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Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway and Edith Cooper pose with students

Cultivating Citizenship to Support Democracy

Citizenship, Institutions, and the Public

President Jonathan Holloway's Byrne Seminar for first-year students, a yearly one-semester course launched in fall 2023, is designed to heighten understanding of the roles and responsibilities of citizenship and will feature conversations with distinguished leaders on critical questions related to citizenship.

Seminar Overview

We live in an era of extreme political polarization, increasing social instability, and declining faith in the nation’s institutions and the virtues of civil discourse. How might we, as individuals, chart a path out of this troubling state of affairs? What role can we play in confronting the accumulating challenges in our society? What should we reasonably expect of our institutions and what do these institutions owe us? What are our responsibilities to be good civic actors when we are confronted by a public discourse that appears uninterested in speaking to our common values?

President Holloway addresses these questions through a series of conversations with distinguished leaders from the corporate, political, nonprofit, media and faith communities.

Seminar Guests and Videos (2024)

  

Cory Booker

Cory Booker is a United States Senator from New Jersey. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's discussion with the former mayor of Newark, who is known for his efforts at bipartisan cooperation, below.

President Jonathan Holloway and United States Senator (D-NJ) Cory Booker discussed how to approach the divide among Americans during their Byrne Seminar conversation on Nov. 13, 2024.

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The Morning After

President Jonathan Holloway and Mike DuHaime, CEO of MAD Global Strategy Group, discuss the resilience of our democracy during "The Morning After,” a panel discussion featuring Rutgers experts conducted in collaboration with the Eagleton Institute of Politics following Election Day on Nov. 6, 2024.

President Jonathan Holloway discussed the resilience of the Democratic process with Mike DuHaime, CEO of MAD Global Strategy Group, during “The Morning After" panel discussion with Rutgers political experts on Nov. 6, 2024.

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Elizabeth Alexander

Elizabeth Alexander is President of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with the nationally recognized thought leader on race, justice, and the arts below.

President Jonathan Holloway and Elizabeth Alexander discussed humanities role in recognizing the "we" in "We the People" during their Byrne seminar conversation on Oct. 23, 2024.

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Laurie Patton

Laurie Patton is the current President of Middlebury College and the pending President of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with the academic, author, and poet below.

President Jonathan Holloway and Laurie Patton discussed shaping Democracy through interpersonal and local engagement during their Byrne Seminar conversation on Oct. 16, 2024.

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Sherrilyn Ifill

Sherrilyn Ifill served as President and Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with the civil rights lawyer and law professor below.

Among the many topics President Jonathan Holloway and Sherrilyn Ifill discussed during their Oct. 9, 2024, Byrne Seminar conversation was the role of law in Democracy and our nation's challenges.

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Rajiv Vinnakota

Rajiv Vinnakota is president of the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, a nonprofit that aims to strengthen American democracy. Watch an excerpt from Holloway's conversation with the pioneering social entrepreneur below.

Among the topics President Jonathan Holloway and Raj Vinnakota discussed during their Oct. 2, 2024, Byrne Seminar conversation was generational differences in the approach to civil discourse.

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Chris Caren

Chris Caren is the C.E.O. of Turnitin, the world’s leading content similarity/plagiarism detection service. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with Caren below.

Among the many topics between Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway and Chris Caren, C.E.O. of Turnitin, during their Sept. 25, 2024, Byrne Seminar conversation was the potential impact of artificial intelligence upon society and its institutions.

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Mike Emanuel

Distinguished alumnus Mike Emanuel serves as Chief Washington correspondent for Fox News Channel. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with Emanuel below.

Among the many discussion topics between Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway and Mike Emanuel, Chief Washington Correspondent for Fox News, during their Sept. 18, 2024, Byrne Seminar conversation was development of the skills and practices to critically consume media.

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Seminar Guests and Videos (2023)

  

Condoleezza Rice

The director of the Hoover Institution and a senior fellow on public policy at Stanford University, Condoleezza Rice served as the 66th secretary of state of the United States, the second woman and first Black woman to hold the post. A founding partner of Rice, Hadley, Gates & Manuel LLC, an international strategic consulting firm, she also served as President George W. Bush’s assistant to the president for national security affairs, the first woman to hold the position. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with Rice as they discuss rebuilding faith in our democracy and institutions.

Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway and Condoleezza Rice, Director of the Hoover Institution and former Secretary of State of the United States, discussed rebuilding faith in our democracy and institutions during their Nov. 1, 2023, Byrne Seminar conversation.

Mike Emanuel

A New Jersey native, Rutgers alumnus and veteran reporter, Mike Emanuel is the chief Washington correspondent for FOX News, where he also serves as a co-anchor of FOX News Live. During his more than 25 years with the network, he has provided live coverage of numerous national and international events, as well as breaking election news from Washington, D.C. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with Emanuel below.

Among the many discussion topics between Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway and Mike Emanuel, Chief Washington Correspondent for Fox News, during their Oct. 25, 2023, Byrne Seminar conversation was the importance of discourse in the face of disagreement.

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Edith Cooper

The Co-Founder of Medley and a former Executive Vice President at Goldman Sachs, Edith Cooper is one of the nation's leading Black business executives. She serves on several public company boards, including Amazon, PepsiCo, EQT Partners, and nonprofit boards such as the Museum of Modern Art, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, and Mount Sinai Hospital. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with Cooper below.

Among the many discussion topics between Jonathan Holloway and Edith Cooper during their Oct. 18, 2023, Byrne Seminar conversation was the uncomfortable nature of change and the growth of understanding that comes with that discomfort.

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Richard Haass

A veteran diplomat and respected scholar of international relations, Richard Haass is president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations after having served as CFR’s president for 20 years. A Rhodes Scholar with extensive government experience, he is the author or editor of 16 books, including 14 on American foreign policy. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with Haass below.

Among the many discussion topics between Jonathan Holloway and Richard Haass during their Oct. 4, 2023, Byrne Seminar conversation was the significance of norms in sustaining a democratic society.

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DeForest B. Soaries, Jr.

A Baptist minister, author, public advocate and financial educator, DeForest B. Soaries, Jr. serves as President and CEO of Corporate Community Connections, Inc. With over 30 years of ministry experience he has a practiced perspective on spiritual growth, educational excellence, economic empowerment, and faith-based community development. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with Soaries below.

Among the many discussion topics between Jonathan Holloway and DeForest B. Soaries during their Oct. 2, 2023, Byrne Seminar conversation was the potential impact of opposing viewpoints upon our understanding and personal growth.

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Rajiv Vinnakota

A pioneering social entrepreneur, Rajiv Vinnakota serves as president of the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, leading its mission to cultivate the talent, ideas, and networks that develop lifelong, effective citizens. Watch an excerpt from President Holloway's conversation with Vinnakota below.

President Jonathan Holloway and Rajiv Vinnakota discuss the impact that civics education can have upon our democracy during the Byrne Seminar "Citizenship, Institutions, and the Public" on Wednesday, September 13, 2023.

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About the Byrne Seminar

Byrne Seminars are small, 1-credit course, available exclusively to first-year undergraduate students at Rutgers–New Brunswick. Offered through the Office of Undergraduate Education, these classes are taught by our world-renowned faculty who come from departments and professional schools across the university. Each unique seminar offers students the chance to experience the excitement of original research as faculty members share their curiosity, their intellectual passion, and their new ideas and fields of knowledge.