Partner Programs

Barbershop Talks is a leadership series for students from socioeconomic backgrounds to connect and share experiences. Seeking to mirror the realism experienced in a traditional barbershop it provides a place for conversation and dialogue.

Citizen U is a 10-week program that is run out of the Center for Leadership & Civic Engagement in the Department of Student Engagement. It is designed to educate students about how to be responsible, engaged citizens and to inspire them to be involved in their communities and our democracy. Started in 2018, the program has won a NASPA award for excellence in civic and democratic engagement.

The Division of Student Affairs launched Cupola Conversations in 2016 to address important topics impacting students each semester through the concept of civil discourse.  The program aims to create informal opportunities for the university community to engage in constructive dialogue about various topics, some of which may be controversial and potentially provocative. Additionally, this initiative will serve to create an institutional culture that welcomes and nourishes difficult conversations throughout university life.

Dinner & Discourse is a civil dialogue series sponsored by the Pirates Vote team in the Center for Leadership & Civic Engagement. Media clips, headlines, podcasts, photographs, and political cartoons are used to drive the discussion.  A safe space is created for all individuals to share their unique experiences and personal perspectives around the topic.  The topic for each Dinner & Discourse is released on The Pirate Experience one week prior to the event.

Organized by the Women & Gender Center, Pledge Purple is a yearlong initiative focused on education and advocacy with the goal of ending sexual violence, harassment, and bullying.  The university provides one week of focused programming each year to encourage students, faculty, and staff to take the Pledge stating, “I will not use my hands or words in acts of violence, bullying or sexual assault.  I will educate myself about what violence, bullying and sexual assault looks like in the Pirate community.  I will support my fellow Pirates and safely intervene as an active bystander if I witness scenarios of violence, bullying or sexual assault.”

What’s the tea is a weekly series that encourages civil discourse on various hot topics within society. Participants are encouraged to share their different perspectives at the Ledonia Wright Cultural Center, a safe place for all Pirates.