The Padnos/Sarosik Center for Civil Discourse was founded through the generous gift of Shelley E. Padnos and Carol Sarosik to help create more inclusive, tolerant, and peaceful communities. In 2011, they visited the Anne Frank House, a museum in Amsterdam that tells the very human story of a young Jewish girl living in captivity during the Holocaust. Bearing witness to the accounts of violence and fear documented in Anne Frank’s diary, Shelley and Carol said, “We knew we had to do something.” The cost of intolerance is high. People must find ways to live across difference. It is in this moment that they first conceived of this program.

Committed to promoting equity among people, across multiple identities, Shelley and Carol began brainstorming with the Brooks College of Interdisciplinary Studies about ways to equip students with tools for creating a more tolerant and peaceful world. Civil discourse is one such tool, and the Padnos/Sarosik Center for Civil Discourse developed from there.

Today’s college students live in a complex, often contentious world. To help students learn how to handle the divisiveness of this historical moment, the Center for Civil Discourse provides curricular programming and campus/community events which promote the use of civil discourse. To create caring communities, we need to matter to each other.  Civil discourse is one way we can increase our capacity to hear one another; speak respectfully; and assess the complicated dynamics of dialogue.

The Padnos/Sarosik Center for Civil Discourse aims to systematically enable Grand Valley State University students and area neighbors to develop the concepts, skills, and practices of bringing people with divergent views together for respectful dialogue and problem-solving through the sponsorship of:

• A rotating two-year endowed professorship appointment
• Two undergraduate courses that examine current social issues through the tools of civil discourse
• An annual community symposium that is associated with the theme of the course
• Campus and community events that provide students, staff, faculty, and community members with opportunities to practice the skills of civil discourse
• Individualized support for faculty and student leaders who seek guidance around facilitating difficult conversations

We are excited to welcome Professor Dan Cope as the 6th Padnos/Sarosik Civil Discourse Faculty Fellow!

The Fellowship program recognizes GVSU faculty who show outstanding civil discourse, dialogue, and bridge-building commitments through their teaching, service, and scholarship. Currently Affiliate Faculty in the School of Interdisciplinary Studies in Brooks College at GVSU, Professor Cope has a wealth of experience working across political ideologies, divergent personal beliefs, and different life experiences, and she is excited to bring her passion for civic participation to the Fellowship. As part of her Fellowship, Professor Cope will teach INT 312 Collaborative Dialogue in Winter ’27, a class that will introduce students to the key concepts and skills of civil discourse. Her dialogue teaching will build upon ideas from her sustainable democracy course, a class she developed about active and responsible citizenship. Her experience working in local government will provide her with a strong foundation for public speaking and inviting multiple perspectives.

You can read Professor Cope’s bio here.

*The Padnos/Sarosik Civil Discourse Faculty Fellowship was previously the Endowed Professorship program. Read about previous Endowed Professors and their work here