Momentum in Focus at the 2024 President’s Circle Celebration

It is an annual tradition stretching back decades. Year after year, the President's Circle Celebration gathers American University's most committed donor-advocates for an evening of gratitude and peer recognition.

This year's event on October 24 welcomed nearly 180 AU community members-including AU's 16th president, Jonathan R. Alger-to Claudio Grossman Hall on campus for a ceremony and seated dinner program. A cherished highlight of the President's Circle Celebration is the presentation of the Cyrus A. Ansary Medal-awarded to the 2024 honoree, AU alumna and trustee Margery Kraus, SPA/BA '67, MA '72.

All members of the President's Circle giving society are invited to the annual celebration. With giving levels-each named after US presidents with ties to AU-ranging from $2,500 to $50,000, the society represents a broad community of leadership donors.

Kicking off the evening, Interim Vice President of University Advancement Dan Luperchio thanked the audience for advancing the university's mission, particularly through the Change Can't Wait campaign.

"Looking around this room, it's clear to me that dedication and dynamism go hand in hand at AU-something underscored by the success of the Change Can't Wait campaign," said Luperchio, referencing the campaign's $507 million triumph in September.

According to Luperchio, President's Circle membership grew by almost 20 percent during Change Can't Wait, and members were responsible for 80 percent-or $408 million-of campaign commitments. "The role you played in the campaign was nothing short of extraordinary," he told the audience.

This theme of finding momentum's spark in legacy was on display throughout the program.

Upon the Ansary Medal presentation, Charlie Lydecker, SPA/BA '85, vice chair of AU's Board of Trustees, referenced the medal's history. Among the university's highest honors, its origins stretch back to 1990 when the board initiated the medal to honor Chair Emeritus Cyrus Ansary and his three-decades-long service to AU.

This year's honoree epitomized the medal's ideals, continued Lydecker, calling Kraus "a globally recognized master storyteller and communications innovator whose strong personal values and passion for making a difference have shaped countless lives across the world."

Kraus is known as a trailblazer in public relations, media, and business diplomacy.

In 1984, she founded APCO Worldwide, which today bears the distinction of being the world's largest majority women-owned independent advisory and advocacy communications consultancy. Her leadership pioneered the industry's earliest practices in corporate responsibility and public and private partnerships.

At AU, Kraus has been a longstanding supporter, volunteer, and mentor.

She first found her start via the Washington Semester Program and is a proud School of Public Affairs (SPA) alumna. She currently serves on AU's Board of Trustees, as well as subcommittees and the WAMU Board of Advisors. With her husband Stephen, she has created opportunities for students through philanthropic commitments to SPA and namesake scholarship funds.

"As a double Eagle, receiving the Cyrus A. Ansary Medal from American University is an incredible and deeply meaningful honor," Kraus reflected in her acceptance remarks. "It is special to me as a recognition that reflects not only my personal journey but also the values and mission of an institution that shaped me in profound ways."

Kraus described coming to AU as a first-generation American from a small mining town.

Here, she merged her determined spirit with the skills instilled by an AU education. Her time as an Eagle made her a strategic communicator and stoked her self-belief-the same self-belief she would tap into to launch APCO Worldwide and grow it from its one-person Washington, DC, office into a global operation with over 1,200 employees.

"Accepting this award is not only a testament to the education, community, and experiences that have helped me grow . . . but to share a commitment to the future of continued impact," concluded Kraus, encouraging audience support for the next generation of Eagles.

Following the award ceremony and dinner, the event welcomed remarks from President Alger, who applauded Kraus as a "creative and inspirational partner" to university leadership.

President Alger was quick to tap into the momentum in the air. Thursday's celebration came amidst his first semester at AU and the newly launched Civic Life initiative.

Echoing Kraus's message, he reiterated the importance of AU as an institution that imparts skills of community and engagement-a mission fueled by the incredible dedication of President's Circle members.

"The secret sauce [of AU]," said President Alger, "is represented in this room tonight by our people."

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