EPISODE SEVENTEEN: E. Ethelbert Miller, a literary activist and prolific, award-winning poet, recounts his long history of racial justice advocacy with the same richness that imbues his poetry, some of which he reads. You will hear a blend of Black history, jazz, baseball and humor, filled with metaphors and stories, in this wide-ranging discussion.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #41: Race to Social Justice Podcast
EPISODE SIXTEEN of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White, is now available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or you can watch AND listen on YouTube. If you are enjoying these “courageous conversations”, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and forward a link to friends and colleagues.
EPISODES 16: ANDREW MARANISS: STRONG INSIDE
Episode #16: Andrew Maraniss, a best-selling author of narrative fiction for adults and teens, leads a discussion about the intersection of sports and social justice. The jumping off point for this lively podcast is his incredibly well-researched, award-winning book about the life and times of Perry Wallace, the first Black basketball player in the Southeast Conference.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #40: Race to Social Justice Podcast
EPISODE FIFTEEN of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White, is now available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or you can watch AND listen on YouTube. If you are enjoying these “courageous conversations”, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and forward a link to friends and colleagues.
EPISODES 15: DR. NICHOLAS V. MONTALTO: IMMIGRATION AND DIVERSITY DYNAMICS
Episode #15: Dr. Nicholas V. Montalto, an expert in American immigration and ethnic history, is an accomplished manager, trainer, consultant, researcher, speaker and author. He talks to us about his life’s work helping Americans understand the value immigrants bring to our country and finding solutions to the policy challenges caused by our ever-changing diversity.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #39: Race to Social Justice Podcast
EPISODE FOURTEEN of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White, is now available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or you can watch AND listen on YouTube. If you are enjoying these “courageous conversations”, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and forward a link to friends and colleagues.
EPISODES 14: NISHA ANAND, BOUNDARY BUSTER
Episode #14: Nisha Anand, a self-professed progressive, builds bridges to find common ground through unlikely partnerships with conservatives. Her life’s mission is to create solutions that promote social and racial justice in three focused areas: criminal justice reform; green economy; and tech equity. This narrative of this storyteller, organizer and policy expert is hopeful and refreshing.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #38: Race to Social Justice Podcast
EPISODE THIRTEEN of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White, is now available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or you can watch AND listen on YouTube. If you are enjoying these “courageous conversations”, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and forward a link to friends and colleagues.
EPISODES 13A & 13B: JIMMY CHONG, ESQUIRE: I WANT THIS GUY ON MY SIDE IN COURT!
Episode #13: Jimmy Chong, a son of non-English speaking immigrant South Korean parents, fought his way through grade school in reaction to anti-Asian bullying. Now a busy lawyer, his fierce, thoughtful advocacy for racial harmony and honest opinions on violence against the AAPI community and “Model Minority” labeling are telling.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #37: Race to Social Justice Podcast
EPISODE TWELVE of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White, is now available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or you can watch AND listen on YouTube. If you are enjoying these “courageous conversations”, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and forward a link to friends and colleagues.
EPISODES 12: DR. WARREN HILTON AND RUSS JOHNSON: EBONY AND IVORY!
In this episode, Dr. Warren Hilton and Russ Johnson, Board Chair and CEO, respectively, of HealthSpark Foundation, discuss how a Black/White leadership partnership is shaping transformative racial and social equity change in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #36: Race to Social Justice Podcast
EPISODE ELEVEN of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White, is now available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or you can watch AND listen on YouTube. If you are enjoying these “courageous conversations”, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and forward a link to friends and colleagues.
EPISODE ELEVEN: RAY SOLOMON, THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON: PART II
Episode #11: Ray Solomon (Part II) shares diversity, equity and inclusion challenges he faced as dean of a law school and, from the perspective of a former president of a synagogue, his reactions to the Congregation Beth Israel hostage incident in Colleyville, Texas, just days before our podcast was recorded.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #35: Race to Social Justice Podcast
EPISODE TEN of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White, is now available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or you can watch AND listen on YouTube. If you are enjoying these “courageous conversations”, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and forward a link to friends and colleagues.
