At a time when the world feels more divided than ever, award-winning journalist and conflict coach Hélène Biandudi Hofer will speak at Masters’ Class of 2025 graduation to share how curious and courageous dialogue can change the future.
Biandudi Hofer is a journalist, documentary filmmaker, media entrepreneur and conflict coach. She is best known as the co-founder of Good Conflict, a platform that helps individuals navigate and manage conflict through engaging training, targeted strategy sessions and practical tools like the “Test Kitchen.”
The Test Kitchen is an experimental space where Biandudi Hofer and her team develop, test and refine new methods for having hard conversations. She has trained journalists in over 150 newsrooms on how to transform coverage of controversial issues.
Biandudi Hofer said she’s excited to speak to students at a school that values the same principles she’s spent her career exploring. “The students at Masters are already learning how to have thoughtful, even uncomfortable, conversations,” she said. “I want to encourage them to keep doing that, to stay curious when things get hard, and to see conflict not as something to avoid, but something to explore.”
Her message can be seen in Masters’ commitment to open dialogue through the Harkness method in classrooms, campus conversations hosted by the Center of Inclusive Excellence or “Think-Ins” with Head of School Laura Danforth. One example of a place where students are encouraged to speak honestly and listen deeply is in Bridge USA, a student-led club at Masters.
Bridge USA is a nonprofit organization that addresses political divides by creating constructive dialogue for students. The Masters chapter gives students a chance to practice respectful conversation and open-minded listening on campus.
Nicole Rodriguez, one of the leaders of Bridge USA, said, “I thought it was important to create a space where students could talk openly and respectfully outside of class, without the pressure of a teacher in the room.”
Senior class president Sophie Moussapour sees that same spirit in the School’s values. She said, “In a world so polarized, I think Masters tries to celebrate the gray space in between, and being able to listen, to meditate, to have empathy, even in debate, is something not a lot of people our age are being taught.”
Biandudi Hofer’s perspective on conflict is similar to Moussapour’s mindset, encouraging students to not shy away from discomfort. “You don’t have to solve every disagreement, but you do have to be willing to sit with it,” she said. “In our polarized world, the ability to truly listen, to ask better questions, not just defend your opinion, is one of the most powerful tools you can carry into adulthood.”
Biandudi Hofer’s career reflects that same search for common ground. Her work spans a wide range of projects, from documenting police reform in Camden, New Jersey, to examining education opportunities in South Sudan. Biandudi Hofer has collaborated with major media outlets, such as CBS, NPR and PBS, and led a magazine-style program in Western New York which explored solutions to social challenges. She also leads HBH Enterprises Media Group, which is a company that connects media production with conflict counseling.
Moussapour said, “This graduation speaker is the School’s parting wish and skill, that we bring that mindset of curiosity and courage to engage into the world.”
