Season 4 Guests

Sally Pirie is a comic artist, painter, illustrator, toymaker, and all-around good time. She is also Professor of Child and Family Studies and Director and Master Artist at the Comics-Based Research Lab at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. An award-winning newspaper cartoonist and an anthropologist of childhood and infancy, she received her PhD from the University of Colorado, Boulder and is a graduate of Punahou School and Grinnell College. Her areas of expertise include comics-based research methods, ethnographic research and transgender childhoods. She was the 2020 Distinguished Visiting Professor of Liberal Arts at the University of Minnesota, Morris and the 2021 recipient of the Grinnell College Alumni Award in recognition of her lifetime of public service. She was the 2025 Teaching Fellow at the Craigardan International Artist Residence Program and has recently been appointed as the Storywork and Knowledge Mobilization Co-Lab Lead with the groundbreaking National Science Foundation Center for Braiding Indigenous Knowledge and Science (CBIKS). She once went to New Year’s Eve fireworks dressed as an enormous blue pufferfish because life should be suffused with art and joy. You can learn about all of that and more at www.sallypirie.com 

  Join the Outsider Within team for a lively and insightful conversation on the urgent topic of critical media literacy. In this episode, our hosts dive into Elise Gravel’s book, "Killer Underwear Invasion: How to Spot Fake News, Disinformation, and Conspiracy Theories," exploring how children, families, and educators can navigate today’s flood of misinformation.

Through real-life anecdotes, generational perspectives, and practical advice, the discussion unpacks the history of fake news, the impact of technology and AI, and the importance of questioning sources. Whether you’re a parent, teacher, or lifelong learner, you’ll discover actionable steps to help young people—and yourself—think critically, check sources, and resist the spread of disinformation.

Perfect for anyone passionate about education, media literacy, and empowering the next generation to become thoughtful, informed citizens. Tune in for book recommendations, teaching strategies, and a few laughs along the way!

  In the aftermath of the murder of Minneapolis resident, US citizen and poet, Renne Good, at the hands of ICE paramilitants, we talk with internationally renowned scholar, Dr. Shirley Steinberg, and immigrant advocate and immigration scholar, Dr. William McCorkle, about the political and social ramifications of her death. This podcast originates at ODU, and we recognize all the good that Renee did amid the tragedy of her loss, and to celebrate a life that was truly a brilliant light, not only at ODU but in her family and community.  

A note from the hosts and producers: 

As we were preparing this episode to air, ICE/CBP murdered another American citizen, Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a Veteran’s Administration ICU  nurse, while he was assisting another protester.

 Mr. Pretti was shot in the back while restrained on the ground, posing no threat. We dedicate this episode and our efforts to his memory and the legacy of his care and quiet strength.  May we always be prepared to make good trouble in the face of tyranny and oppression. 

  Anastasia Berg is a Philosophy professor at UC, Irvine, an editor of The Point magazine and co-author, with Rachel Wiseman, of What Are Children For? On Ambivalence and Choice. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, The Atlantic, Times Literary Supplement, Chronicle of Higher Education, and the Los Angeles Review of Books, among others. 

In this episode, Dr.  Berg discusses how even basic AI  use may harm students. She argues that AI hampers linguistic and cognitive growth, affecting mastery, interpretation, inquiry, and communication, and thereby undermining self-rule and democracy. She advocates for AI-scarce, tech-scarce spaces in education to help students build foundational skills for wise AI use.

  Dr. Lehmann, a former Police Sergeant with the Henrico County (VA) Police Department, a graduate of the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs, and an experienced educator previously with the VCU Honors College and the Virginia Community College System brings over twenty years of experience in academia and practice in criminal justice and education.

A member of the 45th Basic Police Academy in Henrico, VA, Lehmann served in Patrol Operations, Directed Action Response Team, Court Services - Juvenile Courts Liason, and in DUI Reduction Patrol & Awareness where he achieved Emeritus Level V in the County’s Leadership Development Program. He was a Field Training Officer and was a lead instructor for the county in Ethics and Bias-Awareness as well as a Senior DUI & Standardized Field Sobriety Testing trainer.

Sergeant Lehmann was a General Instructor for the Fair & Impartial Policing, Field Training Officer Candidate School, First Line Supervisor Training, Courtroom Preparation, Juvenile Justice and Juvenile Arrest Procedures, Interview & Interrogation, and Police Records Incident Management & Case Builder Reporting training. During his tenure, received the Wilmer J. Hedrick award for Supervisory excellence, Leslie T. Sheppard award for non-supervisory employees for signification contributions safety of the citizens of the County of Henrico, Meritorius Unit Award, Two (2) Chief’s Eagle Awards from the Chief of Police for demonstrated, exceptional performance, innovative solutions, or unique programs in an effort to advance superior police services and departmental goals, and Five (5) Mother’s Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Awards for significant contributions working to eliminate drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime, and prevent underage drinking in the Richmond, VA Region including the 2013 award for the highest number of impaired driving arrests in the region.

In addition to public service, Lehmann is a graduate of the Center for American and International Law’s Institute for Law Enforcement Administration (ILEA) School for Law Enforcement Ethics (2012) and a graduate of VCU’s inaugural Anti-Racist Educator series (2020). 

In this episode, we discuss the gap between ethics training and real-world decision-making in criminal justice. Lehman describes realizing in his first week of patrol that academy and classroom preparation did not equip him for nuanced community, cultural, and human situations, and he emphasizes situational, relational teaching that adapts to learners’ experiences. The conversation addresses distrust of police, especially for Black community members, and the need to lean into honest discussions about history, systemic issues, and terms like “thin blue line,” “protect and serve,” and culture blindness. Lehman highlights procedural justice, community listening, and he notes growing concerns about federal policing and immigration enforcement. He concludes that policing training should include deeper community and historical understanding alongside legal instruction.