EPISODE TEN: RAY SOLOMON, THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON: PART I
Episode #10: Ray Solomon grew up in the Mississippi delta region of Arkansas, the location of the 1919 Elaine Massacre of 200 Black people. Ray, a legal historian, recounts the underlying facts and how this event generated a legal case that laid the foundation for the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #34: College Student Basic Needs Program
I have been working with a consortium of seven Montgomery County, Pennsylvania non-profit organizations to assist college students who face food and housing insecurity and access to resources to meet other basic needs. A recent article I wrote on the subject, published by SchoolHouse Connection, and entitled “Launching a Program for Food and Housing Insecure College Students: A Step-by-Step Approach”, can be found here.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #33: Tribute to Mike Buckley
Mike Buckley, a beloved infectious disease physician and outstanding leader for many years at Penn Medicine and Pennsylvania Hospital, died on April 9, 2022. Mike was a colleague of mine at Penn in the 1990’s. More recently, we served together on the Board of Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative. Mike was a consummate gentleman and inspiration to all. In tribute, I am posting an article I wrote about Mike 20 years ago, which you can read below.
Mike Buckley: Moriarity’s Gift
“You know, Mr. Buckley, I don’t think this will work out.” A defining moment for young Mike Buckley, a promising Olympic caliber swimmer.
Most young men were jockeying to get out of the Vietnam War in 1968. Not Mike Buckley. He wanted to win a bid to the Mexico City Olympics in the Fall of that year. He would “Go for the Gold” and then return, six weeks late, to begin his first year at Yale Medical School. But, the Medical School Dean would have none of it. Buckley had been an undergraduate English major at Yale. The Dean pointed out that, with only limited scientific training, Buckley would face a tough bio-chemistry course behind the rest of the class. If he enroll at Yale Medical School, the imperious Dean said, Buckley would have to forego his dream of swimming in the Olympics.
Mike Buckley’s road to becoming an Olympic class athlete was not preordained. True, athletics was in his genes. Buckley’s dad played football and basketball in high school. His uncle was a starter on Boston College’s NCAA hockey championship team and was drafted to play professional baseball. Mike played football, basketball and baseball in high school at Malvern Prep. Swimming was secondary. He was only a club swimmer in the summers, and Malvern didn’t even have a pool when Mike entered high school.
Mike’s dad told him after his freshman year at Malvern that he couldn’t afford private school. Mike would have to switch over to public school for his sophomore year. Malvern, not wanting to lose a good athlete and fine student, offered Mike a partial scholarship. That swayed the day. By chance, Mike’s return to Malvern coincided with the school’s decision to construct a new swimming pool. So, Mike joined the Malvern swim team too. Without the scholarship and pool, Mike would never have had an Olympic dream.
The Olympic dream came much later. Buckley was an average breaststroker during most of high school. While he was slowly grewing into his 6 foot plus frame, Malvern had another hot breast stoker, Mark McKee, who drew all the attention. McKee was very short in stature, but Mike noticed his perfect form and replicated it. Finally, during his senior year (‘63-’64), Buckley’s “mediocre” times in December started to drop -- precipitously. On February 4th, he set a National Prep School record in the 100 yard breast stroke (1:03.9 min.), cutting more than 5 seconds off his December time.
But, Buckley’s peak was too late in the season for him to draw any attention from college recruiters. Earlier in the fall Mike and his dad visited Amherst College in Massachusetts, then his first choice. At his dad’s suggestion, they stopped in New Haven on the way home. When Mike saw the Yale pool, he changed his mind and decided to apply to Yale. Mike’s dad wrote Yale’s swim coach, Phil Moriarity. No interest. Then, after Mike’s record-setting time in February, Moriarity called. He wanted Mike to interview at Yale immediately. Moriarity even accompanied Mike to the interview. (Mike recalls that what really sold him on Yale was his Sunday overnight stay with some upper classmen. They played bridge in their cozy room and watched the Beatles on Ed Sullivan. Mike laughingly recalls that he never played bridge again at Yale!)
When he was accepted to Yale that spring, Buckley had no idea that he had been recruited to one of the best assemblages of swimming elite in the nation. Don Schollander won 4 gold medals at the Toyko Olympics in October of 1964. He joined the Yale swim team the following January. Bill Mettler, another 1964 Olympian, matriculated with Schollander. Coming out of nowhere compared to these Yale recruits, Buckley was dubbed “Moriartiy’s Gift”. The Yale team won every meet during Buckley’s 4 year tenure (“except one meet by one point to Army”), including a streak of 120 straight. His senior team came in second in the NCAA Championship (first overall in men’s swimming, but losing out to Inidiana after taking into account the diving events which were then included).
