Henry Kronk

General of the Army and 18th President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant won brilliant victories during the Civil War, orchestrated the defeat of the Confederacy, and dedicated his time in the White House to fighting the Ku Klux Klan.

Before all that, he was an unlucky loser, an inept businessman, a lightweight who couldn't hold his liquor in a hard-drinking society, and, for a brief time, a slave holder. You might have heard of the man who secured Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox. This podcast is about the person who came before the Civil War hero, and the offbeat paths he walked in life before finding his calling.

Listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

In the Appalachia region of the U.S., a region once dominated by the coal industry, mines have continued to close one after another. In answer, two tech consultants have established a free coding bootcamp called Mined Minds to retrain out of work coal miners and others for work in tech. What they promise seems like it could improve the socioeconomic status of communities around the world.

But some believe they aren't as beneficial as they come off. Several ex-learners have criticized the bootcamp, saying they were promised employment upon completion of the program and were fired days later. Others have filed a class action lawsuit against them on charges of fraud. Code Burst investigates Mined Minds, their efficacy, and whether their model can work for others.

Code Burst is produced as a collaboration between CKUT 90.3 FM and eLearning Inside News. Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.