Universities unite for community engagement framework
Seventeen universities convened at UTS this week to prepare a collective approach to championing social justice in Australian higher education, ahead of submitting their response for the Carnegie Community Engagement Classification in May.
The cohort includes representatives from the U.S. where the Classification originated, and from Canadian universities, who are also embarking on their own unique framework.
Presentations included community engagement case studies from Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research at UTS, Southern Cross University, Sydney Policy Lab at the University of Sydney, and the University of Alberta.
The Australian universities have been participating in a national pilot of the internationally renowned classification, exploring a collective approach to contributing to stronger, richer communities.
The result will be a bespoke Carnegie Community Classification framework, interpreted for an Australian context that encompasses the unique geographical and cultural differences our universities span. The submission will be followed by an assessment process by representatives from Brown University, who will visit each participating university to determine those which will be awarded the classification.
The University of Technology Sydney and Charles Sturt University are jointly leading the initiative. Eight other universities are actively taking part in the pilot and a further seven have an observer status, with a view to taking part after the framework has been finalised.
“Being a lead university in the first Australian trial of the Carnegie Classification is an institutional highlight,” said Professor Andrew Vann, Vice Chancellor of Charles Sturt University.
“We are committed to working meaningfully with our communities. This process will ensure that community participation and engagement continues to be at the core of what we do and enable us to deepen our work in the development of our regions and our people.”
“Australian universities have a strong history of community engagement, and the higher education landscape in Australia is distinct from other national contexts,” said Verity Firth, Executive Director, Social Justice at UTS. “For universities, meaningful community engagement means an end to ‘ivory tower’ thinking. Partnerships between universities and the community need to be mutually beneficial and accept the knowledge and experience that both parties bring to the table. The end goal is to deepen scholarship, research and creative activity, all while addressing critical social issues.”
The Carnegie Foundation’s Classification for Community Engagement is an elective classification and has been the leading framework for institutional assessment and recognition of community engagement in US higher education for the past 13 years. The new elective Community Engagement Classification has been adopted by more than 350 US campuses.
