Before sunrise on March 31, nine members of the Rural Nevada Center for Public Policy Dialogue (RNCPPD) steering committee set off on the long drive to Tempe, Ariz., to attend a two-day moderator training workshop.

Dina Erdag-Williamson of the League of Women Voters of Pahrump said the objective of the workshop was to share effective techniques for polite public policy discussions.

"We will be conducting forums that allow all voices to be heard in a non-partisan atmosphere, possibly resulting in finding common ground," she said.

"I predict we are going to see some good things come out of the program," said steering committee member Tom Waters, of Volunteer Income Tax Assistance.

"We received a three-year grant for $5,000 per year from the Kettering Foundation," said Bill Verbeck, director of the Great Basin College campus in Pahrump, who was among those attending the workshop.

Great Basin is the fiscal agent of the funds, which will be used in part for four forums. Polite deliberation rather than raucous debate in public forums will be taught in the fall semester from September to December.

"Part of the conditions of the agreement with the Kettering Foundation is that we will train others on how to conduct moderated discussions on topics of interest to the community," explained Verbeck. "We will hold public dialogues. The meetings we set up as part of this program will be moderated in a very receptive fashion so all people participating can be heard,"

"Part of our strategy is to identify and prioritize what we feel are 15 critical issues; perhaps things such as water, brothels and incorporation. Then we will intently research the topics so we have a background in the subject.

"We will invite people to attend these forums, not to find a solution but to make certain people are heard." For instance, a topic may be guns in public forums. After gathering the public's input, the pros, cons and the different opinions would be presented as a summary.

"The intent long range is for people to participate and to get rid of the anger and bad emotions. We'll be inviting in the general public. It's going to be a challenge. We want diverse ages and backgrounds and people who are interested in the community," Verbeck said.

The RNCPPD was formed in January by the League of Women Voters in partnership with Great Basin College.

"The center's purpose is to guide the community in effective techniques of discussing issues of public concern," said Erdag-Williamson, who took part in the workshop held at Maricopa Community College under the leadership of Alberto Olivas, director for the Center for Civic Participation and Deanna Villanueva-Saucedo, the community liaison for Mesa Community College.

Others attending the workshop in Tempe were Pahrump Town Board member Vicky Parker, Dale Griffin from Great Basin College, Carolene Endersby from the League of Women Voters of Pahrump, Mary Balloqui from PAVED, and Rae Verbeck and Donna Lee Laduke from Pahrump Valley Community Action Team.