Event Details

This fall, Macalester will host for the second time Congress to Campus, the flagship program of the Association of Former Members of Congress. For more than forty years, Congress to Campus has sent former elected leaders to more than 140 colleges and universities to model how to dialogue across differences. Through those conversations, the program's goal is to help foster the skills necessary for a thriving democracy.

On October 23, former U.S. representatives Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) and Rob Woodall (R-Ga.) will meet with classes, then engage in a campus conversation focused on academic freedom in classrooms and curricula from K–12 to higher education at 4:45 p.m. in Mairs Concert Hall. This event is open to all Macalester students, faculty, and staff. Admission is free, but capacity is limited and event tickets are required: request your ticket now.

The American Association of University Professors defines academic freedom as “the freedom of a teacher or researcher in higher education to investigate and discuss the issues in his or her academic field, and to teach or publish findings without interference from political figures, boards of trustees, donors, or other entities.” Unfortunately, academic freedom—in higher education and throughout K–12—is under attack in the United States, sometimes from state legislatures, sometimes from trustees, and sometimes from students and faculty. (See two examples of recent coverage from the Chronicle of Higher Education and National Association of Scholars.) This year’s Congress to Campus program at Macalester explores this timely issue from the perspective of two former members of Congress, with the goal of spurring a wide-ranging conversation about the nature of the problem and what might be done to mitigate it.

The intent of the program is to help students understand how a politically charged topic looks when viewed from the perspectives of legislators on either side of the aisle. It is about providing insights into what actual legislators consider in what can be a less-than-transparent but very consequential political institution—and to do so in ways that ultimately enhance students’ abilities to act politically.

The goals are to help students become informed voters who understand multiple perspectives on an issue, to engage in constructive dialogue, and to practice listening to opposing views, even when they make us uncomfortable or angry. The goal is not to engage in a formal debate, with a winner emerging at the end, nor provide a platform for former members to broadcast their personal views. It's one element of our ongoing work to practice the skills of meaningful dialogue as a community.

Congress to Campus Steering Committee

Professor Duchess Harris, American Studies (co-chair)

Professor Andrew Latham, Political Science (co-chair)

Ava Buchanan, President’s Office

Rebecca DeJarlais Ortiz, Communications and Marketing

Kathryn Dijkstra, Special Events

Kate Frampton, Special Events

Catie Gardner Smith, Engagement

Beau Larsen, Forensics

Casey Moerer, Forensics

Laurel O'Hare ’24, Student

Sara Suelflow, President's Office

Vivian Tran ’24, Student