Buckley hit his stride at Yale. He swam in the World University Games in 1967 and then won the silver medal in the 100 yard breast stroke at the NCAA Championships in 1968, losing by just 1/100th of a second. His times in the 100 and 200 yard breast stroke were consistently among the best in the country. Everyone assumed he would make the Olympic team. Everyone except the Dean of the Medical School. He didn’t seem to care.
Mike’s father had wanted to be a doctor. World War II intervened, and when the senior Buckley returned from that war, he could not afford medical school and had to go to work instead. Inspired by his dad, Mike badly wanted to be a doctor from an early age. The Dean’s reaction was devastating. Mike’s lottery number for the Vietnam draft was #35. He could train for the Olympics all summer and go to Mexico City and compete. However, he would most certainly be drafted after the Olympic Games and have to put a hold on his medical career, just as his father had. Or, he could give up his Olympic dream and become a doctor. He chose medicine. After his meeting with the Dean, Buckley walked back to his room, alone, in tears.
It was an agonizing summer. Buckley watched the Olympics from the basement of the Medical School. He watched as his roommate at the World University Games, Carl Robie, won the gold in the butterfly. Robie had lost in the 1964 Olympics, but he dropped out of law school to pursue his dream in 1968. Buckley had beaten all three breast strokers who made the Olympic team during his senior year. He watched as one of them won the gold medal in Mike’s event. It nagged at him. Why hadn’t he pursued his dream?
Dr. Michael Buckley is Chairman of the Department of Internal Medicine and interim Chief Medical Officer at Pennsylvania Hospital, Vice Chair of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School. He is regarded as tops in his field of Infectious Diseases. He cuts a tall, handsome figure. He wears a broad, genuine smile. He communicates and listens well. I sat with Mike in his well-appointed, sun-drenched office at Pennsylvania Hospital, looking out his surrounding windows at the exquisitely groomed courtyard which fronts this historic site of the nation’s first hospital. I wondered. Thirty-two years later. This obviously successful, professional gentleman is still talking passionately about the defining moments earlier in this life with a strange mixture of regret and satisfaction.
The moment was not lost on us. The experience of giving up his Olympic dream clearly helped forge Mike Buckley’s approach to his profession. Near the end of that non-Olympic summer of 1968, an article appeared in New Haven about Mike’s choice of medical school over the Olympics. His Medical School adviser, Larry Picket, a former college athlete, was outraged. Why had Mike accepted the Dean’s decision with so much at stake? If it was that important, why hadn’t he pushed harder? Now, the experience permeates Buckley’s management and decision making philosophy. If there is an important decision to be made, Buckley looks at every possible option and “doesn’t take no for an answer” if he knows the answer goes against what “his gut feels is wrong”. He cites his decision to join with the Penn Health system when Pennsylvania Hospital chose Penn as its corporate partner a few years ago and his decision to return to Pennsylvania Hospital as Chairman of the Department of Medicine in 1999 as cases in point.
While perhaps regretful, Mike Buckley is not bitter about the Olympics. Doctor Buckley has been the physician representing U.S. Swim Teams to help prepare for Pan-Pacific, World and Olympic Games. The awards commemorating his stints as U.S. Swim Team physician sit proudly next to his NCAA medal .
Sally, his wife, and their three children, stood proudly next to Mike this past fall at his induction into the Malvern Prep Hall of Fame. A fitting tribute to a great role model for all three children, each one also an athlete. Emily, 26, was captain of the Harvard Women’s Swim Team. Carrie, 23, was a high school swimmer. Brian, 19, now a Penn freshman and three sport star at Malvern Prep, was winner of the Markward Club Award as the Inter-Ac Conference scholar-athlete.
Mike coached his three children to set their athletic goals carefully and realistically. He considers participating at the collegiate varsity level “a rare opportunity” to meet people, travel and enjoy team camaraderie. But, he stressed to his children that not everyone has the talent or opportunity to compete at the collegiate level, and it is important to have other non-athletic goals as well. Mike also promoted the credo that, whatever the goal, “sport teaches preparation” to achieve that goal.
