Posts by Laura Leavitt
Connecting the Dots: Architectural Designer and Affordable Housing Advocate Priyanka Sen

I studied art history as an undergraduate at Boston University, and I kind of fell into architecture. They had a fantastic professor, an architecture historian, who became my mentor, and I studied architectural history and art history and then got the design bug. I love learning the history and theory of these things. What if I used my skills differently? I think I always loved watching buildings go up. Thinking about how we build community and society’s fabric – that’s what led me many years later to design school at the University of Cincinnati.

I wanted architecture to be more than it currently is. I wanted it to imprint more on community and society, and how we think about each other and spaces. Since I’ve graduated, I’ve focused my efforts on thinking about that, changing how I think about teaching. With everything that is going on in the world, I’ve been thinking more deeply about how we need to impact future generations and our earth. I would like to leave more of a legacy, getting my students to think about projects more deeply.

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Re-Envisioning and Re-Energizing Healthcare with Ciara Staunton of Staunton Primary Care

When Ciara Staunton popped into our virtual meeting, she seemed excited and energized, but our healthcare-worker readers will know she’s had some exhausting months. Frontline workers of all kinds are donning their P.P.E. and masks and continuing to serve their clients, but there are still so many unanswered questions as our world works to respond wisely to the rise of COVID-19.

Staunton, however, is no stranger to new directions. She created her own private practice, Staunton Primary Care, as a nurse practitioner aiming to offer affordable and approachable family primary care in the Walnut Hills neighborhood. It was a joy to talk to her about her passion for accessibility and comfort in a healthcare setting.

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A Cup of Tea with Kathleen Kern

All the tea in the world comes from the exact same plant, Kathleen Kern informed me when we sat down to chat at the Rookwood location of her business, Churchill’s Fine Teas. I find this hard to believe as I survey the options available: The whole wall of the shop is devoted to a menu of more than 250 loose-leaf tea blends – green, black, oolong, and more. We covered Kathleen's tea journey up to this point, but it was clear that she has an exciting journey still ahead.

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‘Regular, ordinary, everyday people’: Mary Aguilera of the Poor People’s Campaign

We met with Mary Aguilera at one of the places where she feels most at home: North Avondale Montessori School, where she works with children ages 3 to 6. From the moment you meet Mary, you notice peaceful energy about her; under that exterior, there is a deep-running commitment to social justice that meshes perfectly with her work in education.

A few years ago, Mary joined the organization Repairers of the Breach, a group headed by Rev. William Barber. The organization argues that the moral issues of today are how our society treats the poor, women, L.G.B.T.Q folks, children, workers, immigrants, communities of color, and the sick. Mary’s journey with the associated Poor People’s Campaign has brought more than political involvement to her life, and it was a joy to learn more about her work, building grassroots movements, and making leadership your own. 

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Cole Imperi: Death, Dying, and Doing It Better

Cole Imperi is also a varied tapestry: She writes and hosts podcasts and runs two small businesses; she’s a teacher; and she’s trained in both yoga and typeface design. She is, first and foremost, a thanatologist – a person who studies death and dying. Her passions come together and coalesce in her work here in the Cincinnati area, through her work at the Lloyd Library and Museum as a research fellow, and more. At the vineyards, Cole and I talked about life, death, grieving, and growing.

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