President Hicks Joins College Presidents to Prepare Students to Be Engaged Citizens and Uphold Free Expression
August 19, 2024
- Author
- Jay Pfeifer
Davidson College President Doug Hicks
Davidson College President Doug Hicks ’90 is joining college presidents from across the country to advance higher education’s pivotal role in preparing students to be engaged citizens and to uphold free expression on campus.
Hicks and 91 fellow leaders constitute College Presidents for Civic Preparedness, a unique consortium convened by the Institute for Citizens & Scholars.
The participating presidents represent a diverse cohort of higher-ed institutions but they are bound by three shared civic commitments:
- Educating for democracy is central to our mission.
- We will prepare our students for a vibrant, diverse and contentious society.
- We will protect and defend free inquiry.
Their work is urgent in this critical moment for higher education and our democracy.
“For too many, polarization is a point of pride,” Hicks said. “We must see people not as categories but as people with something to add to public conversation.
“We want our graduates focused less on winning arguments and more on learning from each other. We have too much important and exciting work not to benefit from the insights and experiences that others offer. We solve problems bigger than ourselves by rising above the caricatures of preconceptions.”
Hicks’ involvement with his colleagues builds on Davidson’s own foundational commitments to inclusion, free expression and democracy.
The preamble to Davidson’s constitution clearly states the school’s mission, including teaching students “to communicate freely with others in the realm of ideas.” The constitution itself guarantees free speech rights of students and student organizations. It also offers broad protections of faculty members’ academic freedom. And in 2023, the faculty affirmed a commitment to free expression that was drafted by a committee of faculty, alumni and students.
Davidson students are also active citizens. During the last presidential election, 89 percent of students registered in Davidson turned out to cast their vote, more than 30 percentage points higher than the national average of young voters.
For too many, polarization is a point of pride. We must see people not as categories but as people with something to add to public conversation.
This fall, Davidson has a slate of events and programs that are focused on civil discourse and civic engagement. They include the following:
- Hosting speakers with diverse viewpoints
- Designing student programming around constructive dialogue, civic engagement and learning
- Promoting voter engagement initiatives
Look for public events on the homepage of the Davidson.edu website.
The College Presidents for Civic Preparedness will also develop campus-specific programming, including new courses, outside speakers, student orientations, presidential speeches, technology tools and voter education initiatives. A complete listing appears on the consortium website.
