The Dialogue Facilitation Lab is a professional learning seminar for teaching and professional faculty, staff, and graduate assistants looking to integrate critical dialogue facilitation skills into their daily practice.

In its second year, the Dialogue Facilitation Lab (formerly known as the Social Justice in Practice Seminar) welcomes practitioners of all skill and experience levels to explore the philosophy and techniques of critical dialogue facilitation and the potential for implementation in teaching, leadership, research, and service work.

Each cohort consists of 12-16 participants that include perspectives from diverse roles and disciplines.

The program consists of a 2-day intensive orientation on December 6 and 7, 2018, followed by weekly two-hour sessions during winter term 2019.

Application

The application period for the 2018-19 Dialogue Facilitation Lab has closed.

Program Structure

The Dialogue Facilitation Lab consists of the following elements:

  • A 2-day intensive orientation on December 6 and 7, 2018
  • Weekly 2-hour sessions for ten weeks (20 hours total) during winter term 2019 (availability will be determined following the application process)

In weekly meetings, participants will have the opportunity to practice utilizing the techniques of critical dialogue facilitation.

Program Goals

The Dialogue Facilitation Lab aims to: 

  • Raise confidence and capacity of faculty, staff, and graduate assistants to facilitate cognitively and emotionally complex learning spaces
  • Dynamically train facilitators to support strategic dialogic efforts and respond nimbly to emerging community needs
  • Cultivate dialogic practices throughout diverse functional areas
  • Grow and sustain a community of practice which maintains continued development for dialogue facilitation

Participant Outcomes

As a result of the Dialogue Facilitation Lab, we hope participants will, demonstrate facilitation competencies, related to:

  • Guiding difficult dialogue among diverse constituents
  • Empowering participation in ways which challenge traditional educational norms
  • Attending to dialogue content and process
  • Attending to procedures which enable full and equitable participation
  • Engage in critical self-examination, specifically the pedagogical implications of one’s world view
  • Thoughtfully integrate newly acquired concepts and skills in their institutional roles
  • Articulate a uniquely authored dialogue facilitation philosophy