Academy Initiative
Academy Initiative
We host similarly situated leaders to design and implement strategies to address polarizing community dynamics.
The Academy Initiative is a collaboration between the Divided Community Project (DCP), the National Civic League, Fordham Law, and Stanford Law School. The initiative plans events which host similarly situated leaders from a metropolitan area to design and implement strategies to address polarizing community dynamics. The events present an opportunity to work with dispute systems design experts from across the country and collaborators from across the metropolitan area.
The program’s goals are three-fold:
- Strengthen conflict resolution-related planning and capacity building.
- Support and strengthen the development of a local ‘core’ leadership convener group for four communities.
- Provide planning opportunities for each core leadership group.
The initiative was piloted in 2019 with core leadership groups from Charlottesville (VA), Memphis (TN), Portland (OR), Kenyon College (OH), and the Divided Community Project in collaboration with the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution. The Divided Community Project at Fordham University Law School hosted an Academy in the summer of 2023 in New York City and Stanford University Law School hosted an Academy in the fall of 2024.
Apply to attend the next Academy
If your community or campus has an interest in participating in an Academy program, please contact William Froehlich at froelich.2@osu.edu or 614-688-4192. Academy Hosts will evaluate applications based on 1) diversity, 2) commitment, and 3) need.
Question:
What should I expect?
Participants will work collectively to build collaborative skills. Participants will share resources with other similarly situated leaders in their community (community organizer to organizer; city manager to city manager; county sheriff to deputy policy chief). Participants will engage in role plays and hand-on planning grounded in DCP resources. Participants will work with DCP leaders, former Academy participants, Campus Leaders, a former state Attorney General, former Community Relations Service Conciliators, and DCP collaborators to develop action steps to implement in their communities.
To better understand what to expect when participating in an Academy, a video is available from former Charlottesville Police Chief RaShall Brackney describing her experience at an Academy program.
Question:
What are potential Academy outcomes?
To better understand the potential outcomes of participating in an Academy, explore the following case studies:
Question:
Will the Academy take place in person?
Yes, we anticipate that all academy participants will attend the duration of the event in person.
Question:
What communities have participated in prior Academies?
Core leadership groups from the following communities have participated in prior Academies.
- Bloomington, Indiana
- Case Western Reserve University
- Charlotte, North Carolina
- Charlottesville, Virginia
- Indianapolis, Indiana
- Kenyon College
- Memphis, Tennessee
- Menlo College
- Midwest City, Oklahoma
- The Ohio State University
- Portland / Oregon
- University of Central Oklahoma
- University of Hawaii at Manoa
- University of Idaho
- University of Massachusetts at Amherst
- University of Mississippi
- University of Oklahoma
- Wake Forest University
Question:
What should we expect after attending the Academy?
Communities should expect sustained engagement following participation in an Academy. Core leadership groups will be expected to maintain a relationship with DCP to share resources, lessons learned, and give feedback to further develop the Academy initiative. DCP anticipates maintaining and developing relationships with Academy communities.
Contact Us
Reach out to the Academy Initiative via email or phone.
