The Space Between: Relational Cultural Theory and the Art of Connection

In this episode of the Epistemic Alchemy Podcast, host Dr. Mohammed Raei is joined by Dr. Ileya N. Grosman, an artist, scholar, and practitioner whose work bridges leadership, education, and the arts through the lens of relational cultural theory (RCT). Grosman shares her journey from early explorations of cultural connection and photography in Bangladesh to her doctoral research on professors’ lived experiences of positive relationships with undergraduate students. Drawing on RCT, phenomenology, and arts-based methods such as Photovoice, her study illuminates the “space between” teacher and student as a site of mutuality, empathy, and generativity. Together, Drs. Raei and Grosman explore how professors’ relational practices foster not only student growth but also their own renewal and purpose, creating virtuous cycles of connection within higher education. The conversation also highlights the feminist and social justice roots of RCT, its applications in leadership and organizational life, and its intersections with embodiment, neuroscience, and even polyvagal theory. Listeners will gain insights into how humanizing approaches to teaching and leadership can cultivate belonging, mattering, and creativity—while challenging traditional hierarchies. This episode invites educators, leaders, and researchers alike to reimagine scholarship and practice as generative acts of connection.

 

Resources:

Ileya's Dissertation and video summary

Ileya's LinkedIn including publications

The (White) Elephant in the Room: A Qualitative Critical Whiteness Study of Two Inclusive Leadership Programs (2025)

 

 

International Center for Growth in Connection to learn more about RCT and engagement

 

Thankful Learning, Dr. Harriet Schwartz, 2009