Campus & Community / Magazine Feature

University discussion to focus on ending homelessness

Before as many as 1,000 homeless people come to campus to receive services at Project Homeless Connect 4 (PHC4) on April 20, the University of Denver community is coming together to discuss the tough questions related to homelessness. 

On April 10 at 7 p.m. the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning (CCESL) will host a DU Dialogues “fishbowl” discussion focusing on the question, “Can Denver end homelessness?” 

Speakers include Joey Scott, a second-year philosophy and French major and former homeless teen who works at DU’s temporary homeless shelter; Chris Dani, an academic adviser in the Learning Effectiveness Program, who used to work at the St. Francis Center homeless shelter; Jamie Van Leeuwen, project manager for Denver’s Road Home; and management Professor Gordon Von Stroh, who has researched homelessness. 

CCESL associate director Glenn Fee says organizers hope the discussion breaks down preconceptions about homelessness. 

“One of the biggest barriers to doing community-based work is people’s inability to talk openly,” Fee says. “We need to have more conversations with people whose experiences are different from our own.”

Audience members will observe the discussion for 45 minutes and then break out into small groups, which will be led by a faculty member and a discussion group member. The evening will end with a return to the larger group and a wrap-up of the discussion. 

The event will be held in the Driscoll Gallery. It is free and open to the public.

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