. This is about conversation. […] My role here will be kind of an emcee to help facilitate the good work that our hosts are doing.”
Stay tuned in coming weeks as we feature compelling conversations with alumni, faculty, and other thought leaders about living as wise, engaged, and courageous people in times of division and fragmentation. In the meantime, we would love to hear your feedback! If you have questions, responses, or ideas for future conversations, you can email us at communications@theseattleschool.edu.
Resources to Go Deeper
- In Season One, Derek engaged in conversations with Dr. Soong-Chan Rah, Jimmy McGee, Dr. Caprice Hollins, and Seattle School faculty including Dr. Ron Ruthruff, Dr. Chelle Stearns, Dr. Angela Parker, and Dr. Stephanie Neill. You can catch up on all the episodes from Season One here.
- In Season Two, we introduced occasional “minisodes,” short conversations around the building about Lent, The Seattle School’s Artist Residency, and what it means to be heard. We also welcomed Shauna Gauthier as a host and shared “From the Field” episodes with Smruti Desai and Jeremy Dew, and we featured conversations with Nikkita Oliver, Dr. Curt Thompson, Dr. Dwight Friesen, and more. Listen to Season Two here.
text.soul.culture Hosts
Dr. Derek McNeil is the Acting President and Provost at The Seattle School. He has a PhD in Counseling Psychology from Northwestern University and an MDiv from Fuller Theological Seminary, and his research, writing, and speaking have focused on issues of ethnic and racial socialization, the role of forgiveness in peacemaking, the identity development of African-American males, and marital intimacy. Learn more about Derek here.
Shauna Gauthier received her MA in Counseling Psychology from The Seattle School in 2010. She previously worked in the Denver Metro area as a therapist and a nonprofit program manager; she also helped launch The Seattle School’s Colorado Alumni Chapter. After returning to Seattle, Shauna now serves as the Alumni Outreach Coordinator. She also enjoys writing and speaking about motherhood, feminism, and faith. Learn more about Shauna here.