UC Portman Center event: 'Civility in Polarized Times'
Event Information (passed)
Two former United States senators will speak on “Civility in Polarized Times” at the University of Cincinnati’s Portman Center for Policy Solutions on Monday, Feb. 5, 2:30-3:45 p.m. at Clifton Court Hall, Room 1170.
Former U.S. senator Heidi Heitkamp. Photo provided by SPIA.
The guest speaker is Heidi Heitkamp, the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate in North Dakota. Heitkamp was in office from 2013-2019 and is now the director of the Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago and co-founder and chair of the One Country Project.
Heitkamp is joined by Rob Portman (for whom the center is named), an attorney and former senator from Ohio, 2011-2023.
Former U.S. senator Rob Portman. Image/Grand Opening of Portman Center.
Upon leaving office, The Portman Center was established within UC’s School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA). A priority at the center is to develop future leaders in the public sphere from across the political spectrum, through a renewed emphasis on civility, open and inclusive dialogue, and bipartisan engagement.
SPIA was created out of the former Department of Political Science, which dates to 1914.
The event is presented by The Hayden Program in Applied Civil Discourse at the Portman Center.
Featured image at top of Clifton Court Hall which houses the Portman Center for Policy Solutions. Photo/Andrew Higley/UC Marketing + Brand.
Impact Lives Here
The University of Cincinnati is leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation and impact. Our faculty, staff and students are saving lives, changing outcomes and bending the future in our city's direction. Next Lives Here.
Related Stories
Meet the young talent reshaping Cincinnati’s startup scene
October 28, 2025
Five University of Cincinnati students were honored for their impactful entrepreneurship on the Cincy Inno Under 25 list. We’ll explain what makes each student – and their startup – stand out.
UC Foundation reveals 2025 philanthropy winners
October 27, 2025
The University of Cincinnati Foundation recognized its Outstanding Philanthropic Volunteer Award honorees at the George Rieveschl Recognition Dinner on Oct. 23, 2025.
UC team unveils Wyandot Removal Trail across Ohio
October 24, 2025
Rebecca Wingo, an associate professor of history and director of the public history program in the University of Cincinnati’s College of Arts and Sciences, is featured in a WVXU story about new historical markers honoring the Wyandot people—the last Indigenous nation forcibly removed from Ohio.