Mission
At Dartmouth, we’re strengthening a culture in which community members engage in respectful discussion across differences and feel comfortable having their views challenged. Dartmouth Dialogues is our shared commitment to expanding programming across the institution dedicated to facilitating conversations and skills that bridge political and personal divides. Listening to—and including—a diversity of ideological perspectives fosters learning, community, and innovation. Solving the world’s most pressing challenges hinges on our ability to understand and discuss viewpoints different from our own.
Guiding Principles
Two principles guide Dartmouth Dialogues:
- Early and ongoing exposure to the habits of authentic discourse by those who have wholeheartedly and successfully embraced this practice in their personal and professional lives is an essential component of training.
- Providing opportunities to practice the skills of respectful listening and speaking, including constructive assessment and feedback, is a crucial element of inculcating this practice.
Priorities
Dartmouth Dialogues is guided by a set of priorities. These priorities provide focus and accountability, and a framework for assessment.
Continuous Assessment
Dartmouth’s dialogue programming is part of a cultural change initiative, which means it may take a few years to adequately assess the true impact of our interventions. Additionally, we will likely see anecdotal behavioral changes before we’re able to measure change. We expect that over the next year or two, faculty and staff will report that students are:
- Effectively engaging with difference to make a difference
- Demonstrating increased resilience to adversity
- Displaying empathy, compassion, and patience with each other
- Articulating well-reasoned arguments in support of a wide range of viewpoints
- Employing media criticism skills in analyzing mis- and disinformation
- Solving complex interpersonal problems without reliance on college policies as a starting point
- Engaging in enthusiastic debate and responsible discourse