As higher education continues to navigate complex and heightened challenges, Project Pericles remains dedicated to equipping campuses with the tools and networks needed to promote civic engagement and democratic participation.
In that vein, we just recently returned from the AAC&U Annual Meeting, where the theme focused on reaffirming the public mission of higher education. We had the privilege of presenting two powerful sessions, connecting with fellow civic organizations to strengthen our collective impact, and engaging in sessions about civil dialogue, community engagement, high impact practices, and public trust. These discussions reinforced the importance of our shared work at this moment. During the conference’s opening session, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones reflected on the state of education, remarking, “This is a dark time to be in the business of enlightenment.” These words resonate deeply. As Sanda noted: These are not ordinary times and each of us must be extraordinary. We invite you to read more of Sanda’s reflections on Nikole Hannah-Jones’ opening night talk. ![]() This week’s Faculty in Focus is Dr. Shayla Roberts, Assistant Professor and TESOL Coordinator, from Bethune-Cookman University in Florida. As a Civic Engagement fellow on the Deliberative Dialogue track, Dr. Shayla Roberts creatively integrated Periclean resources into her fall 2024 course, “Principles & Issues in ESOL (English Speakers of Other Languages).” While this course traditionally focuses on preparing students to teach English as a second language, Roberts enriched the curriculum by facilitating a deliberative dialogue on educational challenges facing future generations, and inspiring college students to see the connections between these educational policies and voting. By embedding civic education into their professional journey, these aspiring educators are better equipped to foster a culture of democratic participation among their future students as they adapt to the language, culture, and civil society of the United States. The class discussion connected civic engagement with students’ professional roles as future educators. Dr. Roberts then prompted them to complete a reflective assignment on their personal and professional motivations for voting. Their responses—ranging from influencing leadership to amplifying their voices and values—demonstrated a deepened awareness of their civic responsibilities. Student Sarah Rucker shared, “As a future educator, I am voting for things like educational policies that will affect my career and my students as well… I have the right, the choice, the opportunity, and the power to vote for things that will affect me.” Fostering Democracy and Expression: Highlights from our “Back to School for Democracy” Grants1/31/2025
As we enter a new political administration, Project Pericles continues to commit to strengthening democracy and celebrating the successes of our campuses in fostering civic leadership across campus. In this vein, Project Pericles is thrilled to share eight rapid response mini-grants awarded in our inaugural Back to School for Democracy Collaborative Fellowship! This fellowship was created in Fall 2024 in response to the crucial need to develop a new generation of diverse civic leaders who embrace their role in making a difference in society. Through these grants, faculty, staff, students, and administrators collaboratively engage with civic and social justice issues fostering creative inquiry and inspiring unity.
Funded by the Mellon Foundation with additional support from The Eugene M. Lang Foundation, this initiative provided grant recipients with up to $1,000 to design and implement innovative projects, events, or event series that address key challenges and opportunities on their campuses. Grantees utilized their funding for impactful initiatives, ranging from voter registration drives to workshops focused on combating voter suppression building capacity for meaningful, long-term change ![]() This week’s Faculty in Focus is Allison Walker from High Point University Periclean Civic Engagement Fellow Allison Walker from High Point University (HPU) in North Carolina taught “Empathetic Communications in a Digital World,” an interdisciplinary Communications and Business Leadership course that emphasized the development of students’ empathetic and ethical reasoning, alongside media literacy skills. The course integrated Project Pericles’ Deliberative Dialogue module to facilitate a discussion on minimum wage determination. This dialogue was enriched by course readings and experiential learning activities called “Empathy Adventures,” which immersed students in experiences that reflected the challenges faced by minimum-wage workers. The “Empathy Adventures” assignments provided students with opportunities to engage directly with the realities many Americans face everyday. These tasks included preparing and sharing a healthy meal for four people for less than $10, standing for eight consecutive hours to simulate the physical strain of certain jobs, and using public transportation to commute to and from work or school for a week. One of the “Empathy Adventures” required students to follow the schedule of a single parent of two children, setting alarms to reflect the schedule one would have to follow to care for two children during the workweek. Each “Empathy Adventure” was paired with relevant readings including first person narratives, scientific studies, and scholarly articles to contextualize the experiences within broader social and economic frameworks. These assignments also encouraged students to critically analyze how media representations shape public perceptions of minimum-wage, socioeconomic class, and social justice issues. They can be found here through our Civic Engagement Resource Database on our website. Amplifying Immigrant Voices and Building Connections through Storytelling in the Twin Cities1/21/2025
![]() Welcome back to Faculty in Focus! This week we’re highlighting Julia Chadaga from Macalester College In her Russian Studies course, Once We Arrived: Stories of Immigrants' First Jobs, Julia Chadaga partnered with the International Institute of Minnesota to connect students with local immigrants to share their stories. By exploring the challenges immigrants face in securing their first job in the U.S., students gained invaluable insights into immigrant experiences while amplifying these individuals’ voices. Students conducted interviews which were recorded and uploaded to a course website, preserving their narratives and making them available to the public. Through this project, students gained valuable skills in communication, collaboration, and technology while deepening their understanding of the contributions of immigrants to their local community. Working in small groups, students were matched with interviewees from all over the world, including Afghanistan, Cameroon, Ecuador, Mexico, and Russia. The project began with an informal meeting designed to build trust and rapport - a highlight of the course. As one student shared, “I think having this first meeting was extremely important and helpful for the success of our interview. It made the process feel relationship based and I think it allowed her to be more comfortable sharing her story publicly. For me personally, I learned the most meaningful information about her story from this informal meeting.” Welcome to Faculty in Focus, Project Pericles’ Weekly Spotlight where we celebrate incredible work of our Periclean community. ![]() Anita Chikkatur, a Periclean Faculty Leader (PFL) and Professor of Educational Studies at Carleton College, partnered with Marika Pfefferkorn, Co-founder of the Twin Cities Innovation Alliance and Executive Director of Midwest Center for School Transformation, to develop and teach an exciting senior seminar course at Carleton College this past Spring: Carcerality and Education. This course was developed as part of the Periclean Faculty Leadership (PFL) Program–a Project Pericles faculty leadership initiative that supports innovative curricula deepening students’ engagement with critical societal issues in order to contribute meaningfully to communities. Originally conceived with the goal of teaching about the school to prison pipeline, the course explored how “carcerality” - the influence of punitive systems - is embedded into K-12 public education throughout the United States. By compiling resources, including materials made by students, Chikkatur and Pfefferkorn have created a valuable online compendium for abolitionist education, aiming to create more equitable schools by challenging systemic oppression, available here. This collection of resources, from reading guides to class activities, is available for use by educators, students, and any community members hoping to deepen understanding of abolitionist practices. New Grants, New Board Chair, New Year View online here: The January Periclean Your browser does not support viewing this document. Click here to download the document. Project Pericles is pleased to announce the 21 recipients of the Periclean Faculty Leader grant awards. These faculty members have designed classes that uplift civic engagement in new and exciting ways across a broad expanse of disciplines while centering humanities approaches. See below for a complete list of grant recipients.. Your browser does not support viewing this document. Click here to download the document. The past year has been a banner year for Project Pericles! We are pleased to share some 2024 highlights demonstrating the breadth and impact of our campus programs building the next generation of civic leaders.
|
Archives
January 2025
Categories
All
|
[email protected]