Like other observers, we have noted that the single most important moment in setting new campus norms is right when the students first set foot on campus. Within the first 3-5 days, they will assess “how things are done” in their new community. We offer soup-to-nuts support in designing, planning, and executing new student orientation that signals to students that their new campus is a place where the free exchange of ideas is not just an idea, but a reality.

University of Denver,
2024 New Student Orientation

We offer a suite of trainings tailored to students, faculty, and staff, respectively, to address challenges and to help them build a culture of rigorous, authentic dialogue. Some trainings are custom designed for a particular institution; others apply across institutional types and levels.

How to Counteract Speech,

Student Affairs Staff and Student Leaders at the University of Pittsburgh

True institutional change must occur at scale and over time. To accomplish this we embed the needed attitudes and abilities in faculty, staff, and student leaders who transmit these across campus and to incoming classes. Following the launch year we remain in contact for assistance and support in subsequent years.

Vanderbilt University,
Debate Chair Boot Camp

We work with university leadership to help them craft an approach to transforming their campus culture into one that encourages open, rigorous thought and effective dialogue.

We have helped several leading universities begin to transform their campuses from adversarial and silencing environments into ones open to diverse perspectives, thereby exhibiting the highest ideals of liberal arts education.

Vanderbilt University,
Chancellor’s Office

We provide robust evaluations suitable to any program you implement. Program success and support rely on effective ongoing assessment. Insight has developed a sophisticated yet convenient suite of assessment tools that allow for intra-institutional evaluation and improvement as well as inter-institutional benchmarking and best practices development.

University of Denver,
Debate Across the Curriculum

We work with the university members who “get their hands dirty” with the actual execution of the work. (Yes, we will help you figure out venues, advertising, and who should order the pizza!) We enjoy getting in the weeds with you to figure out exactly what should happen when and how to maximize your impact.

Vanderbilt University,
Civil Discourse Lab

We work directly with students to craft debate topics that reflect their first-hand experience and current interests. The topics can range from national political debates to hot-button local issues to university policies, but the priority is to encourage engagement and ownership on the part of the students. The debates provide students an opportunity to speak their minds and listen to others, often more powerfully than they have thus far in their collegiate experience.

The College Preparatory School,
AI Debate

We work directly with students to craft thoughtful questions that can shape a conversation that is less formal than a debate but structured to support effective exchange. The dialogues provide students an opportunity to explore a difficult topic in a way that enables them to share complex opinions and personal experiences.

Vanderbilt University,
Post-Election Dialogue on the Future of the Nation