In this new role, Tapler will guide the strategic and programmatic direction of Project Pericles and will oversee the Periclean Scholars program, which empowers students to engage in sustainable, community-based partnerships focused on addressing complex global and local challenges.
Associate Teaching Professor of Public Health Studies Amanda Tapler has been selected to serve as the next director of Project Pericles at Elon University.
Project Pericles is an initiative sponsored by the Eugene Lang Foundation that challenged ten colleges and universities to provide a learning experience that will “instill in students an abiding and active sense of social responsibility and civic concern.” Elon accepted the challenge, which fit with the university’s stated mission to prepare students to be global citizens and informed leaders and to foster an ethic of work and service. Currently, there are 30 colleges and universities nationwide that have embraced the challenge by becoming a Periclean Institution.
Project Pericles at Elon comprises two components: the Periclean Scholars program and the Periclean Award for Civic Engagement and Social Responsibility.
Tapler has served as assistant director of Project Pericles since 2019, providing leadership and mentoring students in the Perclean Scholars Program. She has led Periclean cohorts as they partner with the Comprehensive Rural Health Project in India and locally with the Women’s Resource Center of Alamance County.
“With more than a decade of experience advancing civic engagement and global learning at Elon, she brings a deep commitment to the university’s mission of preparing students for lives of ethical leadership, citizenship, and service,” said Naeemah Clark, associate provost for academic inclusive excellence, in an announcement to the university. “I’m sure you will agree that Amanda’s track record for creativity, and passion for student learning make her the ideal leader for Project Pericles.”
In this new role, Tapler will guide the strategic and programmatic direction of Project Pericles and oversee the Periclean Scholars program, which empowers students to engage in sustainable, community-based partnerships to address complex global and local challenges. Tapler will also serve as Elon’s liaison to the national Project Pericles organization, strengthening the university’s partnerships with peer institutions and community collaborators.
She succeeds Mat Gendle, professor of psychology, who has led Project Pericles since 2017 and will complete his second term as director in 2027. Tapler will begin her new role in the next academic year, and a search for an assistant director will begin in Spring 2026.