UF students can get technical and technological with their opinions at the launch of the Bob Graham Center for Public Service's Civil Debate Wall tonight.
The Wall Launch Party will be at Pugh Hall from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. All students are invited.
Five 46-by-26-inch touch-screen panels comprise the Civil Debate Wall, which displays a question each week about public policy.
This week's question is "Should children of undocumented immigrants be able to attend public schools?"
Students visiting the wall can answer with "yes" or "no," and then defend their opinions in a 140-character statement.
Participants can debate with others and track responses to their posts via email or text message. The center's policy council partnered with AdWerks, UF Ad Society's student-run advertising agency, to make the launch party specifically geared toward students, said Shelby Taylor, a spokeswoman for the center.
Civildebatewall.com shows about 300 registered users, Taylor said. About 180 students responded to last week's question.
"We wanted to see if there was a way in which we could leverage digital technology with social media to get students talking about something more than simply just a status update," Taylor said.
Students voice their opinions interactively on the Bob Graham Center for Public Service's Civil Debate Wall in Pugh Hall.
