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Take It On

Get Involved

Take It On partners on, supports, and advertises events related to dialogue and conversation upon request with campus collaborators.

Upcoming Events

  • Wednesday, October 6: Story Quilts – an initiative of Learning Through Art, 6:00-7:30, virtual event. Students and community members make art together while discussing issues related to race, with trained facilitators. Registration required. RSVP here. Contact: Jamie Trnka or Sean Rhiney

Smith Center Events (Contact: Steve Frankel or Staff Johnson for more details)

  • Lara Logan, Fox News, October 15, 2021, “State of Journalism”
  • Yaron Brook, president of the Ayn Rand Institute, November 4, 2021
  • Christopher Fawson, Utah State University, Seminar in Markets and Morality co-sponsored by I.H.S.
  • Scott Colbert, Commerce Bank, “State of the Economy,” Talk and Panel Discussion, October, 2015
  • Kimberley Strassel, Wall Street Journal, February 2022
  • Smith Research Fellows Workshops (seven workshops to be scheduled for Fall of 2021 and Spring of 2022)
  • Compassionate Capitalism Forum: April, 2022:  Panel discussion with Dan Meyer, CEO of Nehemiah Industries, Jeff Korzenik, Fifth Third Bank, and Tom Williams. Keynote Address: by Tom Williams

 

Past Events

Mayoral Debate

Mayoral Debate between candidates David Mann and Aftab Pureval, co-hosted with Cincinnati Enquirer and WVXU, 7:00-8:30 p.m., Cintas Center. Free and open to the public. Contact: Sean Comer

Constitution Day Colloquium

September 17-18: Constitution Day Colloquium. See here for more details. Contact: Mack Mariani

Ethics/Religion and Society Event: Restoring Trust in Our Institutions

Yuval Levin in conversation with Xavier faculty and students. Yuval Levin is director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at the American Enterprise Institute; editor of National Affairs; and author of A Time to Build: From Family and Community to Congress and the Campus, How Recommitting to Our Institutions Can Revive the American Dream. Monday, April 5, 2021, 4:30-5:45 pm via Zoom. See the E/RS website for details.

 

Cross-Racial Intergroup Dialogue

Cross-Racial Intergroup Dialogue (IGD) sessions are carefully structured meetings between members of two or more social identity groups.  The groups move through stages that include learning the technique of 'dialogue,' developing group norms around this technique, exploring the impact of group identity, and engaging in dialogue on controversial issues regarding group equity and experience. April 7-May 12, 2021, 12:00-1:30 (Wednesdays). Facilitated by Audrey Calloway and Tracey DuEst via Zoom. See here for more information and to sign up.

 

Being Comfortable with Discomfort: Why and How to Pursue Difficult Conversations in the Classroom

Ethics/Religion and Society, Conversations Across the American Divide: Dr. Deb Mashek in conversation with:

  • Dr. Mack Mariani (Political Science)
  • Dr. Kristen Renzi (English/GDST)
  • Alexa Ollier (Philosophy major)
  • Grayson Walker (Philosophy/PPP major)

Dr. Deb Mashek is a social psychologist, former executive director of Heterodox Academy, and founder of Myco Consulting. Monday, Feb. 15, 2021, 4:30-5:45 p.m. via Zoom. See here for more information. To register, please email "register" to ers@xavier.edu.

 

The People United Will Never Be Defeated

As part of the Xavier Music Series, Pianist Matthew Phelps will perform Frederic Rzewski’s piece “The People United Will Never Be Defeated” livestreamed from the Gallagher Student Center. Sunday, November 8 at 3:00. Watch the livestream here. Contact Polina Bespalko, Director of the Music Series, for more information.

Artist's statement: Frederic Rzewski's monumental variations on "The People United Will Never Be Defeated" is both a crowning artistic achievement in twentieth-century music and culturally relevant in our modern society. By making extreme demands on the pianist, the piece attempts to depict the struggle behind social change, and the lives that can be sacrificed in the process. In playing this piece, I hope I can illuminate the difficulties that are felt by the oppressed during a social struggle and communicate the statement that united we can accomplish more as a civilization than divided.

In preparation for this Xavier Music Series event, all are invited as well to join a discussion on November 4 at 11:00 a.m. with Dr. Juan Suárez Ontaneda on the history and background of this piece as well as the role of music in political movements. This is part of a Spanish 202 class and open to all. Zoom information for November 4 available here. Password: pacifico

Dr. Suárez Ontaneda has curated readings, a video, music, a podcast, and a Spotify playlist on the background for “The People United Will Never Be Defeated.” You can learn more here.

 

Conversations Across the American Divide: Finding Common Ground in an Age of Discord

Ethics/Religion and Society Event with Heather McGhee, senior fellow and past president, Demos, in conversation with:

  • Prof. Jacki Lyon (English)
  • Shannon Hughes (Dorothy Day Center for Faith and Justice)
  • Prof. Myron Jackson (Philosophy and E/RS Besl Chair)
  • Fr. Nathan Wendt, SJ (Eigel Center)
  • Carson Rayhill (Finance and German major)
  • Gabriela Salazar (Business Analytics major) 

This event will take place on Zoom. Email ers@xavier.edu from a Xavier email to register. Monday, November 9, 2020, 5:00-6:15. Learn more here.

 

Building the America We Want--Together

The outcome of 2020 Presidential Election will not cause our divisions to disappear. For true healing to occur, we must devote the necessary time to understand each other -- our perspectives, beliefs, and feelings. Join us for an evening of restorative reflection, as we consider the following questions: How did you feel about the Election? Why might some be happy or unhappy with the results? What gives you hope? Join us for a restorative justice event.

