Civic Engagement at Skidmore
A liberal arts education certainly represents a personal good for our graduates, preparing them not only to make a living but also to create a life worth living — a life that truly matters for themselves and others. But a Skidmore education also represents a broader social good that is seldom remarked upon in contemporary discussions of higher education. We highlight this value in our expressed determination to prepare our graduates to live as informed, responsible, and globally and interculturally aware citizens who are not only capable of bringing their personal plans to fruition but who also strive to make the world a better place for all.
Faces of Community Engagement




Imagining America
The Imagining America consortium (IA) brings together scholars, artists, designers, humanists, and organizers to imagine, study, and enact a more just and liberatory ‘America’ and world. Working across institutional, disciplinary, and community divides, IA strengthens and promotes public scholarship, cultural organizing, and campus change that inspires collective imagination, knowledge-making, and civic action on pressing public issues.
Project Pericles
Project Pericles is a vibrant consortium of 30 colleges and universities that promotes civic engagement within higher education. Building on the innovative vision of Eugene M. Lang, Project Pericles works in the classroom, on the campus, and in the community. Project Pericles is at the forefront of civic engagement and social responsibility in areas including faculty and course development, curricular coherence, and research into best practices.
In the News
- The Skidmore College community mobilized to support local families and community organizations for the 17th consecutive year through the Skidmore Cares community service program.
- Skidmore’s dedicated space for prioritizing diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice has been named in recognition of the leadership and support of parents Alicia and Bob Wyckoff.
- Faculty, staff, and students volunteer time, efforts, and items to support local residents and families through 16th annual Skidmore Cares.
- From within Skidmore’s curriculum, through their careers, and in other ways, big and small, Skidmore community members are making an impact.
- With elaborate picnic baskets, a silent auction, and generous donations, community members offered their support to the Joseph C. and Anne T. Palamountain Scholarship Fund.
- Ibram X. Kendi’s “How to be an Antiracist” is the First-Year Experience's summer reading. A memoir, the book details Kendi’s real-life encounters with racism and his advice on eliminating it.
- The two leading public intellectuals with differing political and philosophical views spoke to the Skidmore community about their friendship and shared commitment to the liberal arts.
- Nine young classical musicians are sharing their talents with Skidmore College and Saratoga Springs remotely this fall during the 14th biannual Ensemble Connect program residency.
- Skidmore faculty members shed light on lingering questions about the outcome and complex dynamics shaping the U.S. presidential election in an online forum with members of the Skidmore community.