It’s a fairly simple schedule for the evening. While the official time says 6-9pm, the event is actually more like 6:30-8:30pm. Here’s what happens.
People arrive between 600-6:30pm and enjoy casual conversation while being served various appetizers and grabbing a beverage from the open bar.
At 6:30pm, guests take their seat and their assigned table before hearing from the roundtable coordinator’s opening remarks (5 minutes), followed by the presenters for that evening (usually 2 professors who speak for about 12 minutes each).
About 7:00pm, dinner is served and the table discussions begin.
About 8:00pm, dessert and coffee is served. And then the roundtable coordinator will call everyone’s attention back to the front for a time of live question/answer between the guests and the presenters (~20 minutes).
And around 8:30pm, the roundtable coordinator will close the evening with some brief remarks. People are free to leave or stay to continue chatting with their colleagues.
Good food. Good conversation. And all of it complimentary thanks to, in large part, the Templeton Religion Trust.