Podcast: Engaged By Design
Episode: Part 2 — Faith, Culture & Courage Abroad
Guest: Dr. Sylvia Nemmers — scientist, educator, world traveler, multilingual mother, and author of Happy Now.

Episode Summary

In this second installment of our three-part conversation, Dr. Sylvia Nemmers takes us around the globe—Pakistan, Jordan, Greece, and beyond—to explore what happens when identity, faith, disability, and culture intersect.

She shares how falling in love with a Pakistani student reshaped her worldview, how a spiritual moment in St. Peter’s Basilica led to an unexpected conversion to Islam, and how living across cultures forced her to confront assumptions she didn’t know she held. Sylvia speaks openly about learning Arabic through immersion with children, navigating strict gender norms, raising her own children across borders, and discovering humility as a transformative leadership tool.

This episode illuminates what it means to be a cultural learner, not just a cultural observer. It shows that empathy can only flourish when we stop assuming our own lens is universal.

Key Topics

• Falling in love across cultures
  – Meeting international students
  – Recognizing shared identity as “outsiders” in academic settings
  – Navigating family expectations and early marriage
  – Beginning life in Pakistan
• Conversion to Islam
  – The pivotal moment in St. Peter’s Basilica
  – Faith as recognition rather than instruction
  – Joy, continuity, and spiritual belonging
• Life in Pakistan
  – NGO work in the Northwest Territory
  – Navigating conservative norms (“Don’t act blind; no one will respect you”)
  – Learning agency and self-advocacy in unfamiliar systems
• Jordan: Lessons in Humility
  – Raising children in multilingual, multigenerational households
  – Misunderstandings with in-laws and the power of listening
  – Learning Arabic through play and daily life
  – Major cultural adjustment: food, family, and rhythm of life
• Greece: A different kind of freedom
  – Experiences outside extended family structure
  – Observing different models of happiness and social life
  – Gaining a more global understanding of “normal”
• Universal Lesson: Unlearning Assumptions
  – Recognizing that each culture has internal logic and dignity
  – Learning to ask questions instead of drawing conclusions
  – Seeing disability differently in each country
  – Realizing humility is the beginning of wisdom

Quotes

• “When you live in another culture, you stop assuming the way you see the world is the only way.”
• “People have grabbed me on the street, and I’ve said, ‘I’ve been blind a long time. I’m very good at it.’”
• “As educators, we have expertise and resources—but the person we’re working with is the expert on themselves.”
• “Humility is what keeps curiosity alive.”

Reflection Question

What assumptions about people or cultures might you need to unlearn in order to see more clearly?

Resources

• Book: Happy Now — Shattering the Myth of Happily Ever After (Amazon - https://amzn.to/49PHHYZ).
• Sylvia’s speaking & consulting: BeyondLimits.cc.
• Engaged By Design: MACRO Leadership resources.

Podcast: Engaged By Design
Episode: Part 1 — Authenticity & Resilience
Guest: Dr. Sylvia Nemmers — scientist, educator, and author of Happy Now: Shattering the Myth of Happily Ever After

Episode Summary

From childhood blindness to becoming a scientist and department chair, Sylvia traces how authenticity, curiosity, and courageous mentors shaped her leadership. She shares her early life in an institution for the blind, the hard pivot to a mainstream Catholic school, and the creative lab workaround a professor designed that unlocked independence and confidence.

Key Moments

• Opening, Sylvia’s reveal (born blind; limited sight after age-4 surgery); framing authenticity and strength.
• “Happily ever after” myth vs reality; first vision (sunlight hurts; learning to adapt).
• Institution years: separation, “authentic me,” and the fire-escape slide (bare feet in the Iowa snow!).
• Transition to Catholic school: social codes, learning hurdles, stubborn hope.
• Father’s influence: math on car rides, love of chemistry, finding equal footing in science.
• Barriers & resolve: counselor skepticism; “evaluate my ability, the job is mine to find.”
• Mentor moment: Dr. Larry Davis’ notched-syringe hack enabling precise dilutions; lab independence.
• Universal design & the social model of disability; partnering with learners to remove barriers.

Quotes

• “At that school, I was authentically me… No one expected you to be normal, and that was a blessing.”
• “There are some things you can’t change… and then figure out ways to make it work.”
• “Words are powerful. What you say to your students can change their whole future.”

Reflection Question

How have you overcome your own limitations—or the labels that others have given you?

Resources & Links

• Book: Happy Now — Shattering the Myth of Happily Ever After (Amazon - https://amzn.to/49PHHYZ).
• Sylvia’s speaking & consulting: BeyondLimits.cc.
• Engaged By Design: MACRO Leadership resources.

