The PDC is dedicated to training students in dialogue, deliberation, and facilitation skills in classes and workshops at various educational institutions where we work. Students who are trained in these skill sets then facilitate campus and community forums on a variety of issues including diversity appreciation, student success and college completion, environmental sustainability, food security, interfaith dialogues, and student engagement. Students also conduct community interviews, collecting input and data to inform various issues of importance to our communities. PDC provides internships to students to continue to develop our organizational capacity as well as the capacity of our communities for dialogue and deliberation on important topics.

As part of a five-year program, the PDC partnered with Baylor University and other educational institutions in McClennon County, Texas, to identify middle school students at risk and begin to track them toward higher education. Part of the U.S. Department of Education’s Gear Up program, the PDC collaborated with other agencies in video projects; parent, student, and teacher dialogues; a parental leadership program; and community resource mobilization. The PDC also provided a pilot training program in conflict management for teachers at Brazos Middle School in Texas. The PDC also designed and facilitated a day-long conference for two Texas school distrcits entitled “Creating Parent-Student Communities of Hope and Imagination.”