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Recognizing this urgent moment for American higher education and democracy, Sarah Lawrence College president Cristle Collins Judd is joining 60 other presidents of diverse institutions from across the country to advance higher education’s pivotal role in preparing students to be engaged citizens and to uphold free expression on campus.
Through College Presidents for Civic Preparedness, a unique consortium designed by the presidents and convened by the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, participating presidents are dedicated to preparing the next generation of well-informed, productively engaged, and committed citizens; defending free expression, civil discourse, and critical inquiry as essential civic norms; and increasing thoughtful engagement and better understanding by students for the effective functioning of our democracy. The consortium, first announced with 15 members in August 2023, has grown significantly, demonstrating momentum for this movement.
Participating presidents will take campus-specific and collective action, reflecting three shared Civic Commitments:
- Educating for democracy is central to our mission
- We will prepare our students for a vibrant, diverse, and contentious society
- We will protect and defend free inquiry
Taken together, these fresh commitments embrace both free speech and diversity, two values often pitted against each other, by instead emphasizing meaningful engagement and inquiry with different voices and viewpoints. The commitments stress diversity as a strength of both American democracy and campus life and affirm the truth-seeking role of higher education through curiosity and inquiry.
“At a moment of extraordinary geopolitical conflict and unfathomable humanitarian crises, there has never been a greater need for an informed citizenry,” said President Judd. “Sarah Lawrence College's mission is to prepare our students to thrive in, and solve the problems of, a complex and rapidly evolving world. Thus we provide the space and support for our students to process, understand, and work through deeply held differences, to convene and elevate voices that need to be heard, and to do so with empathy, in-depth understanding, and critical thinking.”
Presidents are developing campus-specific programming to advance the Civic Commitments in 2024; a complete listing appears on the consortium website. At Sarah Lawrence, planned initiatives include:
- Actively working with the student organization Democracy Matters to establish a polling place on campus in advance of the 2024 election
- Renovating a historical campus building to become The HUB, a center for Humanity, Understanding, and Belonging, which will provide a home for various student affinity groups and intimate spaces designed to foster a sense of belonging and community for all students.
- Continuing the annual series of programs and events on topics broadly under the "Democracy and Education" theme established with Judd’s inauguration. Topics have included: "Difference in Dialogue"; "E pluribus unum", "Justice", "Belonging", "History Matters", and "Being Human".
In addition to championing these commitments on their own campuses, the presidents will undertake together and through the Institute a set of collective actions:
- Meet regularly and confidentially for peer learning and the exchange of information, ideas, practices, and tools, including on such topics as the 2024 elections and student activism
- Help faculty engage effectively with free expression and civil discourse in the classroom by participating in the Faculty Institute on Dialogue Across Difference
- Create and seize opportunities for shared advocacy and public outreach on civic preparedness in higher education
“Higher education has a responsibility to provide students with critical civic skills and knowledge to participate effectively in our constitutional democracy,” said Rajiv Vinnakota, President of the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, a nonprofit that cultivates talent, ideas, and networks that develop young people as effective, lifelong citizens. “College campuses are among the most diverse spaces in our country, and college is an important time for students to develop the habits, practices, and norms to live in a multicultural and interconnected democracy. Doing so can create a ripple effect, making young people more optimistic and increasingly committed about their future and our nation.”
College Presidents for Civic Preparedness has been supported by ECMC Foundation, Einhorn Collaborative, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, One8 Foundation, Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, Lumina Foundation, Charles Koch Foundation, and Teagle Foundation, with individual campuses providing support for their own related projects.