In this episode of the Engaged By Design Podcast, Michael and Vernon sit down with Rachel Sweeney, Scholarly Communications Librarian at Bucknell University, for a deep and candid conversation about how generative AI is reshaping scholarship, copyright, authorship, and trust in academic knowledge.

Drawing on her background in documentary filmmaking, copyright, and publishing, Rachel explains why the scholarly record is so difficult to define—and why generative AI poses such a profound challenge to it. Together, we explore fair use, authors’ rights, AI hallucinations, fabricated citations, predatory journals, data scraping, and the market impact on creators and scholars across disciplines.

Rachel also shares practical guidance for faculty, librarians, students, and researchers who want to use AI responsibly while protecting the integrity of their work.

This is a timely and essential conversation for anyone navigating the pressures and promises of AI in higher education.

• Rachel’s nontraditional path from filmmaking to scholarly communications

• What the “scholarly record” is—and why defining it is so complex

• How generative AI companies have used copyrighted materials in training

• The explosion of AI-generated content and its impact on academic publishing

• Why recursive AI training produces “AI slop”

• How attribution breaks down when AI scrapes content without citing it

• Copyright fundamentals and the limits of fair use

• Real-world examples from Hollywood, journalism, and academia

• The rise of fabricated citations and nonexistent DOIs

• Class action lawsuits involving monographs and AI scraping

• How scholars and students can verify sources and protect their work

• Why ORCID, DOIs, and Google Scholar profiles matter more than ever

• Ethical considerations for using AI in teaching and learning

• The market impact on early-career professionals and creative workers

• Practical tips for responsible, thoughtful, academically honest AI use

How can faculty, librarians, and students use AI more thoughtfully, ethically, and responsibly at your institution?

We invite you to reflect on this question with your colleagues and teams and consider how these insights can shape your academic and organizational practices.

Rachel Sweeney
Scholarly Communications Librarian
Bucknell University

ABCs of Murmuration with Kathy Hagler & Robin Graham
Helping leaders create healthy, adaptive, connected organizations.
Learn more at: abcsofmurmuration.com

Episode Summary

In this special conference edition of the Engaged By Design Podcast, Michael and Vernon bring listeners directly into the heart of the Online Learning Consortium (OLC) conference exhibit hall. This episode blends thoughtful narration with real, unedited booth-floor audio conversations between the Engaged By Design team.

You’ll hear Michael and Vernon reflect on conference attendance, the uncertainty of today’s VUCA higher education climate, and the overwhelming presence of AI in sessions and vendor halls. They share reactions from Course Design Accelerator demos — especially the moment attendees gasped when a complete Canvas course was exported live in seconds.

Jarred joins to reflect on the challenges institutions are facing around AI, innovation, and course development. He explains why solution-first thinking is leading campuses down homogenizing paths, and why the real innovation lives within people, not tools.

Vernon and Michael discuss new learning research, including the study showing how students learn more when they draft first and use AI second. They talk openly about academic integrity, learning theory, and the role of faculty in shaping responsible, discipline-specific AI use.

The episode closes with a story from Jarred about a meaningful human connection he made at the booth — a reminder that, even amid technological change, the heart of education is still people.

Key Topics Covered

• What we observed at the 2025 Online Learning Consortium conference
• Why attendance felt different this year (budget constraints, cancellations, VUCA realities)
• How AI dominated the conversations — and why nobody fully understands its implications yet
• Demo reactions to the Course Design Accelerator and Canvas export
• Solution-first vs. problem-first thinking in edtech
• The role of design thinking, backward design, and intentionality in course development
• New research on learning and AI (FMRI essay-writing study)
• The future of student learning & time-on-task
• Faculty-in-the-loop AI and preventing “AI slop”
• The difference between shiny tools and practical innovation
• Jarred’s reflections on human connection in crowded spaces
• Why authentic interactions matter even more than technology

Notable Quotes

“Technology should lighten the load without replacing the creativity or humanity.” – Vernon

“AI isn’t the solution. The solution is already inside the institution — in the people and the processes.” – Jarred

“You still need time on task. You still need cognitive effort. AI can’t do the learning for you.” – Michael

“The future of education isn’t AI alone. It’s human. It’s faculty in the loop.” – Michael

Links

Engaged By Design AI Tools: https://www.engagedbydesign.com/course-design-ai-tools

OLC Conference: https://onlinelearningconsortium.org/events/

Kathy Hagler and Robin Graham return to explore the “ME” in their ABCs of Murmuration framework—where awareness, beliefs, and connection lay the foundation for leaderful collaboration.

In this episode of the Engaged By Design Podcast, Dr. Vernon Smith and Dr. Michael Cottam welcome back Dr. Kathy Hagler and Robin Graham, authors of The ABCs of Murmuration.

They unpack the “ME” in their leadership framework—showing how awareness, beliefs, and connection create the foundation for authentic collaboration.

