Community Engagement
Our Dedication to Community Engagement
As an "engaged College of Education," we are dedicated to building partnerships with our surrounding schools, libraries and communities. It is through community engagement that the wisdom of community residents, teachers and other practitioners combine with the technical knowledge of professors and students to ensure a more balanced set of political, social, economic and cultural priorities, resulting in shared resources and shared power, thus leading to equity and social justice.
We are committed to helping to build more robust and healthier educational environments and communities, and believe that success will depend upon the effort invested in bringing people together, building and nurturing long-term relationships and partnerships. Multiple benefits will be realized as new individuals and organizations across our city and region are included and involved.
Our partnerships develop, identify and implement projects and programs that use university scholarship and infrastructure to add value to community programs and contribute to community sustainability, and which add value to university activity.
Community-based learning and public scholarship are the basis for these partnerships. Community experts provide essential input to all engaged activities.
Community-Based Learning
Community-Based Learning takes academic learning for credit out of the traditional classroom. Examples include mentorship, practica and internships, community-based research projects, and service-learning placements. Faculty and students apply their disciplinary knowledge or they serve communities and nonprofit organizations while learning civic responsibility. Considerable expertise exists within our College to assist students and faculty with the development of community-based learning opportunities in the curriculum.
Public Scholarship
Public Scholarship includes scholarly and creative work in the public interest, scholarship planned and carried out in cooperation with community partners, and academic work that produces a "public good" such as exhibits, performances, consultations, and broadly accessible research results.
The College recognizes public scholarship in its appointment, promotion and tenure guidelines, thus ensuring support for professors with an engaged agenda. The College also provides financial, technical, and promotional support for public scholarship enabling faculty and students to address public needs in Denver and beyond.
Community Experts
Community Experts help shape the College of Education's courses and programs. Inviting community members and educational leaders into planning processes helps our graduates become visionary leaders. Including a broad array of community experts in all stages of our curriculum development helps produce human service professionals who are culturally responsive and able to more closely meet specific needs.
We invite leadership from schools, libraries, and community groups to demonstrate that their participation is valued and that their views are essential. This helps to build trust, increase communication, and create openness to utilizing the College's services.
