We Welcome Antionette Priscilla Carroll to Grinnell
We are excited to welcome Antionette Priscilla Carroll, our 2026 Social Innovator in Residence, who began her residency at Grinnell this week and will be with us through Oct. 22. During the weeks ahead, Antionette will engage with students, faculty, staff, and community members through a residency centered on trust, equity, design, and the relationships that help people and communities create meaningful change.
Antionette is the founder, president, and CEO of Creative Reaction Lab and co-founder of the Institute of Equitable Design and Justice. A pioneer of the Equity-Centered Community Design (ECCD™) framework, her work explores how we can challenge inequitable systems while building the trust, shared responsibility, and community agency needed to create lasting change. Her residency invites us to explore some deceptively simple questions: How is trust built? What happens when it breaks down? and what becomes possible when people learn to work across differences toward change.
A Residency Built on Relationships
What makes the Social Innovator in Residence program distinctive is the opportunity for sustained relationship and engagement. Antionette is not simply visiting Grinnell for a lecture or series of events. Throughout her residency, she will have time and space to advance her own work while creating opportunities for students, faculty, staff, and community members to learn with and from her.
There is no single way to participate in the residency. Attend a workshop, join an informal conversation or social art pop-up, or simply strike up a conversation with Antionette on campus, at the STEW, or in the community. Some of the most meaningful connections may come from simply sharing questions, ideas, and experiences with one another.
We look forward to seeing where those relationships and conversations lead.
Join us Friday to welcome Antionette
The campus and community are invited to officially welcome Antionette on Friday, Sept. 4, from 4–5 p.m. for Antionette Priscilla Carroll: Introduction & Ask Me Anything
The fireside-style conversation will introduce Antionette and her work before opening the conversation to questions from participants. Come curious and learn more about her life and practice, the work she hopes to explore at Grinnell, and the many ways you can take part throughout her residency.
There are many ways to participate
Friday’s welcome is only the beginning. Antionette will host three Trust in Practice Labs this fall:
These participatory sessions will invite students, faculty, staff, and community members to experience Equity-Centered Community Design and emerging Trust Design tools and provide feedback on their meaning, accessibility, emotional impact, and potential future use.
Throughout the residency, you will also find opportunities to connect through Tea & Trust conversations, Walking Through Mistrust chats, social art pop-ups, and other informal gatherings on campus and throughout the community. Some opportunities will be planned, while others will emerge as Antionette gets to know Grinnell; her work here evolves, and people bring their own questions, experiences, and ideas to the conversation.
You do not need expertise in design, equity, or community engagement to participate. The larger invitation of this residency is simply to show up — to listen, ask questions, build relationships and trust, learn from one another, and consider how each of us might contribute to change.
All are welcome
We hope you will join us in welcoming Antionette to Grinnell and take advantage of the many opportunities to learn, connect, and create alongside her in the weeks ahead.
Visit grinnell.edu/events for the latest residency events, dates, locations, and details.
Questions about the residency, as well as invitations or requests for Antionette’s time, can be directed to Vicki Nolton, assistant director for Social Innovation Partnerships and Education, at noltonvi@grinnell.edu.
Peace,
Susan Leathem Sanning
Associate Dean and Executive Director of Civic Education & Innovation
Vicki Nolton
Assistant Director for Social Innovation Partnerships and Education