Common Ground Funding and Professional Development
UNC System Common Ground Collaborative
The UNC System Common Ground Collaborative offers several funding and professional development opportunities to support faculty interested in strengthening students’ oral communication, rational argumentation, and critical thinking through dialogue, discourse, and debate within their courses. These opportunities provide support for enhancing existing courses and developing new curriculum, while also fostering a collaborative community of teaching practice across the UNC System.
Course Enhancement Stipends
Faculty may apply for stipends to enhance existing courses by incorporating dialogue- and debate-based teaching approaches that strengthen students’ communication and reasoning skills.
Award Amount:
Up to $2,500 per faculty member per course
Course Timeframe:
Courses must be scheduled for Fall 2026 and taught by faculty who receive the stipend.
Course enhancements may include the development of new assignments, structured dialogue activities, debate modules, or other instructional strategies that support students’ ability to engage constructively across differing perspectives within the context of disciplinary learning.
New Course Development Stipends
Faculty teams may apply for support to develop new courses that incorporate dialogue, discourse, and debate as central components of student learning.
Award Amount:
$5,000 per faculty member per course. Teams of 1-3 faculty members may apply. *
Course Timeframe:
Newly developed courses must be taught during the 2027 calendar year.
*Additional stipends may also be available for instructional design staff and library faculty or staff collaborators who contribute to course development.
Interdisciplinary collaboration is encouraged, and faculty teams are invited to develop innovative approaches that align dialogue-based learning with disciplinary methods and standards.
Teaching Awards
Faculty participating in the initiative may be eligible for monetary recognition through the UNC System Common Ground Teaching Awards, which will be presented in Spring 2027. These awards will recognize faculty who demonstrate innovative and effective approaches to incorporating dialogue-based pedagogies into their teaching.
Scholarly and Professional Engagement
In addition to funding opportunities, participating faculty may engage in a broader scholarly community of practice through:
- Serving on developmental peer review panels
- Contributing to scholarly publications
- Participating in writing groups and learning communities
These opportunities are designed to support the scholarship of teaching and learning and promote cross-institutional collaboration among UNC System faculty. Participation in these programs is voluntary, and completion is not required to apply for funding opportunities.
Foundations in Constructive Dialogue Workshop
A special online workshop will be offered on March 25, 2026, through the Constructive Dialogue Institute.
The UNC System Office will cover enrollment costs for up to three faculty members per institution. Faculty interested in participating should coordinate with their provost’s office, which will compile and submit participant names by March 20, 2026.
Perspectives Blended Learning Program
Faculty have access to the Perspectives Blended Learning Program, provided by the Constructive Dialogue Institute. This program offers additional resources and materials related to dialogue and discourse in academic settings.
Next Steps
Faculty interested in applying for course enhancement or course development stipends should coordinate with their institutional provost’s office, consistent with campus-level academic processes.