Center for Community Engagement &
Service Learning: General Information
Vision, Mission, Values, Methods and Goals
Vision
The Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning (CCESL) leads the campus in embracing the University of Denver’s commitment of “being a great private university dedicated to the public good”.
Mission
Our mission is to educate, engage, and equip the campus community to accomplish tangible, public work that improves the lives of people in our communities.
Values
We value the public good, inclusive excellence, and, as part of higher education’s civic mission, building community capacity and engagement.
Goals
- Support faculty in community-based learning and public good efforts at DU;
- Connect university stakeholders with efforts that address critical community issues;
- Develop students into engaged citizens who actively participate in the public life of their communities;
- Achieve operational excellence through staff innovation, efficiency, sustainability, and team work;
- Cultivate, strengthen, and nurture campus partnerships in a strategic manner
Our goals are in line with The University Planning Advisory Council’s stated goals for the institution: http://www.du.edu/upac/goals.html
Methods
CCESL works toward the vision and mission by building associations through a variety of methods including:
Academic Service Learning is one of the methods we use to work with our constituents. The Faculty Service Learning Committee at the University of Denver has defined service learning as “ ac tive learning that links traditional academics with community service.” At DU, service learning is designed to “deepen and expand classroom learning through thoughtful, collaborative engagement with community organizations, agencies, educational institutions and the people they serve.” (Service Learning: Definition and Academic Approval Process, May 2004)
The University of Denver has distinguished itself as a leader in the field of Community Based Research (CBR). CBR is a collaborative enterprise between academic researchers (professors and students) and community members, which validates multiple sources of knowledge and promotes the use of multiple methods of discovery and of dissemination of the knowledge produced. CBR has as its goal social action and social change for the purpose of achieving social justice. (Strand, Marullo, Cutforth, Stoecker and Donohue, 2003)
The Center uses an Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) approach to community work. ABCD rests on the principle that the recognition of strengths, gifts, talents and assets of individuals and communities is more likely to inspire positive action for change than an exclusive focus on needs and problems. At its core are associations of community members, both formal and informal. (Greene, 2000).
