What’s Next?
Monday - Thursday 10am and 9pm, Sunday at 6pm
What’s Next? is a program that uncovers and discusses the issues and topics pertinent to marginalized and underrepresented populations of Western New York and Southern Ontario.
From inception, days after the racist May 14, 2022 shooting in Buffalo, the show has tasked itself to be a champion for social equity and justice. Moving forward we will continue to feature voices from all parts of our shared community to celebrate our individual differences as well as the commonalities.
The show is broadcast live on the air from 10am to 11am Monday through Thursday, and airs again at 9pm Monday through Thursday as well as Sundays at 6pm on WBFO. It is also available digitally through WBFO’s website, apps, and as a podcast.
Listeners can participate by using the "Talk to Us" feature in the WBFO mobile app, available on Apple and Android devices. Open the app and scroll to the bottom bar where the "Talk to Us" button allows listeners to send audio recordings straight to the newsroom.
You can also reach the production staff by e-mailing WhatsNext@wbfo.org.
What's Next? will be taking a short break in April and will return with new episodes in May. As we take this break, please continue to listen to WBFO Monday through Thursday at 10am and 9pm for "Producer's Picks" episodes of past conversations.
Latest Episodes
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On today's episode, Jay Moran discusses challenges that are still faced on Buffalo's East Side with Dr. Henry Louis Taylor Jr. Then, Thomas O'Neil-White speaks with DEI consultant and Executive Vice President of the National Urban League Young Professionals Kendra Brim. -
On today's episode, Thomas O'Neil-White discusses progress or lack thereof in two separate interviews with author and executive director of Agents of Advocacy Mark Talley and political activist India Walton.
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Today, we take a trip to The Foundry on Buffalo’s East Side where Thomas O’Neil-White speaks with Megan McNally, Executive Director, and Tamara Zantell, Business Development Director. The three have an in-depth discussion about the organization’s start and impact on the community.
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The Tool Library is a volunteer-powered nonprofit tool-lending library located in the center of Buffalo’s Main Street. Set up to lend tools out to the community to help them maintain and fix up their homes and gardens. On today’s show, we take a tour of the Tool Library with Jay Moran and Darren Cotton, the Executive Director of the library. Then, Thomas O’Neil-White speaks with returning guest Alex Burgos public health policy and public relations professional. The two discuss filling the gaps in youth and sports programs on Buffalo’s West Side.
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Today, we welcome returning guest Ben Hilligas, Executive Director of Buffalo Educational Opportunity Center at the University at Buffalo. Ben sits down with Jay Moran to discuss what he and the EOC have done in his first year. His vision, strategies, and passion for educational empowerment alongside the activities and programs that will be taking place in the next year.
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We revisit two stand-out conversations with Daniel Robertson, Director of the Boys and Men of Color Initiative at Say Yes, Buffalo, to discuss Daniel’s plans for his new role and the positive examples of leadership that helped him step up. And Kelly Dumas of Healing Hub of NY, Inc. and Amanda Paul of Say Yes Buffalo for a discussion about a new program that empowers mental-health clinicians of color.
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We revisit two stand-out conversations with Dontaya Davis and Alia Williams, community organizers for Voice Buffalo. The two are working locally to boost the Ebony Alert system. Then Bree Gilliam is a visual artist whose portrait and mural work, in her own words, incorporates bold color and expressive brushwork to provoke emotion from her audience.
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We revisit two stand-out conversations with Mia Ayers-Goss, executive director of MVP, Most Valuable Parents an advocacy group that combats crime and violence through diversion programs like a new basketball league. Followed by Donna Robinson, Buffalo’s community organizer for Release Aging People in Prison, or RAPP.
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Seamus Gallivan’s latest endeavor is Reconnecter, a “social connection space” that aims to bring people together in person and online “by illuminating the ties that bind us.” That means music showcases, variety shows, and media elements — all to help provide a need that he believes can help prevent social unrest. Gallivan sits down with Thomas O’Neil-White to speak about the power of reconnection and his plans for the new project.
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Lindsey Lauren Visser was recently appointed to the role of historian for the City of Buffalo. She is the first female historian to serve in the role, and she joins Thomas O’Neil-White to discuss her appointment and some notable upcoming milestones, including the 200th anniversary of the Erie Canal in 2025. Then, producer Patrick Hosken speaks with Gittel Evangelist, the communications coordinator for Rural and Migrant Ministry, about a recent court ruling with implications for rural and farmworkers in New York State.
