Sustained Dialogue Campus Network

April E-Newsletter

Hello, and welcome to the new SDCN e-newsletter! This letter is sent out to the SD family: all alumni, moderators, student leaders, participants, and supporters who help strengthen the network. We’ve made some changes to make this newsletter more personal, more accessible, and more closely tied to what’s going on at YOUR campus.

THIS ISSUE:
I. MARCH AND APRIL UPDATES
II. 2006 SDCN NATIONAL CONFERENCE FOLLOW-UP
III. EXCITING NEW RESOURCES FROM SDCN
IV. SUMMER INTERNSHIP

I. MARCH AND APRIL UPDATES

SD IN THE MONTH OF MARCH

At the beginning of March, Tessa and Clark, along with Roksana Mun from Dickinson College, traveled to Vanderbilt University in Nashville for the C.O.O.L. Idealist Conference. This conference, with thousands of participants from across the country, was a great chance to network AND to spread the word about SD! Many thanks to Roksana for representing us so well, and for waking up so early to come with us!

This month also found Tessa and Clark hard at work trying to get the plans solidified for the 2006 SDCN Conference, as they did everything from t-shirt design to workshop scheduling and planning. The 2006 Conference Team was invaluable to this process—so keep this role in mind if you really want to help out SDCN next year!

SD IN THE MONTH OF APRIL

As most of you already know, the 2006 SDCN Conference was held on April 8-9 at Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey. This years conference boasted over a dozen high schools and universities from across the country, and was a great experience! Read more about this in the Conference Recap portion a little later in this newsletter.

After a quick recovery for Tessa and Clark, it was back to work as planning begins for Program Director transition, the 2006 Summer Internship (more on this later!), and much much more! Read on to
learn about some of the other things that are in the works!



II. 2006 SDCN NATIONAL CONFERENCE FOLLOW-UP

The rain has stopped, sleep deprivation has worn off, and we’ve had a chance to read ALL of your evaluations from the conference. And according to you, the conference was a great success!!

This year, Princeton University hosted over 100 students from more than a dozen different high schools, colleges, and universities from all across the country! Students participated in 20 workshops, 10 mock dialogue groups, and were able to hear wonderful addresses from Vice President Janet Dickerson of Princeton University and Dr. Harold Saunders.

We welcomed students from 3 new schools, including Emory University, University of Alabama, and Vanderbilt University, and are excited about the prospect of dialogue heading further South!!

Instead of giving you our take on it, though, let’s hear what you had to say:

“I learned a lot about SD’s purpose and more moderating skills”
“The workshops were, on the whole, amazing”

“I feel like I have a lot of ideas to improve my moderating and strengthen my group.”

“I’m excited, and feel rejuvenated”
“I am going to be a moderator next year, and I am excited!”


We’re certainly taking note of all the constructive criticism you offered, as well, and have already begun planning to make next year even better!

Thanks to everyone who made the conference a possibility, especially Princeton folks—it certainly wouldn’t have happened without all your hard work!!

III. EXCITING NEW RESOURCES FROM SDCN


SD Leadership Manual. We’ve been working long and hard to write a new manual for initiators and student leaders alike, and they’re finally here! Most of you should have already received a copy of the Leadership Manual, which has been written and formatted to be as easily readable as possible! Make sure you’re adding your own thoughts an notes as you go, so that your manual can be passed down to future leaders at your school.

For more information, or to acquire a Manual for your school, contact clark@sdcampusnetwork.org

SDCN on the Facebook. Due to popular demand, we decided to create a profile for Sustained Dialogue on the Facebook.com. Search for Tessa Garcia (apparently “Program Director” isn’t a legit name) and look for the SD logo so that you might become connected with everyone else in the network!

SD Bulletin Board. Many of you have told us that you’re looking for a forum to discuss SD issues, thoughts, concerns, and ideas with one another….look no further! Visit the SDCN webpage (www.sdcampusnetwork.org) and click on “Bulletin Board” to sign-in and leave a message. First student to get a conversation going gets a free SD T-Shirt (choose from one of three shirts!)


IV. 2006 SDCN SUMMER INTERNS

Congratulations to the 2006 SDCN Summer Interns. On June 12, Tessa and Christina will be joined by 3 students from the network for an 8-week internship.

During these 8 weeks, they’ll engage in dialogues, design new materials, get to meet with Dr. Saunders in a small, personal setting, and enjoy 8 great speakers from the field!

We’re excited about this year’s interns, and look forward to welcoming them soon. The three interns are:

Roksana Mun—Roksana is a Junior from Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA, and will be a co-leader of the SD Program there next year.

Chris Wagner—Chris is a Junior from the University of Notre Dame, and next year will serve as his SD chapter’s president.

Brian Young—Brian, a sophomore from Denison University in Ohio, will be a moderator next year and will help lead Denison’s program in the fall.

We’re expecting GREAT things of this year’s Summer Internship Program, so keep a lookout for the fruits of their labor in the Fall!!



Please email Clark and Tessa at info@sdcampusnetwork.org with any questions, comments, or inquiries!

(If for any reason, you would like to be taken off this list, please email info@sdcampusnetwork.org with your request. Please DO NOT hit reply all to this email!!)