Schedule: Civic Commons 2025
Drawing upon the concept of the “public commons” as shared physical and/or intellectual spaces where communities come together to share knowledge and resources, Willamette's Civic Commons aims to gather members of the University community around the strategic priority of Democratic Institutions. The day's events will showcase the ways in which students, faculty, and staff are already studying and practicing engaged democracy, and will foster new conversations and collaborations around topics of mutual interest.
The day will include activities at both the Schnitzer Center in Portland and at Willamette's Salem Campus, and will feature these events:
Big Idea Sessions
Join with classmates and colleagues in cross-disciplinary, timely discussions around civic life and engaged democracy.11:00 a.m.–12 p.m./1–2 p.m. | PNCA: Community Art Build with Basic Rights Oregon
Location: PNCA Atrium
Presenter: MeghannBasic Rights Oregon’s mission is to ensure that all lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, two-spirit, intersex, and asexual Oregonians experience equality by building a broad and inclusive politically powerful movement, shifting public opinion, and achieving policy victories. BRO’s work contributes to a world where all LGBTQ2SIA+ Oregonians can live free from discrimination and be treated with dignity and respect in every community in our state.
During this event, we invite students, staff, faculty and the wider community to join us for a Community Art Build where we will screenprint signs and tote bags to support LGBTQ+ rights alongside staff from BRO!
9:30–10:30 a.m. | Community Collaborations in Pursuit of Healthy Aging
Location: Alumni Lounge
Presenters: Huike Wen, Heidi Miller, Fred AgboIn the United States, senior citizens are also the fastest-growing segment of the population and are expected to nearly double by 2060, increasing from about 55 million in 2020 to over 95 million.
Despite this, the needs of seniors often go unmet within communities and are overlooked by philanthropic organizations. Estimates indicate that less than 2% of U.S. foundation grants are allocated to aging-related programs. And although the cost of medicare and social security benefits are increasing, funding for other aging services programs has not kept pace with the growing demand. Over the past decade, these programs have faced cuts, disproportionately affecting vulnerable Americans and struggling communities. New investments have yet to meet the increasing needs or the costs of providing services.
Join the conversations and learn about how Willamette has partnered with Salem’s Center 50+ in their mission and discuss what may be on the horizon for collaborative efforts aimed at meeting the needs of Salem’s aging citizens.
10:30–11:30 a.m. | A Pipeline to Public Service: A Panel with Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read ‘97
Location: Alumni Lounge
This panel will include staff from the Secretary’s Office, including Secretary Read and Audits Director Steve Bergmann. The panelists will discuss and reflect upon their careers, and will provide time for audience members to pose their own questions about work in the public sector.
1:00–1:30 p.m. | Alumni in Action: Realtime Legislation Tracking in the Palm of Your Hand
Location: Autzen
Presenter: Henry Dalton, ‘24Referendum is a new App developed by Willamette Alum Henry Dalton ‘24 and his team. Referendum makes American democracy accessible and actionable for everyone by demystifying complex congressional documents and processes into clear, accurate explanations, while preserving every detail for those who want to go deeper. Unlike existing outlets, we are committed to creating a space for citizens to engage in productive dialogue and engage directly in democracy. We're demystifying the legislative process and building towards a more engaged citizenry.
1:30–2:00 p.m. | Criminal Defense Clinics: A Long-Term Solution to a Constitutional Crisis
Location: Alumni Lounge
Presenter: Kurt WohlersIn Gideon v. Wainwright, the US Supreme Court recognized that "lawyers in criminal courts are necessities, not luxuries," and that states must provide all defendants with an attorney if they can't afford one. That was over sixty years ago; today, Oregon is in a public defender crisis. Thousands of people, in jail and on release, have languished for weeks and even months, waiting for an attorney to be appointed to their case.
Willamette's Criminal Defense Clinic was established out of this crisis. The Clinic is appointed to clients who cannot otherwise afford an attorney and, through the work of second and third year law students, represents those clients throughout all stages of trial-level criminal proceedings. The Clinic will produce more than a dozen practice-ready defenders each year while easing the number of unrepresented cases and setting up a long-term solution to address the shortage of defense attorneys.
