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Program for Public Discourse

We strive to support a culture of robust public argument through curricular and extra-curricular engagement, equipping students with the rhetorical and deliberative capacities to serve Carolina and beyond as citizens, leaders, and stewards of democracy.

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Agora Fellow 2024-2025 Application

UNC Students Gathered Outside On Campus

The Program for Public Discourse welcomes applications for the 2024-2025 Agora Fellowship. The Agora comprises a cohort of undergraduate students committed to the study and practice of public discourse. Fellows learn rhetorical concepts as they engage challenging topical issues throughout the year. They also develop facilitative techniques to host monthly deliberative forums for the student body. Fellows convene the first three weeks of each month throughout the academic calendar. Typically, up to ten students are accepted into the incoming cohort. We are no longer accepting applications.

 

Upcoming Events

National Issues Forum: Creating a Culture of Consent

Join us for a National Issues Forum dialogue to discuss strategies to create a culture of consent on UNC's campus. High rates of sexual violence at UNC emphasize the need to work towards creating a culture of consent to prevent sexual and gender-based violence among our college community. Through this dialogue we invite students passionate about violence prevention and/or looking to learn more to share your input on what needs to happen to work towards a safer campus community. RSVP Here

This event is co-sponsored by the Student Dialogue Ambassador program supported by NC Campus Engagement, Campus Y Civic Engagement, and the Program for Public Discourse.

Date: April 24, 2024
Times: 4:00PM – 6:00 PM
Audience: Public Event
Venue: GSU, Room 2423

Is Liberal Democracy in Danger? 

On October 1st from 5:30pm-7:00pm, Richard Ebeling and Michael Meeropol will discuss whether liberal democracy is in danger.
Richard M. Ebeling is professor of economics at The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina. He is recognized as one of the leading members of the Austrian School of Economics and is the author of numerous books, including “For a New Liberalism” (American Institute for Economic Research, 2019) and “Ludwig von Mises and the Austrian Tradition” (Routledge, 2010). Professor Ebeling has also served as president of the Foundation for Economic Education (2003-2008) and the Society for the Development of Austrian Economics (2020). 
Michael Meeropol is professor emeritus of economics at Western New England University, Springfield Massachusetts, where he also served as department chair. He is the son of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, the only American couple ever executed by the United States for conspiracy to commit espionage. His publications include “Surrender: How the Clinton Administration Completed the Reagan Revolution” (University of Michigan Press, 2017) and “We Are Your Sons, the Legacy of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg Boston” (Houghton-Mifflin Co., 1975), co-authored with Robert Meeropol. 
Date: October 1, 2024
Times: 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM
Audience: Public Event
Venue: TBA

Student Fellows

Agora Fellows

The Agora Fellows program provides undergraduate students a space to experiment with public discourse in a collaborative environment of their peers.

Become an Agora Fellow

Faculty Outreach

Faculty Resources

We invite all faculty to schedule faculty consultations or participate in our seminars and workshops.

Go To Faculty Resources

Events

Events

We seek to offer the broader UNC community and general public perspectives on important issues that they may not otherwise get on campus.

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