Kathy and Robin share powerful metaphors about starlings, symphonies, and marching bands, as well as the story of Mozart’s Starling.

Robin also shares a moving personal reflection from Durango, illustrating how awareness and connection transform grief into leadership presence.

Key Topics

• Why leadership begins with “ME” before “WE” or “US”
• The ABCs of ME: Awareness, Beliefs, Connection
• Lessons from starlings, symphonies, and marching bands
• Robin’s Durango story: grief, awareness, and connection
• The dance steps of leaderful collaboration: step up, step back, step together
• The ABCs of Murmuration (available on Amazon)
• Manifesting Murmuration Workshop — ABCsOfMurmuration.com
• Viktor Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning (inspiration on choice and awareness)

Reflection Question

Here is your reflection question for this week:

What small step can you take today to connect more authentically with yourself and others?

Call to Action

👉 Visit EngagedByDesign.com to learn more, explore coaching opportunities, and download resources from MACRO Leadership.

💬 Comment on the YouTube episode, share your reflection, and subscribe for more leadership insights.

In Part Two of their conversation with Dr. Guieswende Rouamba, Michael and Vernon explore how storytelling brings project management to life.

Guieswende introduces us to Bob and George — two characters who illustrate resilience, resistance, and the power of leading without a title. Together, they discuss how story helps us make meaning, navigate change, and see ourselves in the leadership journey.

A must-listen for instructional designers, educators, and anyone who leads from the middle.

Highlights:

• Why Guieswende wrote the second half of his book as a story.
• Lessons from Bob and George on leadership and resistance.
• Why resistance is normal in change management.
• How to lead without authority.
• The role of empathy and storytelling in building trust.
• How project management principles translate into everyday leadership.

Resources Mentioned:

• The Instructional Designer’s Guide to Project Management by Dr. Guieswende Rouamba
• MACRO Leadership by Dr. Michael Cottam
• EngagedByDesign.com – Free MACRO Leadership Workbook

In this episode, Dr. Vernon Smith and Dr. Michael Cottam talk with Dr. Guieswende Rouamba, learning designer at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and author of The Instructional Designer’s Guide to Project Management.

Guieswende shares how project management helps instructional designers navigate complex collaborations and reduce burnout. He introduces his “Three Ps” — People, Process, and Pedagogy — and explains why relationships are at the heart of every successful project.

Whether you lead design teams, teach online, or manage academic innovation, this conversation will remind you that the key to great outcomes starts with great people.

Highlights:

• Guieswende’s journey from Burkina Faso to Illinois.
• How project management skills elevate instructional design.
• The “domain dispute” between faculty and designers — and how empathy resolves it.
• The Three Ps framework: People, Process, and Pedagogy.
• Positive psychology in project management.
• How project management helps instructional designers prevent burnout.

Resources Mentioned:

• The Instructional Designer’s Guide to Project Management by Dr. Guieswende Rouamba
• MACRO Leadership by Dr. Michael Cottam
• EngagedByDesign.com – Free leadership tools and downloads

Description:
Project management isn’t just for boardrooms or classrooms—it shows up in art studios, Renaissance fairs, and even around the gaming table. In part two of our conversation with Bridget Davis, PMP, CSM, DASM, we dive into how project management skills translate beyond formal work.

Bridget shares her entrepreneurial journey with Heathen Works, her woodburning art business, where planning, budgeting, and production all rely on project management principles. She also reveals the uncanny parallels between Agile project management and Dungeons & Dragons. From Dungeon Masters acting like Scrum Masters to players learning trust, teamwork, and risk-taking, the lessons are as practical as they are fun.

We also reflect on how risks—whether in a game or in higher education leadership—can be reframed as opportunities. From critical dice rolls gone wrong to institutional enrollment declines, Bridget and the hosts share stories of turning setbacks into innovations.

What You’ll Learn:

• How project management supports entrepreneurship and creative businesses.

• Why Dungeons & Dragons provides a surprising but effective model for team leadership.

• The power of games in executive training and experiential learning.

• How to reframe risks and failures into opportunities for growth.

• Why curiosity is the key to engaging learners and building trust.

Mentioned in This Episode:

• Heathen Works: Heathen Works

• Ravenwood Renaissance Festival, Winchester, VA

• How to Be More D&D: Face Your Dragons, Be More Adventurous, and Live Your Best Geeky Life: https://amzn.to/4gBMM8q

• Dungeons & Dragons Starter Sets: https://amzn.to/4pAYcO9

• Rio Salado College “Rio Way” experiential training and team games

Reflection Question:
How can you apply your professional skills to the most important passions in your life?

Subscribe & Connect:
🎙️ Subscribe to the Engaged By Design Podcast for more insights.
🌐 Learn more about MACRO Leadership coaching and workshops at https://engagedbydesign.com .
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