Discourse across difference
Promoting open dialogue at Clark
By Tammy Griffin-Kumpey Photos by Tammy Woodard M.A. '98
What do social scientists and scientists at Clark have in common with the University's arts and humanities professors? For one, the desire to encourage and facilitate conversations across differences in religion, political orientation, gender, culture, race, class and ethnicity to ensure academic freedom on campus.
A new program is designed to help the Clark community do just that. Slated for 2006 and 2007, Difficult Dialogues: Encouraging Discourse Across Differences recently received a $100,000 grant from the Ford Foundation. The program was developed jointly by the International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE) Department and the Higgins School of Humanities, and builds on Clark's characteristic strengths and educational orientation to create a culture of open dialogue on campus. Spearheaded by professors Sarah Buie, director of the Higgins School and principal investigator of the grant, and William Fisher, director of IDCE, the initiative consists of faculty development, expanded curriculum and public events that will provide experiences and develop tools to stimulate the kind of open, thorough and respectful dialogue about difficult issues that is essential to maintaining a democratic society.
Bridging differences
"Free speech is what this country was founded on," says government major Sandi Fox '06, president of the College Democrats of Clark University (DCU). "Every person has a right to question, to disagree, to challenge the status quo."
"We deserve to get multiple opinions, multiple sides of a story, multiple perspectives on an issue. It's essential to drawing the best possible conclusion," adds government student and president of the Republicans of Clark University Devon Kinnard '06.
Despite the fact that Fox and Kinnard often agree to disagree, they do agree that Clark does a better job than most schools in providing an atmosphere open to examining a variety of perspectives both in and out of the classroom. However, Kinnard says there's room for improvement, admitting that he doesn't always feel free to voice his opinion in class. "It depends on the class. It depends on the professor. I have gone into classes where I've felt that I needed to tread lightly."
Fox shares this sentiment, adding that she has also noticed that some professors have strong ideologies that sometimes come through in class. She welcomes the exchange of ideas and opinions between groups like DCU and the Republicans of Clark University. Fox says the Clark Republicans keep the campus Democrats on their toes.
"I think it's great. They push the debate. It's important to understand all sides of the issue, in order to strengthen your own arguments," says Fox.
Difficult dialogues
As exemplified by its motto, "Challenge Convention. Change Our World," Clark has long espoused the values of engagement, asking difficult questions, and engendering dynamic change through critical thinking. Difficult Dialogues, which has the potential to be a national model, will push the envelope further. Clark was one of 136 colleges and universities invited to submit a full proposal and one of only 26 nationwide to receive a grant.
Buie and Fisher agree with Kinnard; there is room for improvement. In developing the Difficult Dialogues program, they surveyed faculty and students and found a consensus that dialogue has, in some instances, become treacherous. According to Buie, many faculty felt they lacked the skills to support genuine dialogue, especially when the issues were volatile, and were limited in their abilities to facilitate these discussions.
"Whether it was treacherous in the classrooms or not, what was clear was many faculty and students feel as if it's treacherous. They're afraid. ‘I don't have the right words,' ‘I need to be politically correct.' There was a lot of avoidance," explains Fisher.
Breaking the silence
In this climate of avoidance, Buie says there has been silence around a lot of important issues, and she is concerned about the polarization increasingly prevalent in American culture. Kinnard says he knows a lot of students who censor themselves because they fear how they might be labeled. He wishes those students would speak up, but understands their reservations.
An example of how polarized discussion can be on campus was last spring's Speakers Forum event with Paul Bremer, who served for 13 months as the U.S. de facto consul in Baghdad. Many students and faculty were outraged with the student-run organization's choice of a speaker, and the University received calls from upset alumni. The reaction to Bremer's visit from students, faculty and alumni raised important questions about how the Clark community handles opposing perspectives.
"Students come to Clark because they want to be exposed to people and opinions that are different than their own," says Dean of Students Denise Darrigrand. "If we only surround ourselves with people who think and believe the same thing as the majority, we will never learn and grow."
"The event generated a great deal of discussion and was educationally powerful for many members of the Clark community," she continues.
Bremer told his audience that the Bush administration was waging the right war in the right place at the right time. "Even though so many students disagreed with him, Atwood Hall was packed," says Fox. "There were rallies outside, and it got people really thinking."
Active listening is key
Kinnard says the Clark Republicans would like to make an impact, one that causes students to think about the other side of the story, but often feels it's a lost cause. "It's tough when we try to get together for meetings and students show up with the sole purpose of sabotaging our efforts because they don't agree with our views. It's upsetting. It undercuts us, and it's unfortunate," explains Kinnard.
"I would like to keep with the University's tradition of openness and acceptance of other philosophies. Whether or not students are really being open and really being accepting of alternate views is up for debate. I think the bulk of Clark students are, but there's some who are not. We can preach to whomever we want, but it doesn't guarantee they'll listen," Kinnard says.
Fisher and Buie hope the Difficult Dialogues program will change that. "We're really trying to create an open and safe environment where people will feel comfortable enough to express opinions and not feel that they'll be done in by political correctness, or they'll be done in by criticism, or what they say won't be heard or appreciated or somehow validated," says Fisher. "It's up to the University to provide an environment where both sides can be heard and in a way that is respectful to the other side."
"It's not that Sarah and I believe that all points of view are equally good," he adds. "Rather, we believe in discussion, in dialogue, in openness about an issue, and we can only reach solutions and a better understanding through exchanging perspectives."
Difficult Dialogues:
The Higgins School of Humanities and IDCE (International Development, Community and Environment) recently received a $100,000 grant from the Ford Foundation for their Difficult Dialogues initiative. The Clark program will use faculty development, expanded curriculum and a year-long symposium to create new opportunities and settings for dialogue. Program components include:
Faculty Development fall 2006
A semester-long development program for 15-20 faculty members.
- Seminars with invited resource experts to define issues, heighten awareness, and develop skills in the area of dialogue.
- Faculty will be selected to participate based on their interest in developing a new first-year seminar, introducing Difficult Dialogues issues into an existing curriculum, creating a new course, or teaching in the symposium program.
Expanded Curriculum
- Development of four to six new first-year seminars for the class entering in fall 2007.
- Integration of heightened Difficult Dialogues awareness, methods and processes into six to eight existing courses in spring 2007 and the 2007-08 academic year.
- Development of new courses.
- IDCE graduate students interested in and trained in conflict mediation will be included in all these processes.
- A team of participating faculty will develop a set of curriculum materials to be made available to all faculty, as well as to other academic institutions.
Difficult Dialogues Symposium spring and fall 2007
- Will be offered for credit to between 150 and 200 undergraduates
- Teams of faculty and graduate students will guide workshops of 15 to 20 students through shared readings and experiential learning to engage in dialogues around sensitive and controversial issues.
- Six major week-long events/seminars will focus on timely polarizing concerns, one local, one national and one international each semester.
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Clarknews Winter 2006
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Bill Fisher and Sarah Buie
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Devon Kinnard '06, leader of Clark Republicans and Sandi Fox '06, leader of Clark Democrats
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