WE HIGHLIGHT NEW ORGANIZATIONS EVERY MONTH ON THE FIRST AND THIRD MONDAYS

Support Doing Good: ⁠⁠⁠Donate Here⁠⁠⁠

For college students navigating financial aid deadlines, mental health challenges, and feeling overwhelmed by responsibilities, Dakota — Student Ambassador & Persist Nashville Client shares how personalized coaching transformed her university experience. Dakota demonstrates why one-on-one support creates lasting success for first-generation and underrepresented college students, exploring how trained coaches provide both academic resources and life guidance that traditional counseling doesn't offer.

Featured Guest: Dakota — Student Ambassador & Current Client, Persist Nashville

What You'll Learn:

✅ How Persist Nashville's coaching differs from academic counseling providing holistic life support without always redirecting to school

✅ Dakota's transformation from isolated student to student ambassador representing the entire student body

✅ Why authentic coach relationships matter from FAFSA navigation to preventing burnout through campus involvement

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Persist Nashville

03:03 The Role of Coaches in Student Development

05:09 Dakota's Experience as a Student Ambassador

05:53 The Importance of Student Voices in Decision Making

14:10 Doing Good Outro

Resources & Mentions: ⁠

Persist Nashville⁠ ⁠
Apply as a Student (Open to All College Students - Not Just Nashville Residents)⁠

Connect with Us:

Website: ⁠Doing Good⁠
Social Media: ⁠All Links⁠
Blog: ⁠Featured Volunteers⁠
Support the show: ⁠Donate Here⁠

Credits:

Produced by Azilee Maetke
Music by Hartzmann
Edited by Jordan Rillera
Additional Editing by Jay Wilson

WE HIGHLIGHT NEW ORGANIZATIONS EVERY MONTH ON THE FIRST AND THIRD MONDAYS

Support Doing Good: ⁠⁠⁠Donate Here⁠⁠⁠

For anyone wondering how volunteer work can reconnect you to your purpose while transforming students' lives, Laurie Brown, CEO of Intrepid College Prep and Board Chair of Persist Nashville, shares why first-generation college students need more than just admission letters to succeed. We explore the critical gap between college access and college completion, discover how professional coaching changes outcomes for MNPS graduates, and learn practical ways busy professionals can find volunteer opportunities that fill their cup.

Featured Guest: Laurie Brown — CEO of Intrepid College Prep & Board Chair of Persist Nashville

What You'll Learn:

✅ Why the first two years of college are make-or-break for first-generation students and how coaching helps them persist

✅ How Persist Nashville's data-driven approach partners with MNPS schools to track student outcomes from senior year through college

✅ How to reframe volunteerism as a two-way investment that fills your cup while serving your community

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Lori Brown and Her Journey

03:14 The Importance of Advocacy in Education

06:06 Persist Nashville: Supporting College Access and Persistence

09:00 The Role of a Board Chair in Nonprofit Organizations

12:00 Success Stories and Impact of Volunteerism

14:34 The Value of Micro Moments in Volunteer Work

17:21 Future Aspirations in Volunteerism and Advocacy

30:29 Introduction to Heart Work and Community Impact

30:56 Doing Good Outro 26-Video-Only-V3.mp4

Resources & Mentions: ⁠

Persist Nashville⁠ ⁠
Intrepid College Prep⁠ ⁠
Teach for America Nashville⁠

Connect with Us:

Website: ⁠Doing Good⁠
Social Media: ⁠All Links⁠
Blog: ⁠Featured Volunteers⁠
Support the show: ⁠Donate Here⁠

Credits:

Produced by Azilee Maetke
Music by Hartzmann
Edited by Jordan Rillera
Additional Editing by Jay Wilson

WE HIGHLIGHT NEW ORGANIZATIONS EVERY MONTH ON THE FIRST AND THIRD MONDAYS

To Support Doing Good: Donate Here

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This is the second part of our two-part series highlighting Nashville Rescue Mission. Joy Flores (Vice President of Ministries) and Krystle Knight (Operations Coordinator) join Megan to discuss the transformative power of holistic care and what happens when an organization truly sees the whole person.