2:15–2:45 p.m. | Legislative Education After Prediction (LEAP): A Plan for Using Predictive AI
Location: Alumni Lounge
Presenter: Tim JohnsonTechnologies to Anticipate and Understand the Consequences of New Legislation
Communities face an inherent challenge anticipating the consequences of new legislation: analysts cannot forecast the consequences of new legislation until said legislation is proposed, yet, once that legislation is proposed, analysts may not have time to appraise its consequences thoroughly. This talk proposes a method of addressing this problem. The method involves a continual effort to forecast future legislation and, then, to perform ex-ante analyses of those predicted laws, thus providing analysts a longer runway to research the potential consequences of projected legislation and educate the community about those consequences.2:50–3:50 p.m. | Bring Them Home: Black Deported Veterans' Struggle for Repatriation
Location: Ford Theater
Presenter: Jenni Martinez MedinaJoin us for a special screening of Bring Them Home, a compelling documentary that explores the deportation of U.S. veterans. This thought-provoking film sheds light on the experiences of immigrant veterans and their families, serving as a powerful conversation about the consequences of today’s immigration system. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion featuring artist Rob Young, advocates, and deported veterans themselves.
3:00–3:30 p.m. | Renjen Fellows Program: Advancing our collective capacity with an equity lens
Location: Alumni Lounge
Presenters: Sarah Chivers, Fred Agbo, Jane MachinThis session highlights a unique multidisciplinary approach to engaging students around the strategies and processes of social innovation designed to address community problems in Portland, Oregon. Panelists explain how they are developing impactful relationships, community driven research, ideations, and collective solutions within a social ecosystem of change.
3:00–4:00 p.m. | Teach-in: Communicating Self and Society
Location: Ford 302
Presenter: Maegan Parker BrooksAssociate Professor of Civic Communication and Media Maegan Parker Brooks invites participants to join her course, "Communicating Self and Society." During this teach-in, participants will learn about autoethnography—a qualitative research method that examines the interconnections between our personal, cultural, and political experiences. We will engage creatively and collaboratively with several guiding questions, including: How do we learn to critically reflect on our own lived experiences? What might this personal reflection tell us about broader societal concerns? And how do critically reflexive personal narratives shape public life? Note: This session takes place during Prof. Brooks’s course, and is limited to 10 additional participants. Please try to arrive 10 minutes early to ensure seating, and plan to stay until the teach-in has concluded at 4:00 p.m.
7:00–9:00 p.m. | Documentary Screening: No Place to Grow Old, with conversation/ Q&A after.
Location: Ford Theater (Room 122)
Presenters: Tommy Van Cleave–WU Civic Engagement, DJ Vincent–Church at the Park, Heidi Miller–Center 50+As a part of our 2nd Annual Civic Commons at Willamette University, the Office of Civic Engagement is excited to host a documentary film screening with the filmmakers and to facilitate a conversation between community leaders as to how the film’s content impacts our local community
No Place To Grow Old is a powerful documentary that delves into the growing crisis of senior homelessness right here in Oregon.
This film, directed by Davey Schaupp and produced by our partners at Humans for Housing,explores the systemic challenges and deeply personal stories of a generation aging into homelessness.
The 45 minute film will be followed by a panel discussion/Q+A with Davey Shaupp (film director), Michael Larson (Founder, Housing for Humans), DJ Vincent (Founding Pastor and CEO for Church at the Park), and Marilyn Daily (Director, Center 50+) and Heidi Miller (Program Coordinator, Center 50+).
Our screening will be held on February 4, 2025 at 7:00pm] at Willamette University (Ford Hall 122), and we’d love for you to join us in this important conversation. Although seating is first come, first served, we would appreciate an approximate headcount in advance. Therefore, RSVP is requested, but not required.
Lightning Talks
Hear students and faculty share their recent scholarship and projects on engaged democracy through quick, visual presentations.
This is a live-streamed event with in-person and streamed speakers at PNCA in the Mediatheque and at Salem campus in the Alumni Lounge.
Time: 12:00–1:00 p.m.
Salem:Associate Professor of Sociology Janet Lorenzen, Teaching Climate Justice Advocacy & Policymaking with Community Partners
Portland: Instructor in Intermedia Sarah Farahat
Salem: Assistant Professor of Law & Director of the Portland Immigration Initiative Sarah Purce and Assistant Professor of Law Beth Zilberman, Willamette’s Immigration Law Clinic
Portland: Sara Huston, PNCA BFA Faculty
Salem: Danielle Kirtley, 2L Student COL Rights of Transgender Inmates in Oregon
Salem: Alexia Gookin Lopez (PHEAL ‘25), Miranda Merrill (PHEAL ‘26), Tiffany Truong (PHEAL ‘26) Promoting Community Voices in the Next Marion-Polk Community Health Assessment
Projects Showcase
Learn from campus and community members about their democratic institutions work, and find ways to connect and collaborate.
Location: Salem Campus, Cat Cavern, Putnam University Center
Time: 5:00–6:30 p.m.