Fez and Friends

Episode 8: Jennifer Fitzgerald

This week, I had an opportunity to talk to a new friend and a candidate for Judge in Shelby County, Tennessee: Attorney Jennifer Fitzgerald! Attorney Fitzgerald is a criminal defense attorney that grew up in Memphis, TN. She went to Kirby High School and has been local to the area throughout her entire life. On a recent stroll through the community, I passed a bunch of lawn signs on my way to the local library in East Memphis. I noticed Jennifer, and a few other local candidates', lawn signs on a house on my Saturday stroll and I remarked about the importance of grassroots support in campaigning. Attorney Fitzgerald is a remarkable Attorney with support from the incumbent retiring candidate who's seat she is hoping to fill. From my conversation, I learned more about her experience as a longtime resident of this great city and her inspirations to run for office. Please tune in to this episode of Fez and Friends to learn more!

Episode 7: Imani Oakley

This week, I had the wonderful opportunity to catch up with Imani Oakley, an inspiring organizer, lawyer, and activist who recently ran for Congress in New Jersey's 10th Congressional District against Representative Donald Payne Jr. Imani has a history of being a change-maker in New Jersey. She was an organizer for the New Jersey Working Families, which successfully advocated for raising the minimum wage to $15/hour, legalizing marijuana, and highlighting the influence of the New Jersey EDA on legislative policy in NJ. In this conversation, we talked about her recent campaign for Congress, the fundraising hurdles that limit the potential of Progressive candidates, the many decisions that the Supreme Court is unilaterally making that restrict civil liberties, and the influence that Gen-Z and popular culture is having on politics. I had an incredible time catching up with Imani. I hope you will enjoy this episode! Thanks so much for tuning in! Sincerely, Fez and Friends

Episode 6: Michael Stern

Hello friends, I had the good fortune of being able to catch up with my friend Michael Stern today on the podcast. Our friendship goes way back to our high school days, when we played poker during study hall. Since then, he has been in the media business. He moved to Virginia shortly after High School, where he became an Executive Producer for a news company and eventually started his own Start Up Business called HeadStart. He is now a PR specialist and works with companies to help develop their individual brands. We had a chance to briefly discuss issues such as the shifting media landscape, including the hyper-globalization of the Main Stream Media, issues like systemic racism and income inequality, and the rapidly deteriorating American Middle Class. It was a pleasure to catch up and I hope you enjoy this episode. Thanks for tuning in! Sincerely, Fez and Friends

Episode 5: Hector Oseguera

Hello friends, It's been a while since I've been able to communicate through this podcast, but I'm so happy to be back! I had the pleasure of catching up with my good friend Hector Oseguera, a current Anti-Money Laundering Professional at UBS and a former candidate for Congress in New Jersey's 8th Congressional District. In this conversation, we discussed a wide variety of topics including the state of politics today, how the political discourse in Congress is being drowned out by discourse on social media, the importance of a stable democracy, and some of the issues that are plaguing our country today. Hector and I have been close friends since my time in New Jersey. Since I moved to Memphis, I have noticed that there are two different realities in this country. Coastal America and Middle America are divided. Coastal America is flourishing during this Pandemic. There are plenty of opportunities for Work From Home jobs in Coastal America. But places like Memphis are lagging behind. Coastal America is industrialized but vast majority of our country still needs more opportunity. It was great to reconnect with Hector to discuss income inequality, issues like the legalization of harmless substances, and the importance of restoring democracy by either innovating to incorporate technology and social media or separating those online conversations from the conversations in the halls of Congress. I hope you have a chance to take a listen! Sincerely, Fez and Friends

Episode 4: Dr. Joel Bloom

Hey friends! Thanks so much for tuning in to the podcast. I'm so excited that you are back with us this week! I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to talk to Dr. Joel Bloom, the outgoing President of the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Dr. Bloom has been one of the most transformative figures in my life. Prior to coming to NJIT, people knew me as a quiet kid that liked to sit back and observe the world. When I came to NJIT, everything changed. It started with an event called Pancakes with the President, in which I finally felt that my voice was being heard and appreciated. In this conversation, we talk about some of the tremendous transformations that NJIT has made since Dr. Bloom's tenure as the President of NJIT. Dr. Bloom came into NJIT with a background as an Economist. He has worked at the New Jersey State Department of Education and at Columbia University prior to making his way to NJIT as a Vice President. Soon after, he became the Founding Dean of the Albert Dorman Honors College, a school that provides brilliant individuals with scholarships and all the resources needed to help make the world a better place in their own way. In 2012, he became the President of NJIT and he has stayed in the role since and is expected to retire at the end of this year. During this conversation, we speak about a wide variety of inspiring topics including the development of the MakerSpace lab at NJIT, the incredible accomplishments in the space of entrepreneurship by distinguished alumni, the impact that his background as an economist has had on his tenure as President, and his philosophy and approach to leading an educational institution. Additionally, we talked briefly about incoming President Dr. Teik C. Lim and the expertise that he brings to the table when it comes to continuing the task of pushing NJIT forward as one of the best institutions for entrepreneurship and STEM and Dr. Bloom shares his advice for the incoming President as well as depicting a portrait of the future of the school we both know and love. I had an incredible time speaking with Dr. Bloom and I hope to speak with him more in the future. I hope you will stay tuned!