Difficult Dialogues In Higher Education Conference

The first bi-annual Difficult Dialogues in Higher Education Conference was a great success! The next national conference is tentatively scheduled for Fall 2016 at University of Texas at Austin.

September 2014 at University of Texas at Austin

Difficult Dialogues Practices in Higher Education: A New Imperative of Democracy?

Do higher education institutions have an obligation to prepare students to engage in productive dialogue across differences of identity and ideology about the most important and challenging issues of our times?

Many university leaders, like you, believe that they do.

During this inaugural conference we explored the need for academic leadership to foster Difficult Dialogues programs and practices at universities and colleges nationwide.

We’ll also introduced a wide array of resources —including the newly formed Difficult Dialogues National Resource Center – to help campus leaders meet those needs.

Sylvia Hurtado, Professor and Director of the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA in the Graduate School of Education and Information Sciences, was the keynote speaker.

Highlights from the Conference

The Big Picture- Difficult Dialogues on Your Campuses
Remarks by Dr. Roger Worthington. President of the Board, DDNRC

Keynote Address by Dr. Sylvia Hurtado, Professor and Director of the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA.

Interactive Session- Productively Engaging Difficult Dialogues
We all encounter difficult dialogues in our colleges and universities. But, do we know how to engage with them productively?

Panel: Learning from Difficult Dialogues in Different Higher Education Contexts
Panelists include leaders from: the National Association of Chief Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE); Intergroup Dialogue Program at Texas A & M; Difficult Dialogues Initiative at University of Texas, Austin; DDNRC; and Soliya, Inc.

Advancing Difficult Dialogues Using Interactive Theater
Interactive theater demonstration addressing religious differences in higher education communities led by Dr. Suzanne Burgoyne, Director of the new Center for Applied Theater and Drama Research at the University of Missouri, Columbia.

Discussion Groups - Strength Through a Movement
How can we create a national movement? How do we activate and engage other institutions in the U.S. and beyond? The media? Higher education associations? Dialogue and deliberation organizations? Government? How do we secure the necessary resources?