Citizens of Montevallo gathered on the evening of May 7, 2013 at the Parnell Memorial Library to celebrate and report out to the community the outcomes of the inaugural Students’ Institute and “Strengthening Montevallo’s Youth” forum series. Attendees included Montevallo Middle School Students’ GRC students, forum participants, and a variety of other stakeholders representing the [...]
I have worked for the David Mathews Center for close to four years, and I still constantly look for real world examples of deliberation that I can share with collaborators and community partners. Well, due to some very unexpected events, I now have a very personal example that I would like to share with our [...]
On Tuesday, April 30, twenty Sumter County citizens gathered at the Sumter County Health Department in Livingston, Alabama to participate in an Alabama Issues Forum (AIF) on the bullying issue. Participants included middle school students, teachers, administrators, bus drivers, and community members. The forum began with a brief word of welcome from Willie Lampley, Sumter [...]
On Thursday, April 25, 2013, the Mathews Center facilitated a Moderator Development Workshop at the Laurel Oaks Behavioral Center in Dothan, Alabama. Thirty-two staff members—including teachers, therapists, nurses, and others—participated in the engaging, half-day workshop. The workshop agenda included an abbreviated forum on the bullying issue, an interactive discussion on moderating practices and skills, and [...]
On Wednesday, March 27, 2013, the David Mathews Center for Civic Life convened an Alabama Issues Forum on bullying at Comer Auditorium on University of Montevallo’s campus. The forum featured guest speaker Jamie Nabozny, a former bullying victim whose story is documented in the Southern Poverty Law Center’s film Bullied. Approximately 60 Montevallo students and [...]
The Mathews Center and the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE) recently completed a series of four Moderator Development Workshops for school guidance counselors and administrators across the state of Alabama. Over 240 counselors and administrators participated in the first four workshops. The sessions were held in the following counties: Jefferson (Mar. 7), Madison (Mar. [...]
Over the past three weeks, the Mathews Center moderated a series of three public forums in Montevallo, Alabama on “Strengthening Montevallo’s Youth.” The forums were held at the Parnell Memorial Library (Feb. 25), the American Village (Feb. 28), and the Montevallo First Baptist Church (Mar. 7). Approximately 50 Montevallo citizens engaged in the deliberations, several [...]
On February 21, 2013, the Mathews Center facilitated an Alabama Issues Forums on the bullying issue. Twenty-eight high school juniors—all members of Bibb County Youth Leadership—gathered at the Mercedes-Benz Bill Taylor Institute in Vance, Alabama to participate in the deliberation. Participants found common ground around addressing root causes of bullying, connecting with a student’s home [...]
On February 12, 2013, the Mathews Center moderated a large Alabama Issues Forum on the bullying issue in Eutaw, AL. Nearly 80 Greene County citizens gathered at the St. Paul United Methodist Church at 5:00pm to participate in the evening’s deliberation. Participants ranged in age from elementary students to retired citizens. Common ground emerged when [...]
On February 6, 2013, the Mathews Center facilitated an engaging Alabama Issues Forum in New Brockton, Alabama on the bullying issue. Twenty-one students—all participants in the Coffee County Youth Leadership Program—and a handful of adults gathered in the Coffee County Complex in New Brockton, AL for the deliberation. Common ground emerged throughout the forum as [...]
