I am happy to announce that the promo for my forthcoming book with Routledge is now live: Folklore and Ethnology of the Modern World: A Theory of Cultural Engagement, which should be out in early 2026. Its coverage is indeed more global than previous books. It is also broader with a focus especially on visual and material aspects of ritual, festival, and custom.
I am happy to announce that I am now being represented by Key Speakers for public lectures. Check out the topics and openings here.
Key Speakers, based in California, is renowned for securing “buzzworthy” talent who leave a lasting impact on audiences. For nearly 30 years, they have helped universities, professional associations, Fortune 500 companies, technology companies, trade associations, nonprofits and businesses of all shapes and sizes inspire and educate their audiences through the world’s finest motivational speakers, celebrities, disruptive thought leaders, entrepreneurs, experts, and world-class entertainers.
Key Speakers is certified as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) through the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), the nation’s largest third-party certifier of businesses owned and operated by women in the US. They are accredited by the International Association of Speakers Bureaus (IASB), the governing body of the speaking industry, operating at the highest ethical standards and professional integrity in the industry.
Missed the public forum on the state of American education with the former US secretaries of education? The recording is available for viewing at https://thompsoncenter.wisc.edu/view/can-america-s-public-schools-and-colleges-be-fixed/. It was a great event with a stimulating exchange about the present and future of our schools and colleges.
I am serving as moderator for a special event free and open to the public on April 10, 2025, at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on the campus of UWM at Waukesha. Come join us! Free parking too.
Moderator: Dr. Simon J. Bronner
Location: Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on the UWM at Waukesha campus, 1500 N. University Dr., Waukesha, WI
Sponsored by the Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership and hosted by UWM at Waukesha. Free and open to the public, registration required. Register Here.
Arne Duncan served as U.S. Secretary of Education from January 2009 through January 2016 as part of the Obama Administration. Prior to joining the Obama Administration, Duncan served as chief executive officer of Chicago Public Schools. From 2001 to 2008, Duncan won praise for uniting the city’s stakeholders behind an education agenda that included opening 100 new schools; expanding after-school, summer learning, early childhood, and college access programs; dramatically boosting the caliber of teachers; and building public-private partnerships around a variety of education initiatives.
He currently leads Chicago CRED, a nonprofit trying to achieve a transformative reduction in gun violence in Chicago. Through partnerships with local business leaders, community organizers, and nonprofit groups, Duncan aims to provide outreach, therapeutic, education, and employment opportunities for the young men most likely to be engaged in gun violence. He is also the managing partner at Emerson Collective, an organization dedicated to removing barriers so people can live to their full potential. Secretary Duncan graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1987, majoring in sociology. At Harvard he served as co-captain of the basketball team and was named a first team Academic All-American.
MARGARET SPELLINGS
President & CEO, Bipartisan Policy Center
Margaret Spellings serves as President and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center, bringing her knowledge and experience developed over an exceptional career in public service at both the state and national level.
Spellings most recently served as President and CEO of Texas 2036, a data-driven, bipartisan think tank addressing the most pressing issues facing Texans.
Prior to that, Spellings served as the president of the 17-institution University of North Carolina System, leading the state’s public university into a new period of performance, affordability, and growth with a focus on improving economic mobility, ensuring accountability, and advancing the public good.
Spellings also served as president of the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas, where she oversaw programs on economic opportunity, education reform, global health, and special initiatives on women’s leadership and military service. Her work included the 2014 launch of the Presidential Leadership Scholars program, a one-of-a-kind leadership program born out of the first-ever partnership of multiple Presidential Centers.
From 2005 to 2009, Spellings served as U.S. Secretary of Education, leading the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act, a bipartisan initiative to provide greater accountability for the education of 50 million U.S. public school students. As secretary, she also launched the Commission on the Future of Higher Education, a plan to address challenges of access, affordability, quality, and accountability in our nation’s colleges and universities. Prior to serving as Secretary, Spellings served as White House domestic policy advisor from 2001 to 2005. Her achievements include oversight of the development of the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the development of a comprehensive immigration plan to ensure long-term economic stability and to secure U.S. borders, and numerous other initiatives on health and human services, transportation, labor, justice and housing.
