Cortico on Campus – Request for Proposals

Create voice medleys and conversation maps highlighting the perspectives of your peers
By leading small-group conversations with fellow students
Focused on personal experiences, not just opinions
As you prototype new digital tools for conversation curation and analysis
While getting hands-on training in active listening, facilitation, and community organizing
. . . And get funded!

Listen to a voice medley from student leaders who helped us create this program

Lead a New Kind of Conversation

We’re inviting students interested in amplifying the voices of their friends and peers to lead a new kind of conversation.

This is more than just talk—it’s a method for better understanding, with concrete (and fun!) outputs like conversation maps and voice medleys. The goal is to help you and your peers on campus hear and be heard.

Starting with sharing experiences in small groups, you’ll make sense of conversations through a deep listening process supported by AI tools. You’ll share the big picture of what fellow students are saying – with audio medleys that incorporate real voices – extending the power of small-group dialogue long after the conversation ends.

Bring real talk and real listening to your campus with Cortico’s 3 step process:

Background

Cortico is a nonprofit organization that works in close collaboration with MIT Center for Constructive Communication (MIT CCC). Cortico’s vision is to surface underheard voices rather than the loudest; facilitate sharing experiences rather than battling opinions; and promote empathy and connection rather than division and intolerance. Since our founding, we’ve partnered with over 220 organizations to deliver a tech-enhanced conversation approach, empowering them to listen deeply to the voices in their community, make sense of them, and inspire more informed action.

Project Overview

You can help bring this approach to good conversation to your college campus – as part of a founding cohort. Cortico is selecting student teams from up to 10 U.S. colleges and universities as part of this pilot program. With the support of The Rockefeller Foundation, the selected student teams will have the opportunity to connect, share best practices, and exchange ideas.

Together, this inaugural cohort will help develop a pioneering approach to campus conversations that can be adapted to schools nationwide. Over time, and with your input, we can build a new kind of conversation on campus.

What you’ll gain from taking part

Elevate your skills in leadership, project design, and conversation hosting & analysis
Learn how to listen & share findings across campus communities – through understanding perspectives different from your own, and building empathy and trust around important issues
Earn Cortico’s Sensemaking Certificate as you develop an understanding of the design, approach, and analysis of constructive conversation campaigns
Connect, work, and learn with Cortico professionals from various disciplines including product management & design, engineering, program development, and marketing
Join a growing network of constructive conversation practitioners, with opportunities to present your work in collaboration with MIT Center for Constructive Communication

Explore potential project ideas

Make student organizations more inclusive
Improve dorm life by encouraging connective conversations
Shape the work culture in your on-campus job
Bring your friend group together to talk about a topic important to you
...or any project that addresses a need or opportunity on your campus!

Stipend

Selected project teams will receive $2,000 to cover project-specific costs. As part of your proposal, project teams will need to submit a budget report, using a template provided by Cortico, detailing how the funds will be utilized.

Selection Criteria

You are part of a team of at least three motivated students who will take the lead in introducing and organizing conversations that address unique issues within your campus community. Student teams can be club affiliated or independent. One person must be listed as the primary contact upon applying
Each team will need one faculty reference if they are selected for an interview
You have experience with, or a strong interest in, community organizing and leadership, including the ability to identify and recruit facilitators and participants for conversations
You are eager to develop curatorial, storytelling, or multimedia skills to shape and share the narratives that emerge from conversations
You want to build skills and capacity for engaging in constructive conversations that create lasting impact on campus
You have a forward-thinking mindset with an interest in learning how AI-supported tools and technology can enhance and shape the future of campus conversations
You can commit 5-7 hours per month to project work and learning opportunities with other teams in the cohort

Submission Process

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until February 14, 2025 in the lead-up to the program’s launch in March 2025. Candidates will be notified of application receipt within 4 business days of their submission. As part of the application process, all eligible applicants will be required to have a 30-minute interview with members of the Cortico team.

Preview application questions on our FAQs page under The Program

Timeline
This program follows a two-phase approach that will run from March 2025 – January 2026 with a break from program activities over the summer.

Phase 1: March – May 2025

Gain practical experience in dialogue program leadership, tech-enhanced conversation analysis, and community engagement by implementing your own project.

Phase 2: September 2025 – January 2026

Opportunity to sustain your own campus-specific conversation program, addressing questions unique to your campus environment with Cortico’s support.
If you choose to sustain your program, you will receive an additional $500 stipend and be invited to present at MIT CCC’s Annual Symposium in May 2026.

Application link: CLICK HERE

*APPLICATION DEADLINE: 2/14/25

Questions?

Check out our FAQs or send a message to campus@cortico.ai

Selected partners will be working closely with the non-profit Cortico

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