A wide-ranging career in environmental protection has prepared Ramón Cruz, SIS/BA '98, for his latest challenge: president of the Sierra Club, a role he assumed in May 2020. Over the last year, the 128-year-old, grassroots environmental organization’s first Latino president has been tasked with virtually preserving the spirit and mission of a Sierra Club that often does its best work in the great outdoors.

Cruz joined the 30 Minutes On . . . podcast in late December to walk us through the Sierra Club’s 2020, his career in environmental policy, and the parallels between environmental and racial injustice.

30 Minutes On... Environmentalism (with Ramón Cruz, SIS/BA '98)

In fall 2019, Darianne De Leon, WCL/JD ’20, took a full slate of 3L classes, worked in the pro bono department of a DC law firm, and—if that wasn’t enough—waited on pins and needles for what she hoped would be a timely resolution to her immigration case.

With the help of the Defending the AU Dream Initiative—a WCL immigration law clinic that provides free legal services to members of the AU community—she eventually got her day in immigration court. And she won.

De Leon joined the 30 Minutes On… podcast in August to reflect on her time working with AU Dream—an immigration law clinic by and for Eagles—and what we can all take away from her monthslong ordeal.

30 Minutes On... Immigration Law (with Darianne De Leon, WCL/JD '20)

In 2017, School of Public Affairs alumnus Jeff Perkins joined ParkMobile, first as its chief marketing officer. He was then named CEO of the Atlanta-based company in July. Since, it’s been all park and little recreation for Perkins and the nation’s leading mobile parking technology provider. ParkMobile continues to add to its 558 locations across 42 states and DC. It eclipsed the 30 million customer threshold in December, and it adds another million customers every 30 days. And in September, Perkins published his first book, How Not to Suck at Marketing.

Perkins joined the podcast in December and reflected on his path in marketing and his company’s efforts to manage present day growth while contemplating the future of transportation. ParkMobile continues to think outside the lines while we just try to stay within them.

30 Minutes On Parking (with Jeff Perkins, SPA/BA ’96)

This fall, Myron Long, CAS/MA ’05, hopes to open the minds of young people to design better and more just systems. The Social Justice School, a public charter middle school in Northeast Washington of which the veteran educator is founder and executive director, will soon welcome its first class of fifth and sixth grade students with a curriculum that includes projects, texts, and discussions focused on real-world social justice issues. Long joined the 30 Minutes On… podcast in late June to discuss the lessons he has learned as an educator, the inherent challenges that come with establishing a new school, and the emphasis on creativity, critical thinking, and cohesiveness needed for effective social justice education.

30 Minutes On... Social Justice Education (with Myron Long, CAS/MA '05)

Kara Suvada, CAS/BS ’17, a public health graduate student at Emory University and a fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, knows from experience, having worked from May until August as a contact tracer for the Georgia Department of Public Health. 

Suvada virtually joined the 30 Minutes On… podcast in October to fill us in on her summer on the phone. Not only did her experience reveal peoples’ fears amid a pandemic with no end in sight, but it also reminded Suvada, one call at a time, about the importance of appreciating context and focusing on equity as a public health practitioner.

30 Minutes On... Contact Tracing (with Kara Suvada, CAS/BS '17)

30 Minutes On... is a podcast from American University magazine, published with each issue. We dive deep into interesting subjects and stories by speaking with experts who are members of the AU community. Visit our website at american.edu/magazine/

30 Minutes On... from American magazine