Haq named SUNY Civil Discourse and Civic Education and Engagement Fellow

R.J. Haq, assistant director of civic engagement, Student Engagement, has been selected to join the second cohort of SUNY’s Civil Discourse and Civic Education and Engagement Fellows.

The fellows promote civil discourse among students, faculty and staff throughout campus communities and advance SUNY’s commitment to civic engagement as an essential outcome of higher education.

“It’s really an honor for me to be selected for this SUNY cohort,” Haq says. “Being able to connect campuses and communities through impactful and nonpartisan work is quite an opportunity.”

The second cohort comprises 10 faculty and staff members from various SUNY institutions, each with expertise in their respective fields of study, ranging from psychology and social sciences to communications and art history.

This year’s fellows will:

• Support SUNY faculty, staff and administration preparing for the implementation next fall of the new civic discourse component in SUNY’s undergraduate general education curriculum.
• Establish specific projects to advance civil discourse, civic education and civic engagement.
• Gather and amplify resources to provide support for faculty and staff engaged in curricular and co-curricular work in the above areas.
• Offer directed support to faculty, staff and campuses on issues related to civil discourse, civic education and civic engagement.
• Participate in sustaining and growing a community of practice around these topics.

Haq’s work focuses on emphasizing nonpartisan voter engagement and coalition building across SUNY campuses and local communities. Using UB as a model, he aims to strengthen civic collaboration and increase voter participation throughout Western New York and beyond.

“Since I’ve worked on both the faculty and administrative sides — as well as in the community launching the Western New York “Get Out the Vote” (GOTV) coalition and having worked for nonprofits in the past — I can bring some direct action into the cohort,” he says. “I want to help ensure SUNY is doing everything it can to positively impact our communities. Strengthening our campuses is important. So is strengthening the relationships between universities and the communities around them.”

As part of his fellowship, Haq intends to expand the GOTV coalition beyond Buffalo, reaching more counties in Western New York and additional SUNY schools. He also intends to create resources that other campuses can adopt to achieve their own civic engagement goals.

One way Haq plans to bring these initiatives back to UB is by connecting UB Votes — the university’s non-partisan voter-engagement program — with community partners, aiming to make UB an inspiration for civic involvement across Western New York and the SUNY system.

“This whole initiative is really UB-driven,” Haq says. “Being able to connect UB Votes with community partners not only benefits the community, but our students.”

In a press release announcing the second cohort of fellows, SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. said that “Empowering students to become well-rounded, engaged citizens is an important part of SUNY’s commitment to academic excellence. It is essential for a strong democracy that people are not only civically engaged, but are also able to communicate and even disagree in civil and appropriate ways.

“Empowering students to become well-rounded, engaged citizens is an important part of SUNY’s commitment to academic excellence,” King said.