At the November meeting of Ohio State's Board of Trustees, Provost Gilliam pointed to the University's progress report on its Academic Plan. Under "Goal 4: Strengthen Talent, Culture, and Inclusive Excellence," the report focuses on two initiatives: the Shared Values Initiative and the Civil Discourse Project. CEHV plays a leading role in both of them.

Working with partners in the Office of Compliance and Integrity and the Office of Human Resources, CEHV helped lead the effort to craft the Shared Values framework. CEHV's ETHOS Fellows Program introduces staff, faculty, and graduate students to the Shared Values and empowers them to pursue projects in their units. Our Community Conversations create opportunity for university-wide reflection on the meaning of the Shared Values. A recently we joined with our partners to help host a Shared Values Summit attended by over 100 staff and faculty. We look forward to opportunities to work with others on Shared Values projects.

On Civil Discourse, the Academic Plan review notes:

“Ohio State launched the Civil Discourse Project to address the need for understanding and civility in our discourse and educate the leaders of tomorrow. Through events and coursework, the university offers opportunities to grow an understanding of dialogue that is productive rather than divisive and seeks to find understanding in divergent viewpoints. Additional courses, ranging from one-to-three credit hours, will be available in autumn 2023. The inaugural cohort of student Civil Discourse Fellows completed their single-year term, and a new cohort was selected for the 2023-24 academic year. Fellows train to engage in civil discourse and plan and moderate public Civil Discourse Forums on campus.”

CEHV has been at the center of the Civil Discourse Project through our Civil Discourse for Citizenship program. Some of our activities include:

• introducing a new 3-credit course on civil discourse, taught each semester
• creating a "Civil Discourse for Citizenship" certificate program
• hosting numerous workshops on our "4Cs" (Be Curious, Be Charitable, Be Conscientious, and Be Constructive)
• hosting dialogue facilitation skill-building workshops with student groups
• developing a teaching endorsement through the Drake Institute on Ethical Disagreement and Civil Discourse
• training undergraduate Civil Discourse Fellows in principles of civil discourse and event moderation
• helping Civil Discourse Fellows plan and moderate Civil Discourse Forums featuring speakers with opposing viewpoints on controversial issues
• providing leadership for the Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) undergraduate major, one of the fastest-growing on campus

We welcome opportunities to partner with others on these initiatives. For more information, reach out to CEHV Director Piers Turner (turner.894@osu.edu).