What You'll Learn:

✅ Why treating homelessness requires addressing the whole person, not just housing
✅ How work therapy, mentorship, and community create pathways to lasting stability
✅ The power of hiring program graduates to mentor those walking the same journey

Resources & Mentions:

Nashville Rescue Mission

Connect with Us:

Website: ⁠⁠⁠Doing Good⁠⁠⁠
Social Media: ⁠⁠⁠All Links⁠⁠⁠
Blog: ⁠⁠⁠Featured Organization⁠⁠⁠
Support the show: ⁠⁠⁠Donate Here⁠⁠⁠

Credits:

Hosted by Megan McInnis
Produced by Jay Wilson
Edited by Jay Wilson
Music by Hartzmann

WE HIGHLIGHT NEW ORGANIZATIONS EVERY MONTH ON THE FIRST AND THIRD MONDAYS

To Support Doing Good: Donate Here

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In this episode, author and adventurer Heidi Siefkas joins Megan to discuss the transformative power of volunteering, resilience, and the "Look Up" mantra born from a near-death experience.

What You'll Learn:

✅ How volunteering shifts perspective and builds resilience as a "muscle to be flexed."
✅ Why homelessness can happen to anyone and the importance of community lifelines
✅ The power of treating volunteer service as an all-consuming adventure

Resources & Mentions:

Nashville Rescue Mission
Heidi Siefkas

Connect with Us:

Website: ⁠⁠⁠Doing Good⁠⁠⁠
Social Media: ⁠⁠⁠All Links⁠⁠⁠
Blog: ⁠⁠⁠Featured Organization⁠⁠⁠
Support the show: ⁠⁠⁠Donate Here⁠⁠⁠

Credits:

Hosted by Megan McInnis
Produced by Jay Wilson
Music by Hartzmann

WE HIGHLIGHT NEW ORGANIZATIONS EVERY MONTH ON THE FIRST AND THIRD MONDAYS

To Support Doing Good: https://bit.ly/DoingGoodDonate

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Episode Summary:

In this episode, Kayla Torti (Program Director at Tucker's House) and Adeline (Tucker's House recipient) join Megan McInnis to discuss the profound impact of accessible home modifications on families living with disabilities. We explore Kayla's journey as both a special needs mom and advocate, hear Addie's transformative story of moving from a converted garage to independent living, and discover how Tucker's House creates dignity and hope through thoughtful accessibility solutions.

What You'll Learn:

✅ How inaccessibility literally makes people more disabled and affects their health
✅ The comprehensive planning required for successful home modifications
✅ Why advocacy and understanding matter as much as the physical changes

Resources & Mentions:

Tucker's House

Apply for services: Click the "Apply" button at tuckershouse.org (located in the top right corner). To volunteer or donate: Contact through the website

Connect with Us:

Website: ⁠⁠⁠Doing Good⁠⁠⁠
Social Media: ⁠⁠⁠All Links⁠⁠⁠
Blog: ⁠⁠⁠Featured Organization⁠⁠⁠
Support the show: ⁠⁠⁠Donate Here⁠⁠⁠

Credits:

Hosted by Megan McInnis
Produced by Jay Wilson
Music by Hartzmann
Edited by Jordan Rillera

In this special episode of the Doing Good podcast, we’ll get to know Emily Green, the new co-host of this podcast. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee, and is the newest member of the Doing Good team.

Emily has had an interesting assortment of volunteer roles throughout her life. From helping out at a local retirement home as a teenager, to her time in a service fraternity in college, to finding her niche in charity event planning, she clearly values variety of experience. In her new role as Doing Good podcast co-host, Emily is looking forward to meeting the different people interviewed and learning about their experiences as volunteers.

“My hope is that people who are listening to the episodes are able to open their mind a little bit to what all is out there,” she says, “…and start to kind of think about what they could potentially be doing in their own community.” This is an exciting new chapter for her and for the podcast.

Keisha Felton is a wife and mother who works full-time and founded a young nonprofit named Project E3. It sends low-income children to summer camp to empower them with various new experiences – such as teaching them to swim or build robots. These fun social activities keep the children engaged, help prevent the academic summer slide, and perhaps open doors and imagination for future Olympians, engineers, or rocket scientists. This podcast is brought to you by Doing Good, a 501c3 nonprofit. www.doinggood.tv

In this episode, Erin Harris shares her inspiring journey from a career in education to founding Un/Do Mindset, a nonprofit organization dedicated to mental health education and trauma recovery. Through candid storytelling, Erin discusses her work providing accessible resources rooted in cognitive and dialectical behavioral therapy and serving diverse communities, including incarcerated and transient populations. She delves into the transformative nature of volunteerism, the struggles of managing a nonprofit, and the role of community in fostering healing and connection.

Join us for a powerful conversation about shared humanity, emotional resilience, and aligning personal values with meaningful action.

This podcast is brought to you by Doing Good, a 501c3 nonprofit. www.doinggood.tv