Open Dialogue

In August 2023, the university launched Dialogue Vanderbilt, its core initiative to bridge divides, reestablish a vibrant culture of civil discourse and free expression, and showcase experts from on campus and around the world, leading the charge to build more engaged citizens and communities.  Read More

The Choice, produced by the Dialogue Vanderbilt, is a four-part podcast focused on the key moments and ramifications of the 2024 presidential election between former president Donald J. Trump and current President Joseph R. Biden. Vanderbilt’s Jon Meacham and John Geer will blend history and political science to offer insights and context about this rematch of the 2020 presidential contest. Read More

Al-Marayati and Samar Ali, Unity Project co-chair, will explore the shared experiences of Muslim and Arab Americans and the ongoing crisis in Gaza in a timely and insightful conversation at noon on Monday, April 22, at the John Seigenthaler Center. This in-person event is limited to Vanderbilt students, faculty and staff members; you must register using your Vanderbilt email address. Read More

Former Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Herzog joined Professor Brett Benson’s Introduction to International Politics class last week, with Fayyad on Wednesday, March 27, and Herzog on Thursday, March 28. “I think this is the only university in the country that can host Salam Fayyad one day and the Israeli ambassador the next,” Morgan Ortagus, former spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State told students, as she led the conversation with Ambassador Herzog.  Read More

National education reporter Laura Pappano will discuss her latest book, School Moms: Parent Activism, Partisan Politics, and the Battle for Public Education (Beacon Press, 2024), at the Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries on Tuesday, April 9. In her book, Pappano draws on archival research as well as on-the-ground reporting to offer a nuanced view of how schools across the country have become lightning rods in the culture wars. Read More

Award-winning journalist and anchor Anderson Cooper is coming to Vanderbilt’s campus on March 21, and comedian and political satirist Ziwe Fumudoh is coming to Vanderbilt on March 26 to speak at the 60th anniversary of the IMPACT Symposium. Read More

The Campus Reading for the 2024–25 academic year will be I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times by Mónica Guzmán. The book was chosen by a committee of faculty and students and launches community-wide dialogue that begins during orientation and continues throughout the year in houses on The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons, in Vanderbilt Visions groups, and across campus. Read More