anchester is in a time of transition. Dave McFadden, who has served as president for nine years, is retiring, and we are welcoming a new president and a new era for Manchester. Transitions may be uncomfortable, they may challenge us, but they also bring new ideas, fresh perspectives.

Similarly, many academic programs have seen their own smaller-scale evolutions in recent years. Manchester’s Peace Studies Institute, the oldest undergraduate program of its kind in the world, is one such example. From collaborations with the environmental studies department to the addition of poverty-focused courses, peace studies has made transitions that have taken the program in exciting new directions. As we celebrate the 75th anniversary of peace studies at Manchester in the stories that follow, we look back on its history and forward to where the program is headed.

The past year I’ve spent as communications specialist has been the biggest transition of my life, but my education, in and out of the classroom, prepared me well. I graduated from Manchester with a bachelor’s degree in peace studies and English, and now writing about the program that defined my college experience feels like the perfect culmination of everything I studied – my two worlds gracefully colliding.

One of the countless things I learned in my peace studies classes is that it takes time and the effort of a community to create change. As all of us – students, alumni, faculty, staff and friends of Manchester – navigate these new transitions, it is important to remember the community that surrounds us. A community that supports one another and embraces the unknown.