Director, Bucknell Initiative for Dialogue & Democracy (BIDD)

Position Title:

Director, Bucknell Initiative for Dialogue & Democracy (BIDD)

Position Type:

Full time

Scheduled Weekly Hours:

40

Categories:

Staff Exempt

Job Summary:

Job Duties:

Bucknell University invites nominations and applications for the Director for a new Dialogue and Democracy Initiative. Reporting directly to the Associate Provost for Research and Creative Inquiry, the Director will work closely with the faculty, staff, and students, the Deans and Associate Deans of the three Colleges, University Advancement, the Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations, and other relevant stakeholders within the campus and greater Susquehanna Valley communities to develop and oversee this nascent initiative. 

Bucknell Initiative for Dialogue & Democracy (BIDD) 
Great universities are dedicated to cultivating independence of mind in those they serve while fostering critical dialogue and thoughtful reflection as a condition of participation in a democratic society. As educators, we must prepare our students for the prevailing direction of the world by helping them to develop the skills that are necessary for productive engagement with civil society, including civic engagement and open respectful discourse. In an increasingly polarized world with pervasive algorithm-driven exposure to self-reinforcing beliefs and perspectives, students lack sufficient opportunity and ability to truly engage with ideas with which they don’t already agree.  At Bucknell, we recognize the need for students to learn to challenge their assumptions and to productively sustain even the most difficult conversations as they navigate their place in a complex and polarized world.  While an increasing number of institutions of higher education are establishing centers for vigorous debate around political issues, Bucknell’s approach will focus on the development of skills for engaged dialogue as a fundamental goal.

To nurture these abilities in a supportive campus environment, the University is launching the Bucknell Initiative for Dialogue & Democracy (BIDD), for which we are seeking an inaugural Director. The Director of BIDD will invite members of the Bucknell community (faculty, staff, students, alumni) to further develop the initiative, drawing upon the expertise and perspectives of many colleagues across the University and of our community partners. This initiative will provide a new and powerful arena for understanding, enabling honest and engaged discourse born out of moments of constructive opposition. Dialogue can only become a truly collaborative endeavor when we responsibly engage with the viewpoints of others. It is our aim to provide students with the tools not only to engage in dialogue but to learn, and practice using, the essential skill of listening, as they develop their capacity to meaningfully participate in democratic society as a member of the various communities of which they are a part. 

To further these goals, Bucknell has recently invested in capacity-building within our community to incorporate dialogue-based approaches into our work. BIDD will join an institutional ecosystem that values the importance of diverse experiences and perspectives by creating an open-minded, nonpartisan arena where ideas can be freely and thoughtfully shared and challenged, and where students, faculty, and staff from various backgrounds can work together on shared projects to advance the public good in our (campus and off-campus) communities. 

BIDD Director
Reporting to the Provost’s Office, the Director of the Bucknell Initiative for Dialogue & Democracy will provide collaborative, visionary and strategic leadership to the initiative. The Director will develop the relationships necessary to lead the development of a collective vision for the initiative, informed by the multiple perspectives that comprise the Bucknell community. The Director will be a full-time member of the Bucknell staff. This position is currently projected to be gift funded for three years with the expectation that it may be renewed with additional funding.

The Director of this Initiative will directly contribute to Bucknell’s mission of educating students for a lifetime of critical thinking and strong leadership characterized by continued intellectual exploration, creativity and imagination.

Role of the Director 

The Director of BIDD will work across the institution to provide leadership to this cross-disciplinary initiative. The Director will support members of the campus community to co-organize programming across all three Colleges, and to work with existing offices and departments (including those connected to community partners) to identify and develop relevant experiential opportunities for students and members of t