Ep 31. Jumping Asteroid Clouds: Supporting Vulnerable Learners in Educational Achievement

Sustainable Nano

Last November, Dr. Cat Hicks wrote an essay on Medium called "Reading vulnerable learners' applications to grad school: we need to stop failing them." In this episode of the podcast, University of Minnesota graduate student Becky Rodriguez interviews Dr. Hicks about her essay, her educational and career path, and how our educational system can be stacked against vulnerable learners. She offers some advice for applicants, those who review applications, and others who may just want to help. "A truly inclusive and diverse future will produce way better work, and you only get there by saying, 'we have to be comfortable with letting people be different.'" Our conversation is especially relevant given recent news and discussion about unfairness and fraud in U.S. college admissions. (And if you want to know what any of this has to do with asteroid fields, you'll just have to listen to the episode.)

Dr. Cat Hicks (left, photo courtesy of Dr. Hicks) and a tweet about her Medium essay on helping students with grad school applications

Want more podcast episodes? You can find them all on our podcast page, or you can subscribe through Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.

---

#### **ABOUT THIS EPISODE**

Related links:

• Dr. Cat Hicks: website, Twitter
• Reading vulnerable learners’ applications to grad school: we need to stop failing them by Cat Hicks, Medium, Nov 17, 2018
• Becky Rodriguez: profile and Twitter
• Elite Colleges Constantly Tell Low-Income Students That They Do Not Belong by Clint Smith, The Atlantic, March 18, 2019
• The subtle ways colleges discriminate against poor students, explained with a cartoon by Alvin Chang, Vox.com, updated Sept 12, 2018.
• Scott Klemmer, Chinmay Kulkarni, PeerStudio
  • Framing feedback: Choosing review environment features that support high quality peer assessment by C. Hicks et al. 201. doi: 10.1145/2858036.2858195
  • PeerStudio: rapid peer feedback emphasizes revision and improves performance by Kulkarni et al. 2015. doi: 10.1145/2724660.2724670
• Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology

Interviewee: Cat Hicks

Producer/Host: Miriam Krause

Interviewer: Becky Rodriguez

Music: PC III and Dexter Britain