And, as his son, Brian, says, “It seems as if my dad is prepared for everything”.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #32: Race to Social Justice Podcast
I am pleased to announce EPISODE NINE of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White. Our podcasts feature “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. You can listen to them on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube.
EPISODE NINE: JILL MERIWEATHER, KANSAS CITY CLASS
Episode #9: Jill Meriweather describes how her mother’s mentoring and early church education gave her pride in being a Black woman and the inspiration to apply to Harvard and dedicate her life’s work to childhood education. In the process, she gives us a tutorial on contemporary issues of race.
If you are enjoying these podcasts, please consider subscribing to our YouTube Channel and forwarding a link to our podcast to friends and colleagues you think might enjoy them too.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #31: Race to Social Justice Podcast
I am pleased to announce EPISODE EIGHT of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White. Our podcasts feature “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. You can listen to them on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube.
EPISODE EIGHT: ERIC DOUGHERTY, HOW A COP COPES
Session #8: Eric Dougherty, a law enforcement officer from Washington State takes you with him right into the neighborhood, sharing the choices he has to make in policing, and candidly describes what “reform” should look like in reaction to the “Defund the Police” narrative.
If you are enjoying these podcasts, please consider subscribing to our YouTube Channel and forwarding a link to our podcast to friends and colleagues you think might enjoy them too.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #30: Race to Social Justice Podcast…Courageous Conversations
I am pleased to announce EPISODE SEVEN of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White. Our podcasts feature “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. You can listen to the podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube (links below). While you’re here, we’d love for you to subscribe to our YouTube channel.
EPISODE SEVEN: ANA AND TED MCKEE
Ana Pujols McKee, M.D., a nationally-prominent physician executive whose Puerto Rican parents cherished her as a person of color, and The Honorable Theodore (“Ted”) McKee, a Black Chief Judge of the federal Third Circuit Court of Appeals, share how their education and career paths overcame discriminatory obstacles and how discriminatory practices continue to impact their professions.
Finally, if you are enjoying these podcasts, please consider subscribing to our YouTube Channel and forwarding this email along to friends and colleagues you think might enjoy these conversations.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #29: Race to Social Justice Podcast…Courageous Conversations
I am pleased to announce EPISODE SIX of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White. Our hour-long podcasts are “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. You can listen to the podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube (links below).
EPISODE SIX: CLINTON DREES
In this episode, we interview Clinton Drees, an active member of the Philadelphia LGBTQ community and educator, speaks candidly about how as a young man he navigated within anti-gay environments and describes the variety of, and dynamics within, the “alphabet” of people in the LGBTQ+ community.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #28: Race to Social Justice Podcast…Courageous Conversations
I am pleased to announce EPISODE FIVE of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White. Our hour-long podcasts are “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. Our guests are personal, honest, authentic and compelling. You can listen to the podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube (links below).
EPISODE FIVE: SHA “GOLDIE PIPES”
In this episode, we interview Sha Alheem, a singer/songwriter from Houston. “Goldie Pipes”, as he is called, describes how his rich music repertoire and varied style has deep roots in his family; the gospel, soul, blues and rock music he heard growing up; and slavery and African drumming. Enjoy a few examples from his new album too!
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #27: Race to Social Justice Podcast…Courageous Conversations
I am pleased to announce EPISODE FOUR of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White. Our podcasts, each about an hour long, are “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. Our interviews with each other and our guests are personal, honest, authentic and, we believe, compelling. You can listen to all the podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube.
EPISODE FOUR: MARION BIGLAN
Marion, an executive coach, talks candidly about growing up white in the south, her work as founding executive director of Teach for America in Chicago and her transformative work teaching white people about racism and diversity, equity and inclusion.
Rounding Third Leadership Blog #26: Race to Social Justice Podcast…Courageous Conversations
I am pleased to announce EPISODE THREE of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White. Our podcasts, each about an hour long, are “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. Our interviews with each other and our guests are personal, honest, authentic and, we believe, compelling. You can listen to all the podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube.
