The Carnegie Foundation Community Engagement Designation
at the University of Utah
What is this designation?
From the Carnegie Foundation's web site:Community Engagement Elective Classification
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The classification for Community Engagement is an elective classification, meaning it is based on voluntary participation by institutions. Whereas the Foundation's all-inclusive classifications involve secondary analysis of existing national data sources available for all institutions, elective classifications involve additional data collection and documentation, with substantial effort invested by participating institutions. Elective classifications enable the Foundation's classification system to recognize important aspects of institutional mission and action that are not represented in the national data.
Because of their voluntary nature, elective classifications do not represent a comprehensive national assessment: an institution's absence from the Community Engagement classification should not be interpreted as reflecting a judgment about the institution's commitment to its community."
How does the carnegie foundation define community engagement ?
The University of Utah is pleased to be among the 311 institutions nationally who have now been recognized for their community engagement.
The Carnegie Foundation recognizes both curricular and co-curricular community engagement. Co-Curricular Engagement is defined as both Partnerships and Outreach.
Curricular Engagement: the teaching, learning and scholarship that engages faculty,
students, and community in mutually beneficial and respectful collaboration. Their interactions
address community identified needs, deepen students’ civic and academic learning, enhance
community well-being, and enrich the scholarship of the institution.
Partnerships focus on the application and provision of institutional resources for community use with benefits to both campus and community.
Outreach focuses on collaborative interactions with community and related scholarship for the mutually beneficial exchange, exploration, and application of knowledge, information, and resources (research, capacity building, economic development, etc.)
