David Apgar’s Post

A reflection on rural America after our long drive from Malibu to Maine: I'm from the country. My parents brought me home from the hospital to a trailer in the middle of a cotton field in Madison County, Alabama. I grew up in DeQueen, Arkansas, and Columbus, Mississippi, and went to college in Searcy, Arkansas. Jenn is from Hixson, Tennessee. We started our life together in Tupelo, Mississippi, and from there we've seen the world. Now, we live in Los Angeles and work and travel in major cities across the nation and other countries. But even from this global metropolis, our daughters have chosen colleges in Sewanee, Tennessee, and Orono, Maine. Several years ago, I met Prof. Lisa Pruitt on a flight to a law prof conference, and we connected over our Arkansas roots. Ever since, I've been a fan of her brilliant work about law, justice, and development in rural America, shining a light on often neglected places. Last week, as we drove clear across the nation - corner to corner across deserts, mountains, plains, lakes, and forests - I kept thinking about this article from Lisa on the critical need for the nation, its leaders, and lawmakers to recognize, understand, and embrace rural communities and small towns. The goal should not be to make rural places urban, or to make small towns big cities, but to understand, develop, empower, and sustain them so that they continue to enrich and illuminate the world. An urban empire shouldn't reduce country places to be merely resource-colonies (or vacation-colonies). Rural communities are as diverse, complex, creative, industrious, and vibrant as cities. Rural communities and economies are utterly essential to the common good. (Of course, if you're from the country, you already know this, but it may be a good reminder for others.) To neglect them is to undermine justice, democracy, and humanity for all of us. To exploit them and extract from them is unjust and self-destructive to the nation. This is a vast, wildly diverse, immensely creative, beautiful nation, full of hospitable, honorable people caring for each other. We're all part of this remarkable community together, and our laws, policies, and investments should reflect it. https://lnkd.in/gwdWG4AS

How can academia break free from its limitations and collaborate with civil society? Our new #OpenAccess title, 'Collaborative Research in the Datafied Society' highlights the power of partnering with communities and stakeholders. This book dives into how universities can engage with society, tackle pressing data and social justice issues, and advance our knowledge economies. Download for free 🔗 https://lnkd.in/ezC7nqza

Such an amazing conversation with Hannah Hogarth and Charlotte Hankin about the children's universe and how as adults are we scared, intimidated, and challenged to let them decide, create, and lead the path. And frankly, if we would give it up, even just once, we would see that things would be better. Looking forward to doing whatever with them to neutralize some of the structural children-washing trends we live in our societies: learning and research programs, authoring and copyright concepts, materials, specific city spaces "to play", AI tech, and on and on. And remember, we don't give them the voice, they have it. So listen to them. Attached is a brilliant article from Hannah Hogarth and a wonderful group of young researchers. More co-authoring papers with children, please! Play tales: Co-creating stories of childhoodnature play in an urban forest school - Hannah Hogarth, Wonderboy, Fairy, Miss Daisy, Tinkerbell, Zak, Fatima, Donut, Stickman, 2024 (sagepub.com)

https://lnkd.in/ejxazaP3 Sinclair Lewis knew it could happen here and said so 90 years ago... it can and it is happening here. Read especially pp. 15-17 (and the whole book). We have the myth of who we think we are as a people and a nation, but as historians we know the reality is different of us as a people and a nation. Protecting and perpetuating slavery, genocide against Natives, denying women the right to vote for 150 years, etc., etc., our ideas are great-- wonderful ideas in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution (every person should actually read those foundational documents; most people, from my experience teaching thousands of students over decades, have not read either carefully or at all). We should aspire to reach those wonderful ideals of justice and equality for all-- that's all people, everywhere. We need an informed and ethical citizenry, one that supports decency, equality, truth, history, education, fairness, charity, etc., and not a society that values white supremacy, hatred, and fear. We all will face choices over the next few years, choose wisely. Read about our nation's history whether through historical texts or novels-- there is much to learn and maybe we will then treat all people kindly and compassionately-- all people-- hatred and fear are taught and dictatorships begin with ideas, and those ideas are articulated and repeated often and then codified into laws. Similarly, love and compassion are and can be taught, and those ideas articulated and codified into laws. We all will face individual decisions about how we treat one another-- choose love and kindness along with truth and facts. Learn our history. Make good choices.

