2026 Imagining Community Symposium

As an interdisciplinary scholar and practitioner of deliberative democracy, civic education, and group communication, Dr. Timothy J. Shaffer focuses on the advancement of democratic practices by focusing on the role of civic professionals in institutional settings such as higher education, local government, and non-governmental organizations in relationship with diverse communities. 

Dr. Shaffer is the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Chair of Civil Discourse and director of the SNF Ithaca Initiative in the Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration at the University of Delaware. He is also senior advisor with the National Institute for Civil Discourse at the University of Arizona. Shaffer is author or coeditor of seven books, including Deliberative Pedagogy: Teaching and Learning for Democratic Engagement, Creating Space for Democracy: A Primer on Dialogue and Deliberation in Higher Education, and the latest book, Teaching Public Affairs Students to Serve With the People: Findings and Reflections from Diverse Course Designs with Thomas Andrew Bryer from Routledge. He earned his PhD from Cornell University.

As the inaugural 2025 Poet Laureate for the City of Dayton, Sierra Leone is a multidisciplinary writer, playwright, and teaching artist who bridges performing arts and social discourse. A 2018 Ohio Arts Council Governor’s Award recipient and Artist-in-Residence at the Charles F. Kettering Foundation, her extensive portfolio features permanent public installations at the Dayton Metro Library, musical librettos for the Bach Society, and commissions for the Dayton Philharmonic.

As a local civic voice, she has authored impactful tributes such as the 8/4 memorial poem, "Remember the Seed," collaborated with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, and delivered featured performances for Levitt Pavilion and TEDxDayton. Currently, Sierra leads The Belonging Project and recently curated and contributed to the ekphrastic anthology "Visual Voices: Storytelling Through Poetry." She continues to anchor her practice in an unwavering belief in freedom of speech and creative expression.