Hosted at UMBC in the University Center Ballroom on January 29 (8:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m.), The Dialogue Symposium aims to highlight and strengthen dialogue practices that make campuses more connected, inclusive, and resilient. Grounded in the work of the Difficult Dialogues National Resource Center, this year’s theme, “Dialogue as a Campus and Community Approach”, explores how institutions and organizations can embed dialogic practices across curricular, co-curricular, and administrative spaces.
Proposals will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis, starting November 1, 2025.
Proposals received after Dec. 15 will not be accepted.
REGISTRATION OPENS ON DECEMBER 1, 2025
Through interactive sessions, hands-on workshops, and peer-led exchanges, participants will:
- Build strategies for institutional leadership and resource alignment to sustain dialogue programs and initiatives.
- Deepen facilitation and practitioner skills with a focus on trauma-informed practice and facilitator well-being.
- Explore concrete tools and techniques for integrating dialogue into classrooms, curricula, and departments..
- Collaboratively generate new ideas during an “Unconference” session designed for co-creation and shared learning.
- Co-create new directions for dialogue work across the University System of Maryland.
- Foster new directions for dialogue work that connects campuses and communities across the region.
Together, we’ll highlight best practices and strengthen our shared capacity to cultivate dialogue-rich, inclusive campus communities across Maryland.
Whether you are an administrator advancing campus-wide initiatives, a faculty or staff member integrating dialogue into your teaching and engagement, or a practitioner facilitating conversations on the ground, this symposium provides an opportunity to connect, reflect, and build together.
We invite you to join us at the symposium—please see below for the registration fee categories and eligibility criteria.
- General Attendance: $25.00
- For individuals affiliated with partner organizations, collaborating institutions, or programs formally connected to the event or host organization.
- Sponsor Free Ticket: $25.00
- Reserved for representatives interested in sponsoring a colleague’s attendance.
- Students (undergraduate/graduate): Free
- Available to currently enrolled students at any accredited institution.
SESSION DESCRIPTIONS
Proposals will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis, starting November 1, 2025.
Proposals received after Dec. 15 will not be accepted.
Proposals will be accepted related to the following themes:
Strategic Leadership: Building Champions for Dialogue – Leaders play a crucial role in integrating dialogue into the institutional and community culture. This session examines the roles that senior administrators, academic leaders, community organizers, and dialogue program directors play in exploring, championing, funding, and sustaining dialogue initiatives across the institutional landscape. Participants will discuss how to build strategic partnerships, identify campus-wide resources, and engage key decision-makers in advancing dialogue as a core institutional priority.
Facilitating Dialogue / Doing Dialogue: The Practitioner’s Experience – Designed by and for those who facilitate dialogue every day, this session offers a space for practitioners to refine their skills and reinvigorate their purpose. Through hands-on practice and reflective exploration, participants will engage in frameworks such as trauma-informed facilitation, facilitator self-care, and facilitating beyond resistance and more.
Dialogic Practices Across Campus and Community: Tools for Teaching, Learning, and Community Engagement – This session explores how dialogue is present throughout the campus and organization ecosystem, including classrooms, community groups, residence halls, student organizations, and beyond. Participants will explore concrete tools and frameworks that strengthen dialogue practice in daily work, such as building community agreements, circle pedagogy, and reflective dialogue structures. Ideal for faculty, community organizers and practitioners, staff, and educators who want to integrate dialogue into their teaching and engagement, this session emphasizes practical, adaptable approaches that promote connection and belonging.
Unconference: Co-Creating the Future of Dialogue – The Unconference invites all participants into a generative, co-created space for collaborative brainstorming, problem-solving, and innovation. Facilitated in real time by members of the planning committee, this session will respond to participant energy and emerging topics, creating space for shared planning, cross-campus partnerships, and collective visioning. Bring your ideas, questions, and inspiration, and help shape the next chapter of dialogue work across the region. Proposals will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis, starting November 1, 2025. Proposals received after Dec. 15 will not be accepted.
PLANNING COMMITTEE
Many thanks to this year’s planning committee:
Jasmine A. Lee, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Sam Anderson, University of Maryland, Baltimore
Brian R. Jara, Towson University
Jeffrey R. Ash, The Universities at Shady Grove
Jazmin Pichardo, University of Maryland, College Park
Nicole Mehta, University of Maryland, College Park
Jeff Cullen, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Leslie Krafft, University of Maryland, College Park
Natasha Rodriguez, University of Maryland Global Campus
Chloe Kastner, University of Maryland, Baltimore School of Social Work/University of Maryland, Baltimore County
SPONSORS
Generously Funded By:
Advancing Campus Pluralism Grant, Interfaith America
Center for Social Justice Dialogue, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Division of Institutional Equity, University of Maryland, Baltimore County