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Home > Heterodox Out Loud > Embracing Disagreement and Diversity at the University of Denver with Jeremy Haefner | Ep 40
Podcast: Heterodox Out Loud
Episode:

Embracing Disagreement and Diversity at the University of Denver with Jeremy Haefner | Ep 40
Category: Science & Medicine
Duration: 00:47:53
Publish Date: 2025-11-18 10:00:00
Description:

What does it take to build a university where open inquiry is not just protected, but actively practiced? In this wide-ranging episode, University of Denver Chancellor Jeremy Haefner offers a rare, candid look at the challenges and opportunities of transforming campus culture in a polarized era. From institutional neutrality to civil discourse, from pluralism to DEI reform, Haefner shares how the University of Denver is attempting to lead higher education into its next chapter.

 

Today, John Tomasi, President of Heterodox Academy, speaks with Haefner about DU’s ambitious initiatives aimed at strengthening the university’s core commitments to open inquiry, viewpoint diversity, and constructive disagreement. Haefner discusses the Denver Dialogues, a flagship program that brings scholars with divergent perspectives into sustained engagement with students; Debate Across the Curriculum, a faculty-led innovation that measurably shifts students’ readiness to engage across differences; and Spark Day, DU’s annual celebration of free expression and civil discourse.

 

The conversation also probes deeply into Haefner’s decision to adopt a policy of institutional neutrality, the university’s response to the Trump Administration’s directives on DEI, and the complexities of balancing inclusion with the truth-seeking mission of the academy. Tune in to explore how universities can renew their mission, and why pluralism matters now more than ever.

 

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