“What Wellesley’s Reading” podcast inspires faculty and students alike to grab a good book

Ever wonder what your professors are reading in their spare time? Need another great book to add to your reading list? The next time you open up the iTunes Store, search for "What Wellesley's Reading." Launched in January 2010 by Kenny Freundlich, the director of instructional technology at Wellesley College, the "What Wellesley's Reading" podcast are weekly audio episodes where Wellesley professors introduce books relevant to their fields. All the episodes are in short segments in which faculty briefly introduce themselves, discuss their book and read a compelling excerpt. Twenty-two well- crafted episodes have been released so far, featuring diversity in faculty and subject matter. Book titles range from classics like "The Odyssey" and "War and Peace" to more current ones like "Blown to Bits: Your Life, Liberty, and Happiness After the Digital Explosion."

The "What Wellesley's Reading" podcast grew out of the Wellesley iTunes U site created in 2006. "One of Kim Bottomly's priorities for the college," says Freundlich, "was to enhance the intellectual life at Wellesley. I wanted to find something I could do with faculty that would take very little time for them and me, but would be a small step towards that goal." In the beginning, Freundlich approached three faculty members, Carol Dougherty,Nancy Kolodny and Katharine Moon, with his idea. All three responded enthusiastically and were willing to dedicate an hour of their time to create an audio episode for the podcast. Faculty members who had already participated began recommending other faculty who might also be interested in the program. As more and more professors became involved, news of "What Wellesley's Reading" spread by word-of-mouth. Soon, faculty who wanted to record their own episodes took the initiative to contact Freundlich themselves. When that happened, "I knew it was a success," says Freundlich.

"The initial audience was faculty to faculty," adds Freundlich, "but gradually expanded to our current students at Wellesley." Today, the audience for "What Wellesley's Reading" includes faculty and staff, current students, alumnae who want to reconnect with the college, iTunes listeners who stumble upon it, and even prospective students. "It is one small way for prospective students to learn more about Wellesley," mentions Freundlich. Many listeners have sent in emails expressing their gratitude for the program. As a recent participant in the "What Wellesley's Reading" podcast, Professor Panagiotis Metaxas of computer science indicates his appreciation as well. "I saw an announcement a few weeks after it started," Professor Metaxas mentions, "and I found myself going through all of them, one by one. Initially it was curiosity, then it was inspiration."

Where will "What Wellesley's Reading" be going next? Many faculty have offered suggestions to Freundlich. Their ideas vary from recording conversations between two faculty members discussing shared interests or overlaps in their areas of expertise to moving beyond a discussion of books to movies. However, the podcast will probably not feature video recordings of faculty anytime soon, as Freundlich fears the greater time commitment of making a video might "be a limiting factor" for faculty involvement. Freundlich emphasizes the accessibility of the program; the podcast should be simple and easy for participating faculty and as well as its many listeners.

"It's such a pleasure to be working with faculty on this," says Freundlich. "There are so many professors here at the college who are so passionate about their fields and want to convey that." "What Wellesley's Reading" does just that, sharing faculty members' passions with students and adding to the culture of life-long learning at Wellesley.

To find out more, please visit: www.wellesley.edu/wwr.