Naming, Framing & Asking Strategic Questions

As you reflect on implementing better discourse on your campus, you might be looking to create spaces for conversations about some of the most contentious issues we expect to arise during the 2024-2025 academic year, Below, find some places to start when initiating discourse on these specific topics.

To begin work that responds to crises, we must first understand where we are beginning, what resources we have at our disposal, and what we hope to achieve. These guiding questions offer an inquiry-based approach to help us examine ourselves and our contexts, discern paths, and find allies to advance better discourse on campus and in society.

Want to bring in external help with your bridge-building and civil discourse work on campus? This listing, produced as part of Better Discourse: A Guide for Bridging Campus Divides in Challenging Times, offers information about a variety of service providers to help you discern which organizations or models might work best for your campus.

This back-to-campus starter kit explores how campuses can engage in inclusive, constructive dialogue—better discourse—ahead of what many expect to be an uncertain and potentially tumultuous 2024–2025 academic year. This guide includes invitations for self-reflection (with a corresponding guide for mapping your campus) and directs you to tools, policies, and evidence-based practices for better discourse.