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Community-Engaged Scholarship

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In Scholarship Reconsidered, the late Ernest Boyer contends that in addition to valuing the generation of knowledge (the traditional definition of scholarship), higher education should also support the application of knowledge through faculty engagement in community-based research, teaching and service (Boyer, 1990). Boyer and other leaders in higher education have strongly advocated that institutions should encourage faculty members to use their expertise in new and creative ways to work with communities for long-term community improvement (Boyer, 1990; Harkavy 1996; Lynton, 1996). 

Community-Engaged Scholarship Toolkit

  • The Community-Campus Partnerships for Health's Community-Engaged Scholarship Toolkit is intended as a resource for community-engaged faculty on how to "make their best case" for promotion and tenure.
  • The Research University Civic Engagement Network (TRUCEN) has recently released an online toolkit on engaged scholarship comprised of an annotated bibliography of published articles, links to online resources, and a set of original essays.
  • Building Capacity for Community Engagement: Institutional Self-Assessment is designed to assess the capacity of a given higher educational institution (or unit therein) for community engagement and CES, and to identify opportunities for action.

Publishing Community-Engaged Research: What it Takes

Dr. Michael Hallett, from the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, offered a perspective on the opportunities, challenges, and rewards of doing community-based research, with a focus on Jacksonville. UNF’s emergent focus on community-based learning offers a unique opportunity for faculty to engage in what French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu calls “scholarship with commitment.” Dr. Hallett discussed recommendations for managing the tenure track around the pitfalls of community-based research. He also shared strategies for preparing, delivering, and ultimately publishing finite research projects cultivated from community engagement.
To view the presentation slides, please contact mjaffee@unf.edu.

Resources for Community-Engaged Scholarship

The Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education | An online, refereed journal on community engagement and the practice of community-based learning and research. The Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education is edited and published by the Center for Public Service and Community Engagement (CPSCE) at Indiana State University (ISU).

Books Available in the OFE Resource Library 

The Resource Library at the Office of Faculty Excellence has a shelf dedicated to Community Engaged Scholarship. Among the items available there are:

  • Jacoby, B., et al. (1996). Service Learning in Higher Education: Concepts and Practices. San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
  • Kaye, C. B. (2004). The Complete Guide to Service Learning: Proven, Practical Ways to Engage Students in Civic Responsibility, Academic Curriculum, & Social Action. Minneapolis: Free Spirit Publishing
  • Strand, K., Marullo, S., Cutforth, N., Stoecker, R., & Donohue, P. (2003). Community-Based Research and Higher Education: Principles and Practices. San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
  • Welch, M., & Billig, S. H., (Eds.). (2004). New Perspectives in Service-Learning: Research to Advance the Field. Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing

General Links

Other Universities' CES Resources