Profits of Distrust: The Comic The 2022 Cambridge University Press book I wrote with Samantha Zuhlke & David Switzer links the meteoric rise of the bottled water industry to declining trust in government, and so traces the broader relationship between drinking water and American civic life. A new 8-page comic distills the book's core themes. Here's "Drinking Water and Democracy." https://lnkd.in/gmN-J8bp

Enlightening comic strip by the brilliant Manny Teodoro, which delves into the complexities of water infrastructure and the far-reaching impacts of public trust on utilities. 🌊 Manny's research underscores the importance of trust in our public services and offers a thought-provoking perspective on how we can build better, more reliable infrastructure for ourselves and future generations. ...And for those who have graduated beyond comics, Manny's book and research are also very good! #WaterInfrastructure #Sustainability

🚨 Word of the Day: CRITICAL! 🚨 Today is the day! Join us for this crucial conversation, "Deconstructing the Silent Curriculum: Unpacking SB 5384." The timing couldn't be more CRITICAL. When we first planned this event, Senate Bill 5384: The Return Education to the States Act, was just the beginning of a sweeping agenda to redefine public education. Since then, the landscape has rapidly evolved with new legislative maneuvers and a late-night Executive Order—efforts that continue to reshape how education is governed in America. We are living in CRITICAL times, and the relevance of our conversation only deepens. Today’s discussion is not just timely; it's essential for understanding and responding to the systemic and systematic challenges that marginalize groups and exploit fear. If George Orwell’s 1984 seemed prophetic, it's because today, those themes of fear, chaos, and governance by edict are more relevant than ever. This is why teaching 1984 was one of my favorite literary texts as it brought critical thought, questioning, and the imperative of agency to my 8th graders. Our voices matter. While this administration may use its power to incite chaos and fear, we do not have to succumb. We can step back, assess what is constitutional, and plan how to move forward as a community. 📅 Join our crucial conversation today as we delve into recent legislation and executive orders. Whether it passes or stands, it's all about empowering our students in environments that champion their agency—a task that requires ALL of us. Don’t miss this crucial opportunity to be informed, engaged, and ready to act. Your participation is vital as we strategize together in these CRITICAL times. 👉 Register Now and be part of this crucial and courageous conversation. https://lnkd.in/eTahU3kv  #EducationReform #CriticalTimes #Webinar #PublicEducation #Advocacy 

📢New Book Alert📢 We are excited to announce our latest print publication, Encyclopedia of Presidential Vetoes from Washington through to Biden: History, Subject, and Procedures. This is the only modern, comprehensive encyclopedia on the exercise of the presidential veto in United States history. Authored by John R. Vile, it contains more than 150 entries organized by an alphabetical listing and topical table of contents. What’s more it features a timeline of key events and publications related to presidential vetoes. This is an ideal resource for historians, political scientists, #lawprofessors, and high school and college students. Learn more in this blog post: https://lnkd.in/ejpTmCTa

📣 Check out the latest working paper from the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child 📣 📚 It is widely accepted that investing in early childhood helps build the foundations of a healthy, productive, and equitable society. Guided by that knowledge, a range of broad-based programs and targeted services make a significant difference for millions of children, yet a closer look at outcome data shows that some benefit greatly, some benefit less, and some not at all. Within this variation lies opportunity. Increasing effects for all children—especially those who currently benefit the least—may be the key that unlocks greater impacts at scale. This paper calls for a significant shift in how we design, implement, and evaluate policies and programs. It explains how expecting individual variation in effectiveness, and planning for flexible implementation, can help avoid false stereotypes based on income or race and is likely to achieve larger impacts for all children and thus generate greater returns on investment for society. 👉 To learn more, dive into Working Paper 17: A World of Differences: https://bit.ly/3y0uCLs

The Freedom to Read Acts have become collateral damage of political infighting and dysfunction. Factors completely out of our control saw these bills die in the Senate. We did everything possible to get this legislation passed, working tirelessly until the very last minute. While we are saddened and angry that our Senators did not complete the job, we are proud that we took a stand and gave it our all. Thank you to everyone who answered our calls to action and contacted their elected officials. MLA members and advocates have stepped up with thousands of messages and phone calls to legislators to urge their support – and every message educating our legislators about the importance of libraries and the work you do, will not be in vain. January marks the start of a new legislative session and new opportunities to build relationships with our Representatives and Senators. We will be reaching out to introduce MLA, share information about Michigan libraries, and invite them to learn more about all we do for our communities. We will need your help. It will be more important than ever for library advocates to connect with legislators, create meaningful relationships, and teach them about the valuable work you do and the immeasurable contributions libraries make to our communities. Our lawmakers need to know they can come to us for accurate information and clear input about what our libraries, and patrons, need. At this point, it is unclear what the future holds for state legislation to protect the right to read. While it is natural to feel angry and frustrated—we certainly do—we must not despair. We will get to work in the new year to find ways to support libraries and library staff, protect access, and stand up for the freedom to read for all Michiganders. While this might take a different form than state legislation, there is always more we can do. Once again, thank you for your continued engagement and support. Let your hearts be light; next year we’re ready to get to work. Have a safe and happy holiday season.