LEWISBURG –Two Bucknell University professors recently established the Open Discourse Coalition with the hopes of leading collegians down a moderate middle ground between radical right and far left political viewpoints. Dr. Paul Siewers, Director of Bucknell’s program for American Leadership and Citizenship, said, “We see problems with both the extreme right and the extreme left in our country, and we especially want to encourage our students to learn to thoughtfully disagree and express their differences so we can all get closer to the truth, and help solve problems in our society today.”
Siewers joined Professor Emeritus Bill Gruver to discuss their venture on WKOK Sunrise Thursday. The two secured funding from seven decades of Bucknell alumni and other area supporters to set up the coalition’s physical location. Situated in the center of town, the former bank building now hosts faculty research, student study and public discussions. The coalition will be offering a non-credit immersion course on the history of leadership Saturdays this fall, and there’s already a waiting list. The pair said their mission is to reach one heart, one mind at a time to restore the viewpoint of diversity to higher education and make the model accessible to colleges across America.
Gruver said of the Open Discourse Coalition’s mission, “I don’t think we can look to Washington to solve this problem. It has to be solved beginning at the local level to do what we can. If the country’s going to get back to where we all want it to be, it’s going to have to happen from the bottom up.”
LISTEN HERE to the WKOK Sunrise appearance
For more information or to make a donation, visit opencoalitiondiscourse.org.
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June 26, 2021 at 05:43PM
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Thoughtful Disagreement is Goal of Open Discourse Coalition | - wkok.com
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