Roanoke College establishes Center for Civic and Religious Pluralism

A Gallup poll last year found that 80% of adults in the U.S. think Americans are greatly divided on the most important values — a record-high percentage. 

To help address this issue on campus—and by extension, within communities— the Religion and Philosophy Department recently established the Center for Civic and Religious Pluralism. The center's mission is to equip students, staff, faculty and the community with skills to engage with one another across differences. 

The department received a $25,000 grant for advancing campus pluralism from Interfaith America and the Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia, part of which will go toward developing the Center for Civic and Religious Pluralism. Roanoke College is one of nine Virginia colleges to receive the grant this year. 

Melanie Trexler, associate professor of religion and director of the center, said its purpose is to help people learn how to talk to each other in a way that respects mutual difference.  

“We’re really trying to engage people in how we have these conversations across difference in a meaningful way and walk out of it still wanting to talk to each other,” Trexler said. 

The Center for Civic and Religious Pluralism’s core purpose is to make everyone on campus feel like they belong here, regardless of their worldview. Building mutual trust and creating spaces for students to freely explore their own perspectives are essential aspects of this work. 

The center plans to host recurring events on and around campus, including monthly coffee shop talks and Communities of Practice. At the coffee shop talks, speakers with different perspectives on the same topic will each present to the audience. Afterward, they will answer questions from those in attendance. 

Communities of Practice will launch in the spring. At those monthly meetings, students, faculty and staff can engage in active listening and civil discourse practices together. The group will gather once a month to eat and read about how to do the work of civic and religious pluralism on campus.   

“Students want to be able to trust that their peers know we're in a learning environment and that we’re trying to figure out what we think, and that we're trying to do that together,” Trexler said. “Everybody can belong here, and we can find a way to talk to each other. That’s actually a really rich part of being a democracy." 

Making the exploration of purpose and the pursuit of character distinguishing features of an education from Roanoke College is prioritized as an imperative in “Imagine Roanoke,” the college's strategic plan. 

The center held its first coffee shop talk at Mill Mountain Coffee and Tea on Sept. 16 in honor of Constitution Day. Adara Dowell ’27, a religious studies major and a student in Trexler’s class on pluralism, attended. Anyone can attend the coffee shop talks, making them a great opportunity for those on campus to connect with the greater Salem community, Dowell said. She felt the event provided a laid-back and respectful environment for discussion. 

“Creating a safe space for potentially uncomfortable conversation is incredibly important, especially right now. We are so concerned about always saying and doing the right thing in order to not hurt each other that we often fail to actually learn about each other because we are too afraid of asking the wrong questions,” she said. “A space on campus where people can feel comfortable posing questions and are open to answers they may not entirely understand is essential to producing a bolder campus and student body.” 

Learning about each other’s cultures, beliefs and ideas is a way to create a more loving and open community, Dowell said. She thinks the center will have a very positive impact on campus life at Roanoke because encouraging pluralism helps everyone feel valued and respected. 

Mary Earl Varat ’27 is also a student in Trexler’s pluralism class. Varat, who is majoring in biology and minoring in religious studies, said that it’s important for students to learn how to foster relationships with people who are different from themselves. Part of fostering a true relationship with another person is finding a way to talk about differing viewpoints or worldviews, even when it’s uncomfortable, in a respectful way, she said. 

“You hold on to your own strong beliefs, and that’s important, but being compassionate and being open to other people is equally as important,” she said. “That’s how society works. You are not on your own.” 

In February, during the board of trustees meeting, the center is inviting Allison Briscoe-Smith, senior fellow of the Greater Good Science Center (GGSC) and co-instructor of its Bridging Differences online course, to talk about active listening. Briscoe-Smith will host workshops and deliver a keynote speech on the topic. 

Future coffee shop talks will be held once a month at either Mill Mountain or Rooney’s Brews and will be posted on the center’s webpage. To find out more details about these talks and other events hosted by the center, visit the Center for Civic and Religious Pluralism’s webpage or email pluralism@roanoke.edu.