�山����

There are evenings that feel like appointments on a calendar, and then there are evenings that feel like a launch. The inaugural lecture of the Woodley Institute for Civil Engagement and Humanistic Dialogue carried the atmosphere of a vessel leaving harbor for the first time, its hull finally meeting open water after years of design, labor and hope. Thursday, April 16, 2026, was that kind of night, as something new moved forward at Gonzaga ������̳. Something long needed, built of courage, listening and the belief that people can still meet across difference without hatred or vitriol.

“The institute is aimed at helping students find their voice and becoming fluent in the proper language of civility and decency,” explained Tom Woodley, whose name and legacy are embedded in Gonzaga’s effort to advance dialogue, discernment and the common good, through the Tom and Nancy Woodley Institute for Civil Engagement and Humanistic Dialogue.

The institute itself emerges from a gift and a vision shared by Tom and Nancy Woodley, whose lives reflect a deep commitment to service, education and democratic responsibility. In an era crowded by noise, suspicion and fracture, the Woodleys’ and Gonzaga’s partnership invite people to ask what kind of citizens, leaders and neighbors the world now needs most—not as nostalgia for a better past, but rather as an answer to a wounded present.

Tom Woodley, a Gonzaga alumnus from the Class of 1969, returned to campus as someone shaped by the ������̳’s mission decades earlier. With humility and warmth, he reflected on an education that taught him lessons more enduring than just information. Gonzaga, he said, formed students to become the best versions of themselves. That conviction guided a distinguished legal career spent defending the First Amendment rights of workers, including firefighters and paramedics who spoke publicly about dangers affecting their communities. Repeatedly, Woodley saw how truth-telling can carry personal cost, and how vital it is that people have the freedom to raise concerns for the sake of others.

Woodley spoke plainly about a nation strained by polarization, misinformation, and a growing fear of speaking honestly across lines of difference. Institutions are distrusted. Public discourse is hardened, leading many to choose silence over retaliation. In that context, the Woodley Institute is Gonzaga’s contribution to a better tomorrow.

The institute focuses on three pillars: the common good, civil discourse, and engaged discernment. Through lectures, debates, film screenings, workshops, faculty fellowships and student scholar opportunities, it will help students connect scholarship with civic practice while developing habits of learning, reasoning and service that democracy urgently needs.

That mission came alive immediately at the lecture, where, following Tom’s keynote, a panel of scholars, students and practitioners explored difficult questions surrounding free speech, disagreement, and human dignity.

Grounded in Gonzaga's interdisciplinary tradition, the panel of scholars included: Professor of Law Erica Goldberg, J.D, Associate Professor of Communication Studies Karen Petruska, Ph.D., and political science student Steven Sanders (’26). The panel discussion was moderated by Associate Professor of English and Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies and newly named director of the Woodley Institute Katey Roden, Ph.D., the conversation modeled intellectual humility. Participants spoke of the need to listen before responding, to distinguish dialogue from combat and to create communities strong enough to hold difference without losing respect. They made it clear that debate is not about defeating another person; it is about searching together for what is true.

That insight resonated deeply with Gonzaga’s Jesuit and humanistic tradition. The ������̳ has long understood education as both rigorous and relational, sharpening the mind while enlarging the heart. President Katia Passerini captured the spirit of the evening in closing remarks, noting that amid the charts, trends and operational realities universities must manage, the Woodley lecture gathering serves as a reminder to everyone what it means to be a university in this day and age—Gonzaga must be a place that pauses to reflect on principles and equips people with the tools to engage hard questions well.

It is difficult to imagine a more fitting legacy for Tom and Nancy Woodley. Their philanthropy will help students wrestle with questions that define an era: What is citizenship? What does artificial intelligence mean for humanity? What is the value of education in a meaningful life? Their legacy will connect Gonzaga students with public schools, libraries, tribal nations, nonprofits and community partners throughout the Inland Northwest, strengthening the habits of empathy, courage and discernment that free societies depend upon.

Most importantly, it will help young people find their voice without losing their humanity. In a divided age, that may be one of the most generous gifts imaginable.

The Inaugural Woodley Institute lecture reinforced that Gonzaga still believes ideas matter, people matter and dialogue matters. Plus, it was proof that alumni can shape the future of the ������̳ that once shaped them.

Many thanks to Tom and Nancy Woodley, and everyone who participated in a memorable evening that proved better conversations and better futures are still possible.