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This spotlight series features alumni of our Periclean programs, celebrating their successes and exploring how participation in Periclean-supported civic and community-engaged learning initiatives has shaped their teaching, scholarship, and career paths.  When Dr. Dorcas McCoy re-entered the classroom in 2012 after years working in university administration, she found herself at a crossroads. This wasn’t the first time she needed to “recreate herself.” She had transformed from an aspiring journalist to an educator during her time as a student, shifted her pedagogy from teaching at the large PWI University of Central Florida to the intimate HBCU Bethune-Cookman University, and now she was faced with the great challenge of going from administrator to educator. However, because of her great love for teaching, this was a challenge she welcomed. A seasoned professor of International Studies and Political Science at Bethune-Cookman University, Dr. McCoy credits her experiences with Project Pericles with helping her reimagine her courses and reconnect with students through experiential learning. In a recent interview, Dr. McCoy expressed that her experiences as a Periclean Faculty Leader and Civic Engagement Fellow propelled her to think differently, innovate her pedagogy, engage the community, and prioritize civic engagement as part of the learning process. These experiences gave her the infrastructure, the inspiration, and the freedom to grow. Dr. McCoy’s passion for civic education is deeply personal. Her father immigrated to the U.S. from British Honduras during the Jim Crow era and struggled through a complicated naturalization process. His stories, especially about the grueling civics exam, ignited in her a commitment to demystify American democracy for others. She shared that it made her want to help people understand systems from all perspectives– not just those who feel excluded, but also those whose fears or biases are shaped by what they don’t understand.  Bethune-Cookman University students pictured with Florida State Representative LaVon Bracy Davis (D–District 40) during the 2025 Day at the Capitol in Tallahassee, Florida. Through Project Pericles, Dr. McCoy found meaningful ways to translate that mission into pedagogical practice. She utilized modules on voter suppression and deliberative dialogue, partnered with organizations like the NAACP, Black Voters Matter, and Equal Ground, and even took students to the Florida Capitol and Washington, D.C. These experiences proved to be deeply meaningful and transformative for students, some of whom had never previously left Florida or interacted with the legislature before. In reflecting on the Political Science Senior Seminar course that she taught in Spring 2025 as a Project Pericles Civic Engagement Fellow, Dr. McCoy shared: “From leading students through phone banking during a pivotal special election, to watching them grow during our Day at the Capitol, to hosting an on-campus forum on voter suppression—each experience affirmed the power of experiential learning. Students connected theory to practice and found their voices as civic leaders. Our Day at the Capitol in Tallahassee was especially impactful. Students observed legislative sessions and met directly with policymakers and advocates working on voting rights. This real-world exposure deepened their understanding of deliberative dialogue and helped them analyze how structural barriers—like gerrymandering and voter ID laws—play out in actual policy debates. Many cited the experience as transformative in their final reflections.”  Her passion for teaching and mentorship hasn’t gone unnoticed. Dr. McCoy was recently promoted to Tenured Full Professor, an achievement she attributes in part to her work with Pericles. She shared that the Periclean grant evaluation process gave her the empirical data, the student outcomes, and the portfolio pieces she needed to demonstrate excellence in teaching. Given that she already had tenure as an Associate Professor, Dr. McCoy expressed that working with Pericles gave her the inspiration to push her career forward and achieve Full Professorship.
In addition to teaching, Dr. McCoy is the President of the International Women’s Council (IWC), a global faith-based service organization with over 500 chapters in the U.S. and 17 countries. Under her leadership, the IWC has delivered relief aid, service-learning programs, and educational empowerment to women and girls across multiple nations. She is also the Founder and President of Victory Global Academy, an educational resource center committed to closing achievement gaps through multilingual, multicultural, and civic education. Through her current role as a Periclean Civic Engagement Fellow, Dr. McCoy continues to mentor colleagues and encourage junior faculty to envision their long-term impact. She advises those newer to this work to think about what they want their legacy to be and then work backward. In her experiences, it’s all about giving students opportunities. In every class she teaches, Dr. McCoy shows students that civic education isn’t about pushing ideology, but inspiring inquiry. She expressed that teaching is not about telling people what to think, but about giving them the tools and experiences to think for themselves. And that, she believes, is what education should always be. Comments are closed.
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Project Pericles
1216 Broadway, 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10001
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