Activation Plan

Below is an overview of some campus activities:

• Rutgers Scarlet Service and Rutgers Scarlet Service DC. Now entering its fourth year, Rutgers Scarlet Service establishes civic engagement as a critical component of higher education and forges a path toward appreciating difference, promoting civil discourse, and serving the common good. Through Scarlet Service, undergraduates from all Rutgers campuses are selected for summer internships at public service-oriented nonprofit organizations and government offices around New Jersey and in Washington, D.C. 
• Launching the Rutgers Democracy Lab. In its inaugural year, Rutgers Democracy Lab will work at-scale to ensure that future generations have access to the tools and knowledge needed to do the important work of strengthening democracy. The Lab aims to accomplish this goal through a constellation of programs around civic engagement, civil discourse, and innovative uses of technology for democratic education.
  
  The Rutgers Democracy Lab has piloted a Talking Across Difference Student Leaders Program with a cohort of students designing and administering opportunities for students of all disciplines to come together and talk politics – building the capacity to disagree without being disagreeable. Events include:
  The Yard Forum: A new space for Rutgers students to share perspectives and spark civil conversations across differences. Student Leaders will offer discussion prompts on diverse topics. Every other week, beginning in November 2025.
  TAD (Talking Across Difference) Social: An evening of community, conversation, and connection with the Fall 2025 Student Leader Cohort. 

Highlights 

In Fall 2025, President William F. Tate IV published an op-ed on nj.com titled “Cancel culture is not an antidote. Universities must keep free speech.”