Bridging Gaps

Lesa Roe, Chancellor for the University of North Texas System, and TV reporter Shannon Murray of Fox 4, will co-host a new Dallas-based podcast that will be distributed via iTunes, YouTube, SoundCloud and Spreaker. The podcast will be promoted monthly as part of a content sponsorship with DallasInnovates.com. Titled Bridging Gaps, Roe and Murrays thoughtful podcast will explore issues in DFW and Texas with a focus on bringing partners and subject experts together in purposeful conversation for the greater good of the community. Roe, who came to the UNT System last year after serving in as Deputy Administrator for NASA, said shes excited to work with Murray to discuss important issues with thought leaders from a myriad of industries, causes and backgrounds. Each podcast will be accompanied by a written companion piece, penned by Roe, and posted to DallasInnovates.com. Coming to the UNT System last October after 30+ years with NASA this has been a year of firsts for me, and co-hosting a podcast will be another new and exciting experience, Roe said. As the only university system based in Dallas-Fort Worth, Im keenly aware of our responsibility to serve the community as a state-funded entity, and part of our duty as a collective of higher education institutions is to provide thought leadership and be actively engaged in the community. Its my hope that Shannon and I can contribute in this space through Bridging Gaps. Murray, a Dallas-area native and graduate of Duncanville High School, said she and Roe enjoyed meeting a few months ago to discuss the project in its infancy. Through that initial meeting, a new partnership and monthly program were born. As a driven and career-oriented woman, I want to spend time with trailblazers like Lesa Roe, Murray said. We chose the name Bridging Gaps for several reasons. Throughout her career, Lesa has bridged the opportunity gap for women in STEM becoming the first woman to lead NASAs Langley Research Center, as well as the first woman to lead the UNT System. In my on-air work for FOX 4, I often work on stories about bridging social gaps, as far as poverty, education and employment disparity here in DFW. On the podcast, we plan to discuss bridging generational gaps, ethnicity gaps, healthcare gaps and so on as we seek out topics to explore that matter in Dallas-Fort Worth and beyond. In her role on FOX 4s Good Day morning program, Murray frequently leaves the comfort of KDFWs downtown Dallas studios to cover the biggest stories in North Texas. And Murrays community-connectedness pairs perfectly with Roe who travels frequently to UNT in Denton, UNT Health Science Center in Fort Worth and UNT Dallas, while also actively serving on the Board of Directors for the Dallas Regional Chamber of Commerce. Bridging Gaps will be recorded and produced each month from UNT System headquarters in Downtown Dallas. For more information about Bridging Gaps, please visit UNTsystem.edu/bridging-gaps , or email the shows producers at info@untsystem.edu.