UVA students invited to ‘disagree with a professor’

Seven University of Virginia professors ducked into an event-style tent pitched on the grass outside Peabody Hall last week. Each sat at a table and proclaimed three hot takes they were prepared to defend.

Some were weighty:

  • “AI companies should be held liable for their chatbots that contributed to the suicides of teenagers.”
  • “Future conflict with China over Taiwan is inevitable.”
  • “We should abolish voting and randomly select all local and state political offices.”

Other statements were less consequential, but just as controversial:

  • “UVA is putting up too many ugly, modern-style buildings.”
  • “There should be a bar in Newcomb (Hall).”
Under a tent professors and students gathered around tables in lively debate

Students and professors gather around tables to discuss hot topics outside of Peabody Hall. “Disagree With a Professor” sessions usually unfold with less fanfare, but this session was part of the Karsh Institute of Democracy’s “Democracy360” event. (Photo by Matt Riley, University Communications)

Then dozens of students filed into the tent, spied a statement they didn’t agree with, and sat down across from the faculty member.

“I love disagreeing with my professors,” Lily Bass, a fourth-year student from Arlington, said. “I think most professors at this school are very agreeable and open to having tough conversations with their students.”

“Disagree With a Professor” isn’t new. It’s a regular offering from Think Again at UVA, an organization that promotes “freedom of expression, viewpoint diversity, intellectual humility and critical thinking.” But this one, set up in a very public space as part of the Karsh Institute of Democracy’s “Democracy360” event, drew more attention than most.

Mac Wang, a first-year student from China, had attended a previous session when it was offered as an alternative to class attendance. He liked it so much that he eagerly joined last week’s session.

“This type of event really helps my critical thinking,” he said. “I really enjoy talking with my professors, agreeing and disagreeing with them. There is value in having intellectual conversation and dialogue and disagreements with professors and my peers.”

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At law professor Ashley Waters Gundersen’s table, she and students debated whether the man accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson should be treated as a terrorist and face harsher punishment. To one student, the answer was no, because being targeted as a corporate CEO isn’t the same as being targeted for religion or race. “You don’t choose to be a Black person. You don’t choose to be Jewish,” the student said, adding that the CEO chose that career path. “That, of course, doesn’t excuse the fact that he was murdered, but it should be treated differently than a hate crime.”

Gundersen politely prodded: “Terrorism can be, I think, anything that’s ideologically motivated.” What if, she posed hypothetically, a person opposed to killing animals for food targeted workers at a meat-processing plant? Would that be terrorism?

And so for two hours, the conversations went for 10 minutes at a time, until a moderator signaled the students to change tables and start talking again.

Bass said these kinds of opportunities are what endear her to UVA. She’s the vice president of a student group called Middle Grounds, where club members discuss controversial positions or events.

Students Mac Wang, left, and Lily Bass, right, both in an active debat with a UVA professor

Students Mac Wang, left, and Lily Bass, right, say events like this allow them to practice both critical thinking and the skills needed to civilly disagree on controversial topics. (Photo by Matt Riley, University Communications)

“It’s not debating, it’s not arguing. It’s having conversations, which is really important,” she said. “Hopefully, by the end of the conversation, you can find some things you have agreed upon. Or maybe you just made a new friend.”

That kind of constructive dialogue is important to UVA professors like Gundersen.

“Young people today sometimes struggle to express their views in ideologically mixed company,” she told UVA Today. “The ‘Disagree With a Professor’ event is a low-risk, fun way to practice the skill of respectful disagreement and often leads to a richer understanding of different perspectives on controversial issues.”

Dan Moy, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel and national security lecturer in the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, agreed.

“These roundtable discussions provided students a unique opportunity to engage with one another and faculty on several hot-button topics,” he said. “The conversations reflected a range of perspectives and opinions, always met with respect and consideration – the essence of what a university experience is meant to be, and an essential component of civic life that seems increasingly challenged by the state of our public and political discourse.”

Bass said this kind of civil disagreement is important, especially now.

“I think professors, especially, acknowledge this is the time when we need to be talking,” she said. “There are a lot of organizations on Grounds at UVA specifically that are trying really hard to engage in civil discourse. I think it’s important, and I think it has been working. I run a club for it, so I have to hope it’s working.”

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Mike Mather

Executive Editor University Communications