In this episode of Our Indiana: Stories from Rural Hoosiers, host Denny Spinner travels to Washington, Indiana, to explore the impact of Sustaining Hoosier Communities (SHC) partnerships in Daviess County, Indiana.

Guests Cindy Barber, county extension director at Purdue Extension Daviess County, and Scott Burgins, clinical assistant professor at IU’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, share how SHC has helped local leaders and university students work together on real-world projects that address community needs. From planning infrastructure improvements to preserving local history, the partnership has sparked new energy, built trust, and created lasting impact.

Tune in to hear how rural communities are leveraging academic resources to turn ideas into action, how students are gaining hands-on experience in civic engagement, and how cross-university collaboration is helping Indiana’s small towns thrive.

For a transcript of this episode, visit go.iu.edu/ourindiana.

In this episode of Our Indiana: Stories from Rural Hoosiers, host Denny Spinner travels to Vincennes, Indiana, to speak with Eunice Trotter, director of the Indiana Landmarks Black Heritage Preservation Program, and local historian Tom Bartholomew. Together, they explore the deep and often overlooked history of Black communities in Knox County and across Indiana.

They discuss the origins and evolution of the Black Heritage Preservation Program, the power of oral histories, and the grassroots efforts to digitize and share long-buried records. From freedom suits filed decades before the Civil War to the first Black woman to vote in Indiana, this episode reveals how local stories shape our collective past.

Tune in to hear how communities are reclaiming their history, why preserving uncomfortable truths is essential for healing, and how this work is inspiring a new generation of historians and changemakers.

In this episode of Our Indiana: Stories from Rural Hoosiers, host Denny Spinner sits down with Jodi Routson, director of Deaconess Outpatient Behavioral Health Services at Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center; John Agley, associate professor at the IU School of Public Health; and Amy Todd, registered nurse and program management specialist at IU, to explore a groundbreaking partnership addressing mental health needs in rural Indiana.
They discuss how telehealth innovations are breaking down access barriers, reducing wait times, and offering immediate support to underserved populations. The episode also touches on reducing stigma, provider support, and scaling successful models to reach more rural Hoosiers.
Tune in to learn about innovative mental health care approaches, the impact of telehealth, and future expansion of these services to rural communities. Discover how collaboration is making a difference in the lives of rural Hoosiers.

Read the transcript