Colleges and universities are uniquely positioned to foster challenging conversations and encourage engagement with controversial ideas.  Recent events have highlighted the need for institutions to balance free expression, campus safety, and community well-being while supporting robust, respectful dialogue on complex social, political, and cultural issues.

This alert is the fourth and last in our series designed to provide colleges and universities with practical strategies for managing safety and legal risks associated with campus events.  Our prior alert on campus event safety is available here; our alert on practices for campus police managing high-profile events is available here; and our alert on free speech guidance for public and private institutions is available here.  Our goal is to equip campus leaders with actionable strategies, tailored to the unique legal landscape of higher education.  These are general recommendations and may not be suitable for every college or university.  Institutions should work with legal counsel to develop actionable measures appropriate for their unique campus environment, policies, practices, and applicable law.

Key Strategies for Facilitating Difficult Dialogues

Facilitating difficult dialogues and controversial conversations on campus starts with campus leadership and culture.  College and university leadership – Boards, administrations, and student affairs personnel should:

• Affirm the Value of the Conversation and Set Expectations
  Campus leaders should articulate the institution’s commitment to academic freedom, open inquiry, and civil discourse ahead of planned or events likely to feature controversial speech, especially when potential topics are controversial or challenging.
  
  Campus policies and campus leadership should clearly communicate standards for respectful participation in demonstrations, protests, or other events with controversial speakers.  As part of this, educational institutions should be sure to provide advance guidance and training to moderators, speakers, and participants on how to manage conflict, de-escalate tension, and respond to disruptions.

• Structure the Conversation in a Thoughtful Manner
  Campus event personnel should structure difficult dialogues and controversial conversations with a clear format (e.g., moderated panels, structured Q&A, facilitated roundtables) designed to encourage constructive engagement and minimize disorder and disruption.
  
  Before, during, and after events featuring controversial speakers, the campus should make support services available to participants, including counseling, and restorative and reflective conversations.  The campus may also need to consider offering opportunities for counter-events and alternative dialogue spaces.

• Protect Speech and Minimize Disruption
  Campuses should ensure that their speech, protest, and disruptive conduct policies are clear, transparent, and widely disseminated.  These policies and procedures should be integrated into event planning, registration, and briefing processes for organizers and participants.
  
  Campus should also be sure that their procedures for responding to disruptions, including when and how to intervene, restore order, or reschedule events if safety is compromised, are workable and that event organizers and participants are aware of these procedures and protocols.
  
  During protests, demonstrations, or other events with controversial speakers, campus personnel should monitor for disruptions or safety concerns and be ready to intervene if necessary, provide clear instructions for feedback and participations, and support the moderators and facilitators in managing any conflict.

• Allow for Debrief and Reflection
  Campus event personnel should plan to facilitate after-event debriefs, reflection sessions, and feedback opportunities with participants and organizers.  This after-event programming can be useful in thinking about future programming difficult dialogues and controversial conversations and any event policies and procedures that may need to be updated. 

How Hunton’s Higher Education Team Can Help

Our Higher Education team provides guidance on crisis response, conflict de-escalation, and restorative practices; legal review of campus speech, protest, and student and employee conduct policies; and training for moderators, facilitators, campus leaders, and staff in facilitating difficult dialogues or controversial events.

If your institution is seeking to strengthen its approach to facilitating difficult dialogues or controversial events, please contact your Hunton lawyer for tailored advice and resources.