During the 2025–26 academic year, AAC&U and the Constructive Dialogue Institute (CDI) will collaborate to offer a scalable, evidence-based approach to reduce polarization and build institutional capacity for constructive dialogue across differences. This collaboration will leverage CDI's proven tools and methodologies to provide institutions with access to CDI's Perspectives program for students, faculty, and staff; professional learning communities with like-minded leaders and practitioners; and data analytics to monitor dialogue across their campuses at a significantly reduced rate.

CDI is a national nonprofit that helps colleges and universities transform their campuses into inclusive learning environments that support dialogue across differences. CDI does this work through its scalable online learning program, Perspectives. This blended online learning program weaves psychological concepts together with interactive scenarios to equip community members with the skills for dialogue across differences. In addition to this online tool, CDI offers strategic dialogue planning support for campus leaders, dialogue crisis response training for staff, and dialogue facilitation training and certifications for faculty, staff, and student leaders.

This free, hour-long information session provided an overview of AAC&U’s partnership with CDI as well as insights from campus- and system-level perspectives on the power of this approach to reducing polarization at colleges and universities.

Presenters