President Robert L. Manuel > Meet Rob & Team > Dialogue Collaborative

DePaul Dialogue Collaborative

​The Dialogue Collaborative is an interdisciplinary initiative that seeks to recognize the benefits of constructive conflict and to embed principles and practices of dialogue across the DePaul community.

Click here to find out more about the Dialogue in Action Certificate.

What is dialogue?

Dialogue is one form of discussion, driven by curiosity and shared humanity, where participants explore a range of perspectives and experiences without the pressure or objective to agree or find resolution.

Dialogue is not debate, arbitration, mediation, or about convincing others of one’s position. There are no winners or losers. In dialogue, deep listening is central, where strong emotions and deeply felt experiences may be present. One’s personal convictions or understandings, however, are still accountable to objective facts. Dialogue can be uncomfortable. Depending on the topic and the context, dialogue may not be possible or advisable.

Goals of dialogue:

  • Extend one’s own thinking and understandings
  • Practice active and empathic listening
  • Engage in collective inquiry and meaning making
  • Centralize relationships the social nature of the human person
  • Building community and understanding
  • Model Vincentian values of human dignity, justice and transformative education 

Priorities of the Dialogue Collaborative

The steering committee will work with university partners to support current activities and work on new initiatives such as creating content for new student orientation, generating university-wide teach-ins, promoting connections among all members of our university community, and becoming role models for dialogic engagement at DePaul.  

Our priorities are to:
  • Coordinate and support existing dialogue programs across the university
  • Develop a dynamic pluralistic university culture where dialogue is a core to our community practices
  • Build a shared vocabulary and skill set for dialogue at DePaul throughout the university community
  • Embed core principles of dialogue across the curriculum
  • Elevate DePaul as a model for difficult dialogues, educational plurality, and Vincentian values

Molly Andolina, Professor, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Elissa Foster, Professor, College of Communication

Dusty Goltz, Vincent de Paul Professor, College of Communication

Craig Klugman, Vincent de Paul Professor, College of Science and Health 

Coya Paz Brownrigg, Associate Dean for Curriculum and Instruction, The Theatre School

Elizabeth Servin, Workforce Training Coordinator, Student Affairs

Georgianna Torres Reyes, Associate Vice President for Student Engagement, Mission and Ministry

David Wellman, Associate Professor and Director, The Grace School of Applied Diplomacy

 
Lexa Murphy, Dean, College of Communication Guillermo Vásquez de Velasco, Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences will serve as ex-officio members, along with Interim Vice President for Mission and Ministry Mark Laboe.

We will share more information as the Dialogue Collaborative develops and we welcome your input at dialogue@depaul.edu.  

Communications

Below are the messages sent out to the DePaul community about the Dialogue Collaborative. 

Invitation to Parents Circle - Families Forum event, January 16, 2025

Next Wednesday: Share, listen and build a culture of dialogue,September 13. 2024

Launching the Dialogue Collaborative, September 3. 2024