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More than ever, educators and school leaders need effective tools to help their communities resist the toxic influence of polarization. By fostering compassion, curiosity, and authentic relationships, Reflective Structured Dialogue can interrupt polarized dynamics while transforming a school community’s norms, making constructive conversations possible across differences of values, perspectives, or identities.

This two-day, in-person workshop equips administrators, educators, and school leaders to design and facilitate healthier dialogue in co-curricular contexts. This training will equip participants to lead conversations about difficult topics—such as diversity, belonging, and inclusion; global conflicts; race and history; or gender and sexuality—among school community members, including students, parents, teachers, administrators, and elected officials.

In this workshop, participants will:

• Gain a basic understanding of what makes dialogue across deep differences difficult as well as skills to support more constructive conversations across differences
• Understanding how preparation, inquiry, reflection, and conversational structures can break dysfunctional patterns of communication and build constructive cycles
• Build competence and confidence to facilitate and intervene in groups to support authentic and respectful communication or mutual understanding
• Acquire a framework for integrating dialogic norms into the life of the community

For more than three decades, EP’s research-based Reflective Structured Dialogue approach has transformed conflicts across the country and the world. It has helped people build trust, understanding, and connection around divisive community issues, amid organizational conflict, in classroom discussions, and in everyday conversations.

Participants in this workshop will also become members of EP’s Community of Practice. Members receive exclusive access to peer learning opportunities, skill-building webinars, resources, office hours, learning exchanges, and gatherings, as well as a series of enrichment emails sent to reinforce workshop learning and encourage the application of RSD in their context.

A light breakfast, lunch, coffee/tea, and snacks are included with registration. Early-bird registration closes May 25, 2024.