Data centers, Iran, ICE, healthcare, voter ID laws-if it's on the front page of a newspaper, it's likely to end up as a debate topic for the Hopkins Political Union. The student organization, which is co-led by the College Republicans and Hopkins Democrats in partnership with the university's SNF Agora Institute and Heterodox Academy campus community at Hopkins, hosts regular community dialogues that explore all sides of America's top issues.
"You don't have to be a professional debater in order to attend," says senior Aneesh Swaminathan, who founded the union. "Our purpose is to promote dialogue across differences."
Debate nights for the Hopkins Political Union follow a regular pattern. First, presenters explain the pros and cons of an issue and pitch their perspectives. Then the floor opens up for community discussion, where any attendee can express their opinions. Each event has two unresolved topics, with students sometimes staying afterwards to continue the conversation.
"We're choosing debate topics that invite disagreement beyond the binary," Swaminathan says. "It's not always just Democrat and Republican. You can have a lot of different perspectives, and we welcome you."
Swaminathan founded the Hopkins Political Union in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election. Tensions on campus were high, he recalls, and existing political events drew only small, niche crowds.
"[I] noticed that there was a veritable gap in the civic culture at Hopkins, because we didn't have a place where students who disagreed could come together and talk about politics, civics, and all the hot-button issues," he says. "I just wanted to provide a forum where students could respectfully disagree or learn from each other."
So far, the plan is working. Hopkins Political Union debates regularly attract 80 attendees or more, from undergraduates to professors. According to Swaminathan, exit surveys suggest that students walk away having heard new ideas and feeling more open to other perspectives.
He credits this success in part to the Student Blue Jay Dialogue Innovation Fund, which backed the union with a $10,000 grant earlier this year to enhance its programming. The innovation fund is part of a larger university effort to foster meaningful and respectful dialogue on campus across different demographics and perspectives.
The Hopkins Political Union was one of six student projects picked for fund's the initial round of support through the Center for Social Concern in Student Affairs. Other projects receiving funding promote dialogue between researchers and practitioners, reflect on the implications of artificial intelligence, and explore communication in health care.
"I was actually incredibly elated to hear that the Student Blue Jay Dialogue Fund was being offered by Student Affairs for the first time, because it seemed like its mission statement was almost specifically designed for us to apply," Swaminathan says. "Encouraging effective and respectful dialogue is precisely the goal [the political union] had in mind when this organization started."
The Student Blue Jay Dialogue Innovation Fund is currently accepting its second round of proposals, with the application period open through Oct. 6. Selected projects will receive up to $10,000 each.
"Too often students are advised not to bring up religion, politics, or anything that could be considered divisive, but how do we build together if we cannot talk about the very issues most central to our core values?" says Center for Social Concern Executive Director Jasmine Blanks. "The Student Blue Jay Dialogue Innovation Fund provides a platform for students to build skills and confidence for engaging in constructive dialogue. Students explore with genuine curiosity how their own perspectives meet with those of others."
To students like Swaminathan, the fund is already a success.
"It has a tremendous impact on the civic culture at Hopkins, particularly at the student level," he says. "These funds [are] really a testament to the university's stated commitment to promoting intellectual pluralism on campus. By supporting student initiatives like ours, I think they're helping promote a more inclusive campus culture that's open to a lot of different viewpoints."
To learn more about the Student Blue Jay Dialogue Innovation Fund and how to apply, visit the Student Affairs website.
Image caption: Hopkins Political Union Presidents Chris Zhang and Aneesh Swaminathan
Image credit: Will Kirk / Johns Hopkins University
