THE PERICLEAN: We are proud to share updates, resources, and stories from our network of civic champions in our new newsletter, delivered on the first Friday of each month.

Exploring the Chester Arts Corridor and community-engaged collaborations, led by local leaders Devon Starshooterz Walls and Twyla Simpson.



Digging into foundational sharing in the session, "Cultivating Integrity: Strategizing for Holistic Approaches to Civic Engagement."



Group photo in Swarthmore's beautiful Crum Woods after a welcome walkabout.

On October 23-24, we gathered at Swarthmore College for an inspiring and impactful conference, convening more than 30 Periclean colleagues from across 20+ campuses nationwide. This dynamic, peer-led meeting focused on exploring critical civic issues in higher education, showcasing the expertise within our network and fostering a rich atmosphere of knowledge and relationship building. 

Participants engaged in an array of interactive sessions throughout our two days together (full agenda here). Topics ranged from measuring and assessing the impact of civic initiatives, to facilitating dialogue in an increasingly polarized environment, to developing innovative student leadership programs, diving deep into community-engaged learning throughout. A quarter of our time was spent in nearby Chester, immersed in the vibrant community collaborations of Swarthmore and Widener University and led by local leaders.

We were heartened by high levels of engagement and enthusiasm, coupled with very positive feedback on the individual and collective learning that transpired. An illustrative piece of feedback from Mecca Madyun, Faculty Director, Civic for Civic Engagement at Drew University:

"ALL of these sessions offered extremely insightful perspectives, practices, and questions which have influenced me to evolve my pedagogy and strategies for developing an equity-centered ecosystem that will sustain civic engagement work."

Heartfelt thanks to our Periclean Program Directors for their dedication and collaborative spirit which fueled the gathering, with extra gratitude to Swarthmore College, and in particular Program Directors Jennifer Magee and Ben Berger, for their exceptional efforts hosting this gathering.

We also invite you to check out this photo album with great shots taken throughout the conference.

Remembering Neil Grabois

We are saddened to share that Neil Grabois, long-time Board Member, Board Chair, and supporter, passed away on October 7. As described by our current Board Chair, Rich Ekman: "Neil was one of the earliest members of the Project Pericles Board and someone who helped Eugene Lang shape the organization into the high-quality force in American education that it is today. Neil served for many years as the Board Chair--with distinction-- and was a friend and mentor to many of us. His career included distinguished service as a senior officer of the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and as an effective college president, academic leader, and popular math teacher." Neil Grabois is survived by his wife Miriam, and sons Adam and Dan.

Neil Grabois at the 2019 D4D National Conference, announcing the D4D Letters to an Elected Official winners as the Project Pericles Board Chair.

Jan Liss, Senior Advisor and founding Executive Director of Project Pericles, shares: "The world has lost a truly wonderful man. And I have lost a friend, confidante, mentor, and supporter. Neil will be deeply missed. Neil was our second Board Chair following Founder Eugene Lang. Gene made it clear to me that there was no one else who he could consider ‘taking over for me’. I met with Neil at least once a month for more than a decade to help design, build, and fund what is now a vibrant civic engagement higher education community. Without Neil’s steady hand, deep connections, intelligence, humor, and insight, Project Pericles as it is today would not have been possible. On behalf of all of us, thank you Neil."

Lauren McGrail, Executive Director of the Eugene M. Lang Foundation, also worked closely with Neil throughout the years. She shares, "Few people have shaped Project Pericles as much as Neil Grabois. From the very beginning, he was Eugene Lang’s trusted advisor, always available with a brilliant idea, a cautionary tale, or an encouraging word. Neil was quick-witted and thoughtful, with a formidable mind, but above all, Neil brought kindness and decency to every interaction and conversation. "

You can read more about Neil Grabois in this article published by Colgate University for which he served as the 13th President. Neil will be missed by all of us.

🗳️Election Day Countdown: Pre and Post Election Resources

Research suggests we are more likely to follow through on a task if we make a detailed plan--and this applies to voting. With Election Day around the corner, check out our new assignment templates:

• Make a Plan to Vote which faculty and staff can edit and disseminate to their students. The plan also covers how students may wish to research their ballot.

Quick Picks for Election Season:

• Guides.Vote for nonpartisan voter and ballot guides the upcoming election.
• BallotReady for personalized election information to make voters make informed decisions on their ballot.
• Protect the Vote GA released a semi-national tool for voters to navigate their local districts and ballots.
• Rides to the Polls: Voter Transportation Project is providing free round trip rides to the polls in Atlanta, Raleigh, Detroit, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Racine, Phoenix, and Las Vegas.

