The Working Ethics Podcast Series

Local dog groomer, Chelle Kilmury, a partner-in-business at Groom N Go, not only takes care of dogs the right way. She is also an excellent mentor to younger people interested in going into the animal grooming business. We talked with Chelle, and her apprentice, Zeke Askew about the craft and skills involved in grooming the many dog breeds that Ann Arbor area residents have been bringing to the shop for appointments that last the dog's lifetime. And what we found out is that grooming has a moral code and an ethics that includes both loyalty to the animals and responsibilities for the owners. In addition, we think that such a craft can be best taught by mentors who are able to pass on their special knowledge and experience as well as the wisdom they have gained from the animals they care for and care about.

Like many others who are in public service, David Behen, the Deputy Administrator for Washtenaw County, would like to encourage others, and especially people in their 20s and 30s to join him. And when a2ethics.org talked with David, his honest and forthright appraisal of the ethics of his work, made us want to give civil service a new look. Yet, these are hard times. So, how does an administrator who has to make tough decisions that are economically-driven because of diminished resources and money, determine what is the right thing to do? I am not sure we answered these questions, but our conversation with David Behen frames the ones he finds the most difficult. We think that you would agree. Now how can we as citizens of Washtenaw County assist David Behen "convene a community" as he so nicely puts it, that offers the highest quality of life for everyone who lives here?

Last spring, the Huron High Boys Swimming team ended a 20 year drought by winning the state championship. As Coach Kelton Graham, now in his second year there, tells it, it was all about teamwork and motivation. He is too humble by half. A2ethics.org's interview with Coach Graham, told us otherwise: his motivational skills and trust in his swimmers were also vitally important to the team's success.

While we could be ethics skeptics about 'coaching speak' on motivation and its ties to manipulation, what separates Kelton Graham from other coaches is that he is both sincere and honest. He trusts his athletes. And what really comes through in our discussion about the ethics of his coaching work, is that Coach Graham believes in his athletes and truly respects this belief too.

This podcast has force too. When we asked about the ethical problem of unfair advantages in swimming, from not having access to good pool facilities to suiting up in the new LZR Speedo which costs a cool $550.00, Coach Graham turned our world around.

We do not want to say that Kelton Graham is a pioneer, because that would only bring up the other winning swimming teams in Ann Arbor. No, Coach Graham is what we think all high school coaches should want...and that is to move their athletes to be their best. It is not about the coach, it is about the kids.

This interview features local social entrepreneur, Mary Wessel Walker, owner of the Community Farm Kitchen. Mary is in her early 20s, and started the Community Farm Kitchen when she saw a way to fill a social need: preparing meals for busy families from local and biodynamically grown food. A2ethics.org talked with Mary about her ideals and vision for the County Farm Kitchen.

Mary is our fourth interview in the a2ethics.org "Working Ethics Series." This series includes discussions with A2-born or current  A2 area residents in their 20s and 30s talking about the ethics of their work.

The controversial use of a potentially derogatory name sparks a local feud. A2ethics has the inside track.

PLUS! Podcast interview with Catherine Dann Roeber and Hanna Raskin of American Table Culinary Tours. A provocative lesson in food and culture.

How is food influencing politics? What do we mean when we say 'LOCAL FOODS?' Take a trip to WASHTENAW DAIRY for a lively discussion of ethics, the 'Ypsitucky' controversy, and half a dozen of the most delicious donuts you will find.

Our trip to Washtenaw Dairy is the third in the a2ethics.org "Working Ethics Series." This series includes discussions with A2-born or current A2 area residents in their 20s and 30s talking about the ethics of their work.Catharine Dann Roeber and Hanna Raskin are in their early 30s and grew up in the Ann Arbor area.

In Washtenaw County, we all know that education is our major industry. Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Washtenaw Community College, Concordia University, Cleary University are all options. Given the large number of education choices, why is college admissions so hypercompetitive? And when higher education degrees have become a ticket not just to the good life, but the ticket to a life that just allows you to make ends meet, the ethics of college admission take on a whole new importance.

Caroline Kerr, the Associate Director of College Counseling at Ann Arbor Greenhills School gives us a primer on the ethics of college applications and the issues high school college counselors face in today's hypercompetitive environment. Caroline is in her 20s and grew up in Ann Arbor. Recently, she took a position in the Admissions department at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

This interview is the second in our "Working Ethics Series." This series includes discussions with A2-born and current A2 area residents in their 20s and 30s talking about the ethics of their work.

A2ethics.org discusses how the photojournalist outsider becomes an insider in a community and the ethical problems becoming an insider can pose. Jack Bridges, a freelance photographer, spent over four years taking pictures of the residents of the Robert Taylor Homes, a public housing development in Chicago, while the city debated how to tear the Homes down.

Bridges, in his late 20s, was born and grew up in Ann Arbor. In this very thought-provoking interview, he gives a2ethics.org its own inside account of the main ethical issues that photojournalists face in deciding who and what to shoot and why.

This interview is the inaugural in the a2ethics.org "Working Ethics Series." This series includes discussions with A2-born and A2 area current residents in their 20s and 30s talking about the ethics of their work.