The Role for Leaders in Advancing Open and Constructive Discourse on Campus About Complex Issues

As leaders, we have a crucial role to play in ensuring that our campus remains a place that supports open and rigorous engagement with difficult topics. Discussions can be difficult and fraught, especially with polarizing topics such as the Middle East, which interface with personal and national identity, politics (domestic and international) and many other related issues. These topics are multifaceted, emotionally charged, and have a personal impact on members of our academic community in deep ways. The challenge for us as leaders, and as stewards of our academic units' educational mission, is to foster a culture that enhances understanding and builds skills leading to shared learning and respectful dialogue. In this workshop, you will hear from faculty leaders and campus colleagues who regularly navigate charged situations and balance how to move their units toward a space of constructive engagement. Panelists will also share effective practices and helpful resources to support academic leaders. Workshop Speakers: Joseph Blocher, Lanty L. Smith Distinguished Professor of Law; Kerry Haynie, Dean of the Social Sciences in the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Professor of Political Science; Jen'nan Read, Sally Dalton Robinson Professor and Department Chair of Sociology Workshop Moderator: Jay Pearson, H. M. Foundation Associate Professor of Public Policy