The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Paideia Program is currently searching for its next faculty director.
Provost Beth Winkelstein and Provost-designate John Jackson, Jr. have invited nominations and expressions of interest from standing faculty members for this position.
The faculty director of the SNF Paideia Program is a senior member of the standing faculty with an “intellectual and programmatic leadership and vision” for the program. The director works to convey the program’s mission to the wider Penn community and to the foundation. Other duties include managing the work of the program’s executive director and five-person staff, as well as teaching Paideia-designated classes.
The current faculty director is Annenberg School of Communication professor Michael Delli Carpini, who became the program’s inaugural faculty director in 2019.
Carpini previously served as the dean of the Annenberg School from 2003-18. He retired as the Oscar H. Gandy Emeritus Professor of Communication and Democracy last year but will continue to serve as the SNF Paideia Program faculty director until 2024.
SNF Paideia aims to instill the skills and ethical frameworks in Penn undergraduates to be engaged citizens. Students learn how to promote wellness, service, and civil discourse with the support of curricular and co-curricular programming and a university-wide network of faculty and staff.
The program is currently in its fourth year. It launched in 2019 following a $6 million gift from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.
“At the heart of this new program is the goal of providing Penn undergraduates with the skills, knowledge, values, and experiences necessary for engaging in civil, informed discourse with those with whom they may disagree,” Carpini told SNF. “Our aspiration is that doing so will produce citizens and leaders who can effectively bridge social, cultural, economic, and political divides in their personal, professional, and civic lives.”
Any questions and nominations for the next faculty director should be sent to Associate Provost Lynne Hunter by May 15.
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