The University has launched a podcast to tell stories from within its community.

For years, the La Salle University community has read about faculty, alumni, and student achievements. Now, Explorers everywhere can listen to them, too.

In April, the University debuted a podcast, 20th & Olney, aimed at bringing to life the transformational student successes, professional outcomes, and faculty achievements for which La Salle is known. The biweekly podcast is produced by La Salle University Marketing and Communication—with hosts Shea Wright and Patrick Berkery, and editorial support from Christopher A. Vito.

20th & Olney will deliver biweekly episodes that focus on short-form, intimate interviews with those closest to La Salle—including faculty, staff, current students, alumni, and more.

The launch of 20th & Olney represents a new storytelling opportunity for La Salle, La Salle’s first foray into podcasting, said Angela Polec, Ed.D., vice president of enrollment, marketing, and communications.

“20th & Olney is an opportunity to elevate the voices of our community and those of the wider Northwest Philadelphia community, while sharing transformational student and alumni outcomes, faculty achievements, and beyond,” Polec said. “La Salle’s reach is extensive and our engaged alumni network is robust. We look forward to leveraging this new podcast as another storytelling medium for this historic university and its unwavering commitment to a mission and core values of social justice, service, and solidarity.”

Wright has worked in a variety of marketing and communications roles for more than a decade. A native of the Washington, D.C. area, she most recently joined La Salle from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, honing in on her passion for higher-ed social media. A podcast enthusiast, Wright also cohosts with her husband a weekly podcast, 2 Cool Parents Podcast.

Berkery joined La Salle after working at the Bucks County Courier Times for more than a decade in a variety of editorial roles, including co-hosting and producing the sports podcast Moore Philly Sports, with veteran sportswriter Tom Moore. Berkery has also been a contributing arts and entertainment features writer for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Rolling Stone online, Modern Drummer magazine, Salon, Philadelphia Weekly, and more.

You can listen to 20th & Olney wherever you get your podcasts—from Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts, to Spotify, Stitcher, and more. (Just search “20th & Olney.”) You can bookmark the University’s News Center to download them directly, too.

About La Salle University

Established in 1863, La Salle University is a comprehensive Catholic university rooted in the tradition of the Brothers of the Christian Schools teaching order, which was founded by St. John Baptist de La Salle, the Patron Saint of Teachers. Known as an academic community of excellence shaped by Catholic and Lasallian values, La Salle remains steadfast in the pursuit of its mission of faith, service, community, and social justice.

La Salle is consistently recognized for its delivery of a holistic and practical education that produces strong outcomes. In 2019, the University ranked among the top-4 percent nationally in 10-year earnings, top-7 percent in lifetime return on investment, and top-10 percent in the lowest debt incurred by its graduates, according to a study by Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce.