[VPAAEtal] REMINDER: Please Encourage Student Participation: Civil Discourse Symposium | April 7

[Academic Affairs]

Dear Faculty,

We invite you to help make this year's Civil Discourse Symposium a meaningful learning experience for your students, and to join us yourself.

Taking place on Tuesday, April 7, at the Rayburn Student Center, the symposium is a student-focused event designed to strengthen skills essential across all disciplines: critical thinking, respectful dialogue, active listening, and thoughtful engagement with differing viewpoints. Students will also have the opportunity to interact with public officials, participate in discussions and apply what they learn in real time.

The Texas A&M University System has chosen East Texas A&M as one of two campuses to pilot this symposium, and with your help, it will be a great success!

The day will feature several Texas state representatives and nationally recognized speakers, including John Quiñones, an award-winning journalist from ABC News, and a media panel with Alexander Heffner, host of PBS's The Open Mind.

We encourage you to consider ways this event can connect with your course objectives, including:

  *   Incorporating the symposium into class discussions, reflections or assignments
  *   Encouraging or requiring participation as part of coursework tied to communication, civic engagement or leadership
  *   Offering extra credit for student attendance

Your support plays an important role in student participation and success. By encouraging attendance and, when possible, aligning it with your curriculum, you will help reinforce the value of civil discourse as a lifelong skill.

We also hope you will consider attending and engaging alongside your students. Two sessions are available - morning or afternoon. Pick what works for you, but we recommend that you bring your classes to the morning session.
No registration necessary; Just bring your Lion Card to get in!

Check in is on the second floor of the Student Center.

PLEASE NOTE: SMALL BAGS ARE WELCOME, BUT NO BACKPACKS ARE ALLOWED.

Learn more and view the full schedule at https://www.etamu.edu/civil-discourse-symposium/.

Thank you for your continued commitment to student learning and engagement.

Sincerely,

Tammi Vacha-Haase

Provost
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