U-M launches Difficult Dialogues Meet the Moment Initiative

Three people talking on Regents Plaza, with the Cube and LSA building in the distance

September 20, 2024  |  By Nick Pfost

The University of Michigan has launched a new program to meet the moment with dialogue. 

The Difficult Dialogues Meet the Moment Initiative is designed "to prepare faculty and staff to help one another and their students discuss difficult, sometimes contentious, topics that may emerge about issues such as the election and democracy, climate change and sustainability, and international conflict," said Tim McKay, LSA associate dean for undergraduate education.

This initiative is made possible through partnership with LSA Undergraduate Education; Student Life; the Raoul Wallenberg Institute; U-M Year of Democracy, Civic Empowerment, and Global Engagement; The Program on Intergroup Relations; and the Difficult Dialogues National Resource Center. 

Difficult Dialogues will be directed this fall by Donna Rich Kaplowitz, on temporary assignment from The Program on Intergroup Relations to capitalize on urgency and momentum to build dialogic skills on U-M's campus. The unique program will include national webinars that build those skills alongside a U-M campus hub for local training, resources, and support. Several opportunities will be led by IGR experts, including Kelly Maxwell, Stephanie Hicks, Deborah Slosberg, Patrick Kazyak-Albaladejo Muñiz, and Cesar Vargas Leon.

"We are living, working, and leading during a time of high conflict and increased political polarization," Kaplowitz observed. "Many faculty and staff are seeking opportunities to build skills to engage one another and their students in difficult conversations. And this initiative, a new partnership between the national Difficult Dialogues National Resource Center (DDNRC) and U-M, seeks to do precisely that."

The goals of this initiative are to:

  1. Help campus community members build skills to lead others and engage in dialogues that include listening, perspective-taking, inquiry and critical reflection.
  2. Provide a welcoming context in which to learn and practice dialogic skills, competencies, and knowledge in how to facilitate such discussions in a broader context or setting; and
  3. Build confidence among faculty and staff to introduce opportunities for these conversations to occur.
     

Fall webinars

The first fall offering is a national webinar called “Meeting the Moment: Workshop Series on Skills and Resources for Challenging Conversations on Campus,” put on by U-M Difficult Dialogues and DDNRC on September 27 from 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. It will focus on developing some of the core skills in dialogue across difference—deep listening and communication opportunities. Senior assistant dean Kelly Maxwell (LSA) and IGR associate director Roger Fisher will lead the session.

Other opportunities include:

Get dialogue coaching

Difficult Dialogues is also offering free one-hour coaching sessions to support U-M faculty and staff who are planning to host events or engage in critical conversations in their courses. The coaching sessions will be available for recommended pre-planning as well as follow-up. 


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