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Grantee
Unify America
Area
Private Higher Education
Amount
$120000
Date Approved
2/23/2024
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Political polarization is making civil discourse across differences increasingly challenging on college campuses. Practicing the skill of communicating across differences is fundamental to a liberal arts education and the future of our pluralistic society. The Unify Challenge College Bowl, an evidence-based, virtual intercollegiate, and multi-week event held several times each year, is designed to address these issues. Professors integrate the program into their curriculum so that thousands of students can engage with other students across geographic and ideological differences for one-on-one conversations. Student dyads discuss 16 issues & share their points of view, discovering that they can have respectful dialogue without conflict, find common ground, and experience viewpoint diversity. Students report an increased hope for the future of our democracy, an interest in having more conversations across differences, and an increased interest in participating in civic life. Unify robustly supports professors’ and students’ participation. In 2024, we will expand the College Bowl to serve 13,000 students across a range of ideologies and from diverse locales and institutions. We will also expand current and develop new programmatic and research partnerships to support these goals.