EPISODE THREE: TIM MASSAQUOI
In this episode, we talk to Tim Massaquoi, a retired NFL player and founding social worker at KIPP High School in Camden, NJ, about his race experiences growing in a Black environment in Newark, NJ and a White environment in Allentown, PA and as an elite athlete and professional counselor to traumatized youth.
Rounding Third Leadership Series #25: Race to Social Justice Podcast - Courageous Conversations
I am pleased to announce EPISODE TWO of The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White. Our podcasts, each about an hour long, are “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. Our interviews with each other and our guests are personal, honest, authentic and, we believe, compelling. You can listen to all the podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube.
EPISODE TWO: JOHN KEPNER
In this episode, Mr. White interviews me, digging into my race-related personal and career experiences. I am a 75-year-old retired health care executive/consultant/lawyer who, though a progressive “child of the ’60’s”, has only recently come to grips with the benefits of white privilege.
"Rounding Third Leadership Series #24: New Race to Social Justice Podcast…Courageous Conversations"
I am pleased to announce The Race to Social Justice Podcast series produced with my colleague, Keva White.
Our podcasts, each about an hour long, are “courageous conversations” about race and social justice. Our interviews with each other and our guests are personal, honest, authentic and, we believe, compelling.
You can listen to all the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud or watch AND listen on YouTube.
A description of them follows:
Episode One: Keva White, “The Black Guy”
In the kick-off podcast, Keva White, “The Black Guy” (interviewed by John Kepner, “The White Guy”) explores his early years in a tough Brooklyn neighborhood, the challenges of an all-white high school and college and other critical underpinnings of his calling to promote racial justice knowledge through education.
Episode Two: John Kepner
Mr. White digs into the race-related personal and career experiences of John Kepner, a 75-year-old retired health care executive/consultant/lawyer who, though a progressive “child of the ’60’s”, only recently has come to grips with the benefits of white privilege.
Episode Three: Tim Massaquoi
Tim Massaquoi, a retired NFL player and founding social worker at KIPP High School in Camden, NJ, shares his race experiences growing in a Black environment in Newark, NJ and a White environment in Allentown, PA and as an elite athlete and professional counselor to traumatized youth.
Episode Four: Marion Biglan
Marion Biglan, an executive coach, talks about growing up white in the south, her work as founding executive director of Teach for America in Chicago and her current transformative work teaching white people about racism and diversity, equity and inclusion.
Keva and I believe in what Keva calls “The K Factor”, with “K” standing for “knowledge”. Imparting knowledge through honest discussion of race has been transformative in helping each of us and our guests in our personal journeys in addressing racism. We hope these podcasts will help you in the same way.
"Rounding Third Leadership Series #23: Racial Justice - Putting ‘Eggs’ into Three Baskets"
I have a practice of sorting complex issues into “baskets”. It helps me decide how much time, emotional energy and action – my “eggs”, if you will - to put into them. Using this method, I compartmentalized my reaction to the national racial awakening this past summer into three “baskets”.
Into the first basket – my “personal basket” - went honest feelings and undeniable biases about race and how growing up White in America had advantaged me. The basket is filled with overt and subtle public and private narratives I had been exposed to from birth. What new insights I learned about the history of systemic racism and its impact on our country went into this basket too. I began to see events and issues through a new lens. I topped off the basket with a recognition of responsibility to take action to advance anti-racism.
The second basket is marked “leadership”. I filled this one with the belief that like-minded non-profit leaders can and should work together to promote anti-racism in the organizations they oversee. Into this basket went a conviction that what is required is a multi-faceted, holistic approach which addresses every aspect of how an organization conducts its work. This goes beyond recruiting a diverse board and issuing statements of support for diversity, equity and inclusion to transforming practices, procedures, programs and culture and ensuring that solutions generated are persistently re-enforced to prevent regression to past practices.
The third basket is “grass roots”. Rather than retreat into the convenient bromide that an individual or small organization can’t “move the needle”, why not take the view that thousands of individuals and organizations across the country can make a difference nationally? Why not actively resist the temptation to allow the “tyranny of the urgent” to take over and make antiracism a personal and organizational responsibility and value? This basket has even more eggs: engaging in honest and courageous conversations; further educating ourselves; intentional listening; what we tell our children; how we vote; who we hire; what we lobby for; what we march in favor of; who we network with. Those eggs, hardboiled and unbroken, can make a collective difference.