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The YWCA Jamestown's mission states that it is “dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all.” What’s Next? travels to the organization’s historic building on Main Street in Chautauqua County’s largest city to meet the team making that mission happen: Indo Quiñones, Mission Impact Director; Alizé Scott-Nowell, Social Justice and Race Equity Director; Jacqui Cook, Young Women Choosing Action and Women to Women Director; Nanci Okerlund, Transitions Director; and Amanda Gesing, Executive Director. -
Jamestown Community College recently partnered with Collins Correctional Facility for a joint prison education program, headed up by Reid Helford. He’s made it his life’s work to teach incarcerated students, and he’s learned a lot about identity, perception, and value from those lessons. Helford joins Jay Moran on campus in Jamestown for a conversation tackling his experiences, how academic expression can allow for growth opportunities, and more.
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Smoking rates are declining, but efforts to curb tobacco use keep ramping up. Rashawn Smalls, the program manager for Tobacco-Free Erie and Niagara through CAI Global, joins What’s Next? to talk about what it means to advance tobacco-free communities, including eliminating secondhand smoke and creating overall healthy environments. Then, we revisit a conversation with expert Dr. Gary Giovino about how tobacco use interacts with other factors like diet and income.
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In light of a recent conference presented by the Western New York Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, What’s Next? features a conversation about Black caregiving. We welcome Robin Hodges, board member of the Alzheimer’s Association; Andrea Koch, the organization’s Director of Education and Training; and Dr. Carleara Weiss, Research Assistant Professor in the Office of Nursing Research at the University at Buffalo. The three join Jay Moran to discuss caregiving in communities of color and offer some context for the ongoing challenges to meet those needs.
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Today on What’s Next?, we welcome Marie Patton, the vice president of the National Association of Women in Construction’s Buffalo Niagara chapter. Patton is also the director of operations and safety at Active Workforce, a job placement and training organization that helps workers in construction connect with contractors looking to hire. She sits down with Jay Moran to discussion how women still only make up a small fraction of total construction jobs – and how her organizations work to help change that through networking and resources.
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What’s Next? welcomes returning guest Aitina Fareed-Cooke, a multi-disciplined artist who was recently named Buffalo’s second-ever poet laureate. Fareed-Cooke is deeply invested in the creative arts, as well as education through her work with the media company Get Fokus’d Productions. She joins host Holly Kirkpatrick for a conversation about plans for her new role and the importance of service, and she also reads an excerpt of her poem “Forever Serve.”
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The Buffalo Courier-Express called him the “Jackie Robinson of Buffalo broadcasting,” and throughout his career on the air locally, the city’s first Black DJ Jimmy Lyons spoke with leading figures like Sammy Davis Jr. and Sam Cooke. What’s Next? travels to the home where he raised his family on Northland Avenue to speak with Gail, his daughter. She shares stories about Jimmy’s life, including his time as a performer, and makes a case for why Jimmy Lyons belongs in the Buffalo Broadcasters Hall of Fame.
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Today’s What’s Next? features two conversations devoted to the state of New York’s legal cannabis marketplace. First, Thomas O’Neil-White sits down with Sheldon Anderson, the CEO and one of the co-owners of Public Flower, the first Black - and woman-owned licensed dispensary in the city of Buffalo. Then, producer Patrick Hosken speaks with Paula Collins, an attorney specializing in cannabis law and tax preparation, who is also running for New York's 21st congressional district this year.
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Bree Gilliam is a visual artist whose portrait and mural work, in her own words, incorporates bold color and expressive brushwork to provoke emotion from her audience. Tiffany Gaines is the curatorial and digital content associate at the Burchfield Penney working on a project called “From the City: Exploring the Continuum of Buffalo’s Black Arts Scene.” Both join What’s Next? producer Patrick Hosken for separate conversations about creative expression and what that looks like locally, as well as upcoming work to look out for.
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Today’s What’s Next? features a conversation with Marcus Watson, associate professor of Africana Studies and Individualized Studies at Buffalo State University. His research focuses on the Black freedom struggle globally as well as social activism in South Africa, Ghana, and the U.S. Watson sits down with Jay Moran for a conversation about his studies, his Peace Corps work in South Africa shortly after apartheid, what students find most resonant about Africana studies, and more.
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Today on What’s Next?, Jay Moran sits down with Dr. Lori Quigley, professor and coordinator of the Ph.D. in Leadership in Policy program at Niagara University. Quigley’s academic research and her work as an education consultant has put social justice about Native issues at the forefront. This month, she will be a visiting professor at St. Bonaventure University, where she will speak about the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the U.S. today. Here, she previews those talks.
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What’s Next? welcomes CJ Banks, the Special Assistant to the President at Villa Maria College. Banks heads up community outreach and workforce development at the school, including through the recently announced Hip-Hop Creative Alliance. He’s also the founder and president of the KORP Foundation, which focuses on professional advancement and skills training. Originally from The Bronx and after some time spent in the music industry, Banks came to Buffalo 20 years ago. Since then, he’s kept busy in various entrepreneurial roles. He joins Jay Moran to discuss the latest of these, and future plans for workforce development in the community.
