Difficult Conversations Program | Facilitator Training
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Some of the most important issues we all face-such as social justice, racism, institutional equity-may seem impossible to talk productively about across ideological and personal divides. Yet we must find ways to have those talks if we are to progress as a society, and a college is the ideal place to learn how to do so.
This training is designed for anyone who is interested in designing and facilitating dialogues on campus, outside of the classroom. This workshop will support facilitators as they lead campus dialogues in response to campus, local, or world events, and conversations that are integrated into on-campus programming, such as film screenings, guest speakers, and theatre/arts productions.
This workshop will address the following learning objectives:
- gain a basic understanding of what makes dialogue across deep differences difficult as well as skills to support more constructive conversations across differences
- learn a basic framework for designing conversations that include many voices, cultures, and perspectives
- build competence and confidence to begin a dialogue, facilitate, and intervene in groups to support authentic and respectful communication or mutual understanding
- build skills to design dialogue questions that foster connection to each other, to a common stimulus (art, film, theatre, lecture series, etc.), and in response to a difficult topic or current event
This program is sponsored by The American Democracy Project, The Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning, and the RIC Office of the President in partnership with Essential Partners.
Contact Us
American Democracy Project
The American Democracy Project fosters political and civic engagement in higher education.
- emailadp@ric.edu