We give people the means to strengthen relationships, deepen belonging, and renew hope in their communities.
Our Impact
Megan DeFranzaHere safe space was created for pastors and church leaders to wrestle with topics like evolution which are all too often “off limits” or believed to be antagonistic to the faith.
Gordon College, Massachusetts
-
Parent, Cary AcademyEssential Partners's dialogue initiative is, literally, the best forum I have attended during my time at Cary Academy. The openness and sharing in our group led to genuine connections. I’m not sure words can express how meaningful this event was to me. Truly priceless.
Cary, North Carolina
Louise O’Kane, Community Places[Essential Partners’] technique is used to explore contentious or divisive issues. So looking at renewable energy we thought this was an ideal opportunity to explore all the complexities of that issue. I found it a really useful method, and although this is the first time we’ve used it I am sure we’ll be using it again.
Northern Ireland, UK
Resisting Polarization in an Election Season: A Free Resource
Partisan polarization (Democrats versus Republicans) turns our huge, complicated, diverse democracy into a political sport where everyone has to pick a side and only one side can win. In this four-part, scaffolded, self-paced curriculum, we will help you develop the internal capacities, skills, and confidence you need to become a positive force in conversations around the election where you live, work, worship, and learn.
Related Resources
News: Blaming faculty when protests erupt ignores how we teach
“In a polarized climate where adherence to one side of an issue can seem to demand the complete rejection of opposing views or the people who hold them, complexity can be an unwelcome reality. University classrooms are precisely the places where students encounter and meet such complex challenges.”
Jill DeTemple, EP Academic Associate and faculty member at Southern Methodist University, highlights the role that college professors play in fostering open-mindedness and critical thinking in their students in the Dallas Morning News.
Recent Partners
