Seidenberg students launched a video-enhanced tech podcast called “The Berg,” where students talk about all things tech and the future of technology. 

According to the Dean of the Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information, Dr. Jonathan Hill, the podcast launched in the late spring of last year and was a project that had been discussed for years. 

“We’ve been walking about it for a number of years,” says Hill, “there was a much greater appetite for podcasts among the student population and a lot of the technologists that they follow and take inspiration from appear on podcasts or have podcasts of their own and the students felt like it was time.”

The podcast team, led by Katie Todd, Assistant Director of Communications and Strategic Operations of the Seidenberg school, plans and researches different guest speakers for the show, oftentimes inviting Seidenberg alumni who have officially entered their professional careers and who want to share their success and experience in the field with other students. 

Many of the guests are friends of the Seidenberg School, and the majority of them are Seidenberg alumni who return to share their adventures with our community,” says Todd, “ We have alumni who are CEOs, CIOs, and top executives, and who have so much wisdom and expertise to share. There’s so much to learn from these incredible people.

While the podcast’s theme is tech and the future of technology, Todd says that the podcast not only discusses the latest in technology but also reflects the hard work and success of the Seidenberg community. The main theme of the podcast is “tech, and…” which allows the guests and student team to run with different topics in any direction. 

Maybe one episode will focus on cybersecurity and hacking with a guest who is a professional in that sphere, and it’ll be extremely informative and interesting – but then the next episode will be about how technology can revitalize how art galleries make their collections accessible to people all over the world,” Todd says, “It’s totally open and we are led by what will make a compelling episode more than anything else.”

Hill believes that “the Berg” is a platform for the Seidenberg students to use to address the latest trends in technology and what is to come while also serving as a place for success in technology to be addressed and remembered. 

Our job is to make sure that we’re capturing the history, if you will, of what Pace University Seidenberg school has done in the field” says Hill, “because there’s a lot of impressive stuff that we need to own otherwise you could lose that.”

With currently four episodes produced, the show is primarily student-run and hosted by junior computer science major, Brittany Benjamin. With assistance from Todd in reaching out to potential guest speakers, Benjamin prepares for the guest speaker through research on the individual and generating interview questions to structure the episode according to the guest’s profession and experience. 

I do research on them and their job prior to the interview, so that I can come up with meaningful questions to ask them,” says Benjamin, “[in] the first few episodes, the guests mostly worked within the tech field, but the last person that was interviewed runs a company that teaches adults ballet online.”

The diversity of guests and their experiences are what drive the show, encouraging different alumni and current Pace students to reach out and speak on the show. “Everybody has a unique perspective on things, so we let their experiences and perspectives shape what the episode will be about” says Todd, “we take nominations and requests, including self-nominations for anybody who wants to participate, and suggestions for who to invite are welcome from everyone.”

Involvement in the podcast is open to all Pace University students and is not limited to Seidenberg students only. Participation from anyone that is interested is encouraged. Although the COVID-19 pandemic had moved meetings online, the team continues to meet and plan for future episodes via Zoom. 

“Every member of the Pace community is so welcome to reach out if they want to get involved!” says Todd. 

“The Berg” released its latest episode this week with guest speaker and Seidenberg alum Julie Gill who has used her coding expertise gained at Seidenberg to build and operate an online ballet school. While her in-person classes were put on pause due to COVID-19, she continued her operations online and developed new ideas to continue doing so. 

Todd says, “that involved building and coding a new web platform where her clients can purchase tailored packages that best suit their needs.” The episode is available to watch on the Seidenberg school’s YouTube page, along with previous episodes at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbzTB76k3-LKItZV5uqrcR5TW92p6Ue0C