Difficult Dialogues (2006-2013)

Clark University's Difficult Dialogues initiative was launched in 2006 and ran through 2013. It began as one of 27 independent programs selected by the Ford Foundation from 675 nationwide proposals from colleges and universities for their Difficult Dialogues initiative. Clark's participation in this initiative came out of the Higgins School of Humanities. Each semester had a different theme.

The Difficult Dialogues initiative at Clark University aimed to raise awareness and develop skills of dialogue as a distinct approach to discourse, as well as encourage its practice among faculty, staff, and students. Through a wide range of public programs, faculty development, dialogue-affiliated courses, dialogue seminars, and work with student life, a more conscious approach to discourse and exchange was promoted. By engendering a culture of dialogue on campus, the intention was to deepen experiences of learning and engagement, and to encourage an ethos of transparency and collaboration across the Clark community.

This collection contains documents relating to Clark University's Difficult Dialogues (2006-2013) initiative. The collection contains materials relating to the courses and campus-wide events within the Difficult Dialogues initiative. Several documents are pdf adaptations of Clark's now-extinct Difficult Dialogues website. The history of Difficult Dialogue campus programming and course scheduling can be found in those documents. The most robust document in this collection is Inviting Dialogue: Renewing the Deep Purposes of Higher Education, a 144-page report from 2010 which provides perspectives and charts the growth of Clark's Difficult Dialogues initiative.

Collection description in part adapted from Inviting Dialogue: Renewing the Deep Purposes of Higher Education.