We were thrilled to host a public forum at the College on April 9, 2024, with nationally renowned political analysts Donna Brazile and Ana Navarro on presidential elections past, present, and future. Sponsored by the Thompson Center on Public Leadership, I was pleased to serve as moderator and field questions from the audience. Click here for a recording of the event.
Simon Bronner appears on the “Fabric of Folklore” podcast hosted by Vanessa Rogers 3-21-23.
What is the meaning of folklore? Is folklore a study of old cultures, or does it include modern cultures as well? What does psychology and folklore have to do with one another and how can they help each other explain the world? Dr. Simon Bronner, Dean of the College of General Studies and expert folklorist at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee explores a range of topics. He challenges us to recognize that jokes, common phrases, insults, children’s rhymes and more are all part of modern folklore. History, psychology, and sociology help explain the world, but folklore helps to add meaning. Timestamps 0:00:03 Introduction 0:03:30 Journey into folklore from immigrant identity as well a transformative course 0:05:57 The need to talk about the importance of tradition and everyday life through the perspective of folklore 0:10:46 Exploring the Influence of Folklore on Human Development: An Analysis of Alan Dundes 0:12:56 The Emergence of New Forms of Folklore 0:17:43 Exploring Folklore in the present 0:20:07 Alan Dundes and digital folklore including Photocopied Broadsides -humorous book 0:22:25 The journey into writing The Meaning of Folklore 0:24:51 Bloody Mary ritual and adolescent girls 0:30:23 Intersection of Psychology and Folklore 0:37:57 Psychoanalysis and Folklore in Peter Gamwell’s Book 0:40:36 Sigmund Freud’s Connection to Folklore 0:42:51 Freud’s Influence on Scatological Customs and Womb Envy 0:45:49 the History and Meaning of Folklore and Wishing Wells 0:51:35 Urban Legends and Contemporary Folklore 0:55:41 Intersection of Psychology and Folklore 1:01:05 Folklore, Psychology, digital folklore, and Wishing in Modern Society 1:03:24 Practice of Folklore book 1:05:29 Male Communication and Folklore
Against the background of Halloween, Dr. Bronner discusses how black cats became a symbol of the holiday on Wisconsin Public Radio. He also talks about other animals and their representation in folk and popular culture.
The thirteenth Southeast Wisconsin Festival of Books concluded with a terrific turnout for keynote speaker Lawrence Tabak, author of Foxconned and multiple panels featuring University of Wisconsin Milwaukee authors including the special session on “Gun Talk” and “Indigenous Authors.”
Following up a series of public presentations on university relations to our region and diverse communities, I participated in a well-attended event sponsored by the Waukesha County Business Alliance (WCBA) and the Mayor of Waukesha, Wisconsin. Other participants included presidents of Carroll University and Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) to discuss ways that higher education can mitigate the worker shortage. I emphasized innovative programs through Continuing Education for reskilling and upskilling, and through residential instruction for future-prepared critical thinking and adaptability. I also pointed out the ramping up of dual enrollment programs with the innovative Early College Academy and a new collaborative program with WCTC. In answer to the question of what the region could contribute to our efforts, I discussed solutions to problems of transportation and affordable housing to increase access to the region and public universities. I also referred to technology and the need for partnerships with industry on provision of equipment for students to learn. Unlike the other panelists focused on manufacturing and service businesses, I also referred to the significance of university education for quality of life through support of creative industries and social-cultural work.
The roundtable at the Washington County campus of the University of Wisconsin on April 27, 2022 was the latest in a series of listening sessions with Chancellor Mark Mone and Dean Simon J. Bronner during a time of transition for the University of Wisconsin system. Jay Rothman takes over the position of UW System President in June.