Post-Election Resources:

• The Constructive Dialogue Institute's Webinar: Rebuilding Resilient Campus Communities: Strategies for Healing and Preparing for Future Challenges. Register here (free).
• Students Learn Students Vote Coalition's 2024 Post-Election Campus Resource and Response Guide
• Rhodes College's Webinar: What Happened on Tuesday and What it Means Going Forward. Register here ($35).
• Rutgers University's The Morning After, a post-election webinar analyzing the results of the 2024 presidential election. Register here (free)

Project Pericles joins Starts with Us as a Movement Partner

Project Pericles is delighted to join an inspiring group of 300+ leaders as a Movement Partner with Starts with Us, a movement to empower millions of Americans tired of our culture of contempt and energized to foster critical thinking and constructive communication across our lines of difference.

Movement Partners are an ideologically diverse group of foremost leaders in business, faith, entertainment, journalism, national defense, academia, sports, and more. Our Executive Director, Sanda Balaban expresses our ideological synergy and excitement for joining the Builders Movement: "Supporting a “builders mindset” as Starts with Us does is spot-on. It is an understatement to note that this is an exciting and challenging time, in the world and on campuses. We are collectively facing thorny pressures— alongside which we have great opportunities for transformative education that builds resilience. At Project Pericles, we are deeply committed to meeting the moment (and moments beyond the moment) in service of colleges and universities building the next generation of broad-minded civic leaders committed to inclusive solutions to our collective challenges." We are honored to join this special community and look forward to contributing to this vibrant movement.

$1,000 Civic and Voter Engagement Grants

Priority Deadline: November 22

As we lay the groundwork for how we can continue to promote democratic engagement, Project Pericles invites applications from faculty and staff from any higher education institutions to apply for our Civic and Voter Engagement Fellowship supported by the Mellon Foundation.

Fellows are awarded a $1,000 grant to use Periclean Civic Engagement Resources in Spring 2025.

Faculty and staff from any institution are eligible to apply. Please forward this opportunity to interested colleagues!

What Staff are Reading

📚 Sanda (Executive Director) is reading The Crisis of Civic Despair: Does higher education hold the remedy for society's divisions? in AAC&U's spring newsletter and Defending Democracy, Defending the University by Michael Roth in Inside Higher Education.

📚 Arielle (Associate Director) is still working their way through the Digitalist Papers, a series of 12 essays inspired by the Federalist Papers that present an array of possible futures that the AI revolution might produce. They've just finished: "The Potential for AI to Restore Local Community Connectedness, The Bedrock of a Healthy Democracy" by Sarah Friar and Laura Bisesto which has some fascinating strategies using algorithms to draw people out of their echo chambers and promote local connection.

📚 Jason Vadnos (Intern) is reading a Harvard Kennedy School Working Paper titled Pro-democracy Organizing against Autocracy in the United States: A Strategic Assessment & Recommendations. It analyzes what the democracy space should do if the US transitions to a more authoritarian form of government in the wake of the 2024 election.

What are YOU reading? None of us have enough time to read all that we wish we could. We appreciate tips from readers and thinkers we admire and would love to share your suggestions in our next newsletter. Email: Sanda@projectpericles.org

Pericleans in the Press

📰 Brian Rosenberg (Macalester College President Emeritus) wrote an article, The Impossible College Presidency, released by the Chronicle of Higher Education in the spring and referenced recently in their thematically linked to their Volume 71, Issue 5 this month.

Upcoming Events

🗓️ Friday, November 1 at 3 PM ET: Office Hours for Periclean Faculty Leadership (PFL) Program Applications and PFL Enhancement Programs on Zoom (for colleagues at Periclean institutions) 

🗓️ Thursday, Nov 7 at 1 PM ET: Office Hours for Periclean Faculty Leadership (PFL) Program Applications and PFL Enhancement Programs on Zoom (for colleagues at Periclean institutions)

🗓️ More webinar(s) for our Civic and Voter Engagement Fellows to be announced for late November/early December.

🗓️ Project Pericles will be presenting two panels featuring our staff and representatives from 7 of our campuses at the 2025 AAC&U Annual Meeting in Washington D.C.--please join us if you will be there! 

• Disrupt Distrust: Fostering Well Being and Resilience through Democratic Engagement on Thursday, January 23, 2:00–3:15 PM.
• Co-Creation in Education: Strengthening Communities through Curricular Partnerships on Friday, January 24, 11:00 AM-12:00 PM.

If you have a story, event, or publication you'd like us to feature, please reach out! E-mail: arielle@projectpericles.org

PROJECT PERICLES APPRECIATES THE SUPPORT OF OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND SUPPORTERS INCLUDING: THE EUGENE M. LANG FOUNDATION, THE ARTHUR VINING DAVIS FOUNDATIONS, THE MELLON FOUNDATION, THE TEAGLE FOUNDATION, & STUDENTS LEARN STUDENTS VOTE COALITION