Juniors Victoria Ribeiro and Tiger Song recently accompanied Head of School Jody Soja and four of her colleagues to Nashville, Tenn., to participate in the inaugural Open Dialogue Summit at Vanderbilt University. 

The experience reinforced for Victoria the importance of what she says is “listening to someone’s why.” 

She said if you want to engage in political conversation and civil discourse, “you have to be open and willing to listen to the stories behind people's opinions, their experiences, and witnessing how those experiences shape their opinions so you can come at the discussion more from a point of understanding and less combative.” 

Tiger said he left the two-day summit with this takeaway: “That political polarization and unwillingness to hear other people’s opinions hurts the culture of free speech.” 

“So, when people don't want to understand each other,” Tiger continued, “they are less and less likely to want to hear each other, and therefore that is how a culture of free speech — 250 years of precedence of free speech — can die.” 

On Friday, October 3, Victoria and Tiger will share thoughts on their experience in Nashville with the student body at an all-school meeting. They also will be seeking input from students on how all students can develop opportunities to observe, practice, and engage in civil discourse. 

Victoria said she wants to “plant the idea not to be afraid of political discussion, and that storytelling is the key to maintaining your personal relationships with people and being able to expand your opinion. And we have the opportunity here to do that if they would like.” 

Tiger said he wants to convey this idea: “When you're discussing politics, recognize you are debating a person and not a set of ideas. We are people — we are not meant to be defined by ideologies — and we should not treat each other as ideologies. We should treat each other as humans.” 

Victoria and Tiger are members of the Shultz Fellowship, a bipartisan group that regularly meets to discuss politics and current events. The group takes its name and inspiration from former U.S. Secretary of State George P. Shultz ’38, whose legacy of statesmanship, diplomacy, and service came from a long and distinguished career in public service.    

Tiger said people need a place to share in a bipartisan setting. “Having Shultz is very important as I try to hear the other side,” he said. 

Both students are very involved in campus activities. Victoria is a varsity equestrian athlete, a member of the Orchestra, a Norton Family Center for the Common Good intern, a peer health educator, and a Shultz fellow. Tiger is a varsity water polo player, a prefect in Harman Hall, a student leader of the Language Preservation Club, a debate team captain, head of the satire/mélange section of The Log, and a Shultz fellow. 

A final reflection on the summit from Tiger: “For me, it is recognizing that, yes, we were maybe chosen because we are student leaders in the community, but at the end of the day, we are all just a bunch of teenagers trying to figure out the world. So, for me, politics is important, but it does not have to be abstract.”