Student-run, open to all. GSC Clocktower Lounge (Gallagher Student Center) and Zoom options. Contact: Christo Fosse. Thursday, November 12, 6:00-7:30 p.m. RSVP here

Xavier Together

We’re all in this together. Join students, faculty and staff to gather on the evening after Election Day. We may not know what comes next, but we know we need each other. Husman Stage. Contact: Spencer Liechty or Abby King-Kaiser. November 4, 4:15 p.m.

 

@XavierVotes on Instagram

Students in Julie Gatlin’s SOCW 394 Practice III: Community & Organization are creating a project on the importance of voting. Social Work major Megan Scharrer explains, “We decided we want to ask students if they have a plan to vote this year and why they want to vote; we also want to encourage students to register to vote and engage first time voters.  After we ask students this question, we want to take their picture and post on our Instagram @xaviervotes with a caption that says their response. Our goal with this project is to encourage people to vote and show that voting is empowering; we do not want to make this political, we want it to be non-partisan. We are not asking students which candidate they will endorse or what their affiliation is, we simply want to know why voting is important to them.” 

The America We Want: A Restorative Conversation

The 2020 presidential race has become one of the most polarizing periods of recent history. Amidst the turbulence, it can be easy to forget the common ground and values that we share. Join us for an evening of restorative reflection, as we consider the following questions: What's your ideal America, based on our values and shared history? What are your greatest hopes and fears? What is your personal commitment to creating the America you want? Thursday, October 22, 5:15-6:30, Arrupe Overlook, GSC. Zoom and in-person available. This is a student-run event; all in the Xavier community are welcome. RSVP here. Contact: Christo Fosse, fossec@xavier.edu

The Digital Literacy Imperative: What Faculty Can Do

In this interactive webinar, digital communication experts Leslie Hahner, Associate Professor of Communication at Baylor University and Heather Woods, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at Kansas State University, explain why faculty in higher education should foreground digital literacy in their curriculum and classrooms. Designed as an interactive workshop, this event will involve attendee participation that will prepare faculty to engage questions of digital literacy immediately in their classes. The integration of digital literacy across Xavier classes will prepare our students to better engage in public discourse as citizens as we move toward the 2020 elections and beyond. Monday, September 14, 3:00-4:15 (Zoom link will be provided closer to the event)

Presented by: Digital Media Services, the Communication Department, and CTE. Sponsored by the Mission Animators.

Energy & Environmental Policy in the Age of Coronavirus

What might we expect regarding energy and environmental policy in the coming months and years? This webinar, sponsored by the Jack Miller Center's Ohio Political Economy Project, featured Peter Cannavò (Professor of Government, Hamilton College), Dan Byers (Vice President, Policy, Global Energy Institute, US Chamber of Commerce) and Liz Blume (Executive Director, Community Building Institute, Xavier University). April 1, 2020 at 4:30-6:00. You can view the webinar here.

How Do We Build the Culture of Encounter? Overcoming Despair, Distrust and Division

Bellarmine Chapel, Mission & Identity, the Center for Faith & Justice, and the Institute for Spirituality & Social Justice invited us all to a conversation with Marcus Mescher, author of The Ethics of Encounter. Monday, March 30 at 7 p.m. via Livestream: https://www.bellarminechapel.org/encounter-mescher.html

Intergroup Dialogue

The OIDI (Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion) launched a pilot of Intergroup Dialogue sessions this spring facilitated by Tracey DuEst and Audrey Calloway. The dialogue sessions moved through stages that included learning the technique of “dialogue” (which is different from “debate” or “discussion”), developing group norms around this technique, exploring the impact of group identity: commonalities and differences in personal experience, between and within groups, and engaging in dialogue on controversial issues regarding group equity and experience. Participants learned to stay in “dialogue mode,” even when they disagreed with each other. They also learned not to avoid conflict and how to use it constructively. 

Fifteen seats were open to Xavier employees to engage with members of AARA (Aspiring Anti-Racist Allies) and Shades of X (the employees of color affinity group).

Politics in the Classroom: Anticipating the 2020 Election

Classrooms are not immune to the larger political context. As political debate surrounding the 2020 Presidential Election starts to heat up, instructors may find politics entering into class discussions in both anticipated and unanticipated ways. To help instructors navigate potentially conflicting and emotional issues and topics, the Center for Teaching Excellence held a workshop on the theme of Politics in the Classroom: Anticipating the 2020 Election.

Ethics/Religion and Society Events

This spring, the Ethics/Religion & Society Program hosted guest speakers in the series Conversations Across the American Divide. Our guests discussed politics, history, and culture with diverse panels drawn from the Xavier community and with the audience.

  • Diana Schaub (Political Science, Loyola University Maryland) spoke on Booker T. Washington.
  • Local journalists discussed the topic of trustworthiness.
  • See here for more information. 

Student Travel to New Hampshire Primary

On January 17, Xavier University students from the Philosophy, Politics and the Public Program, Political Science, and Pi Sigma Alpha, with additional support from The Boehner Institute, travelled to New Hampshire to explore the “first-in-nation” primary. From spending time with individual campaigns, to attending the rallies and events for candidates, students had the opportunity to speak with New Hampshire residents, campaign staffers, and ask questions of candidates themselves. The trip gave them unique insight into which candidate might be experiencing increased support, and which might be fading. Similarly, they got a pulse on the political feelings of one corner of the nation, just as the election began to take hold of the country. In past presidential election years, students traveled to Iowa and were able to hear from candidates like Marco Rubio, Hilary Clinton, Martin O’Malley, and Ted Cruz, and even from future United States Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump.