![Sphere](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/optimized/public/2020-08/SphereOnly_Website%20Header.jpg?itok=uV6heOrs) 

Conference 

# Sphere Summit: Teaching Civic Culture Together 

Date and Time 

July 14, 2019 3:30 PM - July 18, 2019 10 AM EDT 

Location 

Cato Institute, 1000 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC 

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##### Featuring 

[![Michael F. Cannon](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-01/Michael%20Cannon.jpg?itok=0UROn8Dc)](/people/michael-f-cannon) 

[Michael F. Cannon](/people/michael-f-cannon)

Director of Health Policy Studies, Cato Institute

[ 

](https://x.com/mfcannon) [ 

](mailto:mcannon@cato.org) 

Annie Duke 

[![Emily Ekins](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-01/Emily%20Ekins.jpg?itok=O6P9UmCC)](/people/emily-ekins) 

[Emily Ekins](/people/emily-ekins)

Vice President for Policy and Society, Cato Institute

[ 

](https://x.com/emilyekins) 

[![Chelsea Follett](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-01/Chelsea%20Follett.jpg?itok=t0sPC8WK)](/people/chelsea-follett) 

[Chelsea Follett](/people/chelsea-follett)

Research Fellow, Human​Progress​.org, Cato Institute

[ 

](https://x.com/chellivia) [ 

](mailto:cfollett@cato.org) 

Sherry Glied 

[![Media Name: goe-peter-cropped.jpg](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/authors/crops/goe-peter-cropped.jpg?itok=mMl9a0--)](/people/peter-goettler) 

[Peter Goettler](/people/peter-goettler)

President and CEO 

Donald E. Graham 

[![Clark Neily](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-01/Clark%20Neily.jpg?itok=kOJs7hwY)](/people/clark-neily) 

[Clark Neily](/people/clark-neily)

Senior Vice President for Legal Studies, Cato Institute

[ 

](https://x.com/conlawwarrior) [ 

](mailto:cneily@cato.org) 

[![Media Name: palmer-cropped.jpg](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-01/palmer-cropped.jpg?itok=4cdv7ymk)](/people/tom-g-palmer) 

[Tom G. Palmer](/people/tom-g-palmer)

Executive Vice President for International Programs, Atlas Network; Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

[ 

](https://x.com/tomgpalmer) [ 

](mailto:tpalmer@cato.org) 

![Jonathan Rauch](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-06/Rauch-200.png?itok=BoAvMCFm) 

Jonathan Rauch 

Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution

[ 

](https://www.twitter.com/jon_rauch) 

![Jason Riley cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-04/jason-riley-headshot%20Cropped.jpg?itok=QnwQuzoU) 

Jason Riley 

Senior fellow, Manhattan Institute; member, *Wall Street Journal* editorial board

![Jeffrey Rosen](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2024-05/jeffrey-rosen.jpeg?itok=BLCcGCSV) 

Jeffrey Rosen 

President and CEO, National Constitution Center; and author of *The Pursuit of Happiness*

![Nadine Strossen](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2023-10/nadine-strossen-square.jpg?itok=3zDrZwI7) 

Nadine Strossen 

Former President, ACLU

[![Michael D. Tanner](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-01/Michael%20Tanner.jpg?itok=fvQbEN_H)](/people/michael-d-tanner) 

[Michael D. Tanner](/people/michael-d-tanner)

Former Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

[ 

](mailto:mtanner@cato.org) 

Monique Morrissey 

David French 

Ramesh Ponnuru 

Senior Editor, *National Review*

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[About Sphere](/sphere)

[Resources](/sphere/resources)

[Professional Development](/sphere/professional-development)

[2021 Summit](/sphere-summit-2021)

[2020 Summit](/sphere-summit-2020)

[2019 Summit](/sphere-summit-2019/schedule)

[FAQ](/sphere/faqs)

[Apply for Scholarship](https://register.cato.org/sphere-summit-app-2021)

# 2019 Program 

---

The **Sphere Summit** is a summer program for grades 5–12 educators. The Sphere Summit will hold its opening seminar, “Teaching Civic Culture Together,” at the Cato Institute in Washington, DC, on July 14–18, 2019

For more than four decades, the Cato Institute has introduced people, including millions of young people, to the ideas of freedom. Many Cato books are already taught in high school curricula across the country. To advance the ideas of liberal democracy and the rule of law, Cato has developed the Sphere Summit for educators. The Summit features discussions from balanced points of view by leading policy experts, academics, and thought leaders.

**THE OBJECTIVES OF THE SPHERE SUMMIT INCLUDE:**

- **Civic Culture:** Explore and address the current state of public discourse, partisanship, and tribalism in America.
- **Foundations:** Discuss shared values essential to a restoration of civic culture.
- **Applications:** Demonstrate and share tools and approaches for the classroom on current public policy issues from diverse viewpoints. Other topics will include the U.S. Constitution, the rule of law, and freedom of expression.
- **Understanding Each Other:** Examine political philosophies — progressive, libertarian, and conservative — and engage with leading scholars and educators on how to communicate effectively with, and understand the viewpoints of, audiences with diverse perspectives. Adherents of the various political philosophies will explain the ways in which those philosophies are often misunderstood.
- **Policy Discussions:** Analyze key policy issues from diverse perspectives with an emphasis on shared values and common objectives, guided by scholars from leading public policy organizations and academic institutions.