Community Dialogues
January 2023 marked the launch of Community Dialogues, President Holmes-Sullivan’s signature initiative. This ongoing program is intended to make healthy, constructive dialogue a part of our identity as an institution, and the foundation of how we relate to each other in community in both informal and formal settings.
Interested in participating in a Community Dialogue? See upcoming events and sign up here
To begin, 21 members of our community—faculty, staff, and students from all three of our campuses—were prepared by Essential Partners to facilitate meaningful dialogue across differences. Throughout the spring 2023 semester, practitioners will hold space inside and outside the classroom for us to learn and practice dialogue in both formal and informal settings in order to build our capacity to listen, speak, and learn with each other about topics central to our collective well-being, even when those topics are contentious.
The ultimate goal of this initiative is for our community to learn and practice dialogue in both formal and informal settings to build our capacity to listen, speak, and learn with each other about topics central to our collective wellbeing, even when those topics are contentious.
Past Events
A Fond Farewell to Ombuds Valerie White!
Retirement Celebration in honor of Ombuds Valerie White.
Phase III Discussion: Reimagining our Environmental Future
Janet Bixby and Liz Safran invite faculty and staff from all three schools to attend the Phase III discussion about Reimagining Our Environmental Future on May 9, 10 am - 2 pm.
Reimagining Our Environmental Connections Workshop
Faculty and staff are invited to share their ideas with Associate Professor of Geological Science Elizabeth Safran and Graduate School Associate Dean/Associate Professor Janet Bixby.
We are always happy to organize additional dialogue sessions, for a time that works best for your group. To make a request, please contact communitydialogues@lclark.edu.
Essential Partners
Essential Partners has over 30 years of experience helping campus communities large and small become more inclusive and resilient by learning to respectfully engage on sensitive topics such as:
- Race and ethnicity
- Gender and sexuality
- Religious differences
- Economic inequality
- Climate change
- Intellectual diversity
- Political partisanship
Learn more about their higher ed–specific approach and how they create what they call the Dialogic Campus.