Catholic Civil Dialogue Initiative for Schools
The Initiative
Many of the ways we communicate in the contemporary world are ill-suited to meet the deepest longings of the human heart for truth for true communion, healing, and friendship with God. What often passes for discourse in public spaces is little more than information transfer, sound bytes and slogans, memes and caricatures, and polarizing attacks. This corrodes our capacity for contemplation, for wonder, and for deep encounter. It also cannot meet the demands of the Church’s mission to evangelize. There is a great need for opportunities to create cultures of human dignity through the practice of dialogue. In the first instance, “dialogue does not originate from tactical concerns or self-interest,” but is “a profound way of encountering and relating to others.” (RM, 56; ). It must take as its starting point a genuine respect for and desire to seek deep encounter with others. The commitment to dialogue is primarily a theological one: “God in an age-long dialogue, has offered and continues to offer salvation to humankind.”
Importantly, a commitment to dialogue does not indicate a displacement of truth or the relativizing of the Catholic faith as just one point-of-view among others. Indeed, John Paul II reminds us that dialogue contains an element of proclamation insofar as one witnesses to one’s own faith. In the context of the Catholic School, the Congregation for Catholic Education writes: “dialogue, the fruit of knowledge, must be cultivated for people to co-exist and build up a civilization of love. It is not a matter of playing down the truth, but of realizing the aim of education which ‘has a particular role to play in building a more united and peaceful world.’”
“We have forgotten that we belong to each other” - Mother Teresa
The Catholic Civil Dialogue Initiative for Schools is a unique opportunity for Catholic schools to cultivate communities of encounter through dialogue. Informed by the light of faith, the principles of “a true spirit of dialogue” has the potential to develop understanding, cultivate belonging, and enliven hope. Catholic educators are on the frontline of larger social and ecclesial trends, including loneliness, disaffiliation, and polarization. But these challenges also present unique opportunities for integral formation. By joining a supportive fellowship community, educators will learn the principles of civil dialogue and collaborate to incorporate elements of dialogue into their classrooms in ways that strengthen a sense of belonging — belonging in the Church, belonging to each other, and belonging to God.
Catholic educators in this network would be at the forefront of integrating attention to relationship, community, and belonging through intentional conversation within their schools. They would likewise form students as Catholic leaders in their communities. The dialogic model creates spaces of engagement, inclusion, speaking constructively across differences and enhances the development of social-emotional skills. Early research conducted by Essential Partners on the impact of dialogue on students include the following findings: increased connection to course content, willingness to engage on difficult topics, sense of belonging in the class, ownership of their own learning and increased curiosity about others’ beliefs.
Timeline
During Phase 1, up to 25 educators will be trained to apply dialogic principles to their classrooms and curriculum. Ideally schools will have teams of 3-5 individuals apply for the fellowship. This training is 16 hours and will be offered at the beginning of the 2025 calendar year. During Phase 2, educators will have ongoing formation and mentorship over the period of one year.
Please note that all sessions will take place virtually via Zoom.
Phase 1: January 2025 Initial Training
Three 6-hour sessions over 3 weeks: January 9, 16, and 26
10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. ET (7:00 a.m. - 1 p.m. PT)
Educators will learn the principles of a dialogic classroom and how to integrate dialogue and its components in their curriculum and/or area responsibility in the school. Educators will learn how to:
- create connections in classroom spaces,
- use reflective practices to prepare students to engage,
- practice designing dialogic questions,
- move between the teacher role and the dialogue facilitator role, and
- lead exercises and skills to scaffold dialogic engagement.
Phase 2: Ongoing Formation and Mentorship
Spring 2025 and Fall 2025
Monthly meetings to take place on the first Tuesday of the month: February 4, March 4, April 1, May 6, September 2, October 7, November 4, and December 2
5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. ET (2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. PT)
Summer 2025:
Opt-in meeting in June and July- Working session and feedback on curriculum development.
Ongoing mentoring and support is critical to the successful implementation of principles from Phase 1. Members of the fellowship cohort will continue to refine their skills and develop their understanding of the value of dialogue in a Catholic context over the course of 8 monthly checkins and access to ongoing office hours for coaching over the following calendar year.
Financial Commitment
Cost: $725 / fellow (this covers the cost of all training and follow-up sessions)
If cost is a concern, please contact Christina Leblang at ccossel1@nd.edu to discuss options.
Contact hours
- 18 contact hours for initial training
- 12-14 contact hours for mentoring and support:
- 6 hours during the spring semester,
- 6 hours during the fall semester,
- 2 hours during the summer
- Total of 30-32 contact hours
Who is Eligible?
We are able to accept up to 25 fellows. We encourage high schools to send small groups of at least three educators to promote collaboration. “Educators” includes:
- teachers,
- administrators,
- mission and identity leaders,
- campus ministers,
- and counselors
Additional Information
The 2025 Catholic Civil Dialogue Initiative Fellowship is currently full.
Interested in the Catholic Civil Dialogue Initiative and future trainings? Please fill out the short form below.
Questions about other formation/training opportunities? Please email Christina at ccossel1@nd.edu.