Coronavirus and the Engaged Campus

As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to spread, more and more higher education institutions are taking steps to protect their students, employees, and communities. These steps have unique implications for community-engaged campuses trying to meet the civic mission of higher education. Iowa & Minnesota Campus Compact are gathering resources to help member campuses consider these implications. Always consult health authorities first for the best information on risk and recommended precautionary steps. Do not rely on social media posts for information. Updates are available from local and state public health departments (here are Iowa and Minnesota) and the Centers for Disease…

Campus Compact seeks an evaluator for the Engaged Scholars Initiative.

Campus Compact is pleased to invite evaluation consultants to submit proposals for the Engaged Scholars Initiative (ESI) being carried out over the next year. Up to $20,000 in funding is available to conduct an evaluation of the Engaged Scholars Initiative. Project Title: Engaged Scholars Initiative Program Evaluation Project Start Date: January 2020 Project End Date: January 2021 Proposals are due at 5pm PST on Monday, December 2, 2019. View the RFP Below: Submit your RFP

Director’s Update – April 2019

Thank you! Thank you very much to everyone who attended the Annual Awards Dinner and Civic Engagement Institute last month at Alverno College in Milwaukee, WI! We had over 100 faculty, staff, students, and community partners representing over 30 higher education institutions and community organizations attend over two days. Highlights for many of you included Thursday’s awards dinner and pre-institute deliberative dialogue training by Leslie Garvin, as well as presentations from colleagues and hearing from Harry Boyte as the keynote speaker on Friday. We are so pleased to be able to offer this opportunity to get together, network, learn, and grow…

Director’s Update – March 2019

Transitioning to Spring As we enter into the final months of the Spring 2019 semester, I know campuses are bustling and busy with activity, including with the promise of warmer weather (hopefully soon!) and the coming spring. I’m excited that we’ve been able to partner regionally and nationally to offer several special opportunities for campus involvement over the past month, including calls for AmeriCorps VISTA hosts, Engaged Scholars Initiative participants, and National Webinar Series presenters. While the deadlines for AmeriCorps VISTA hosts and Engaged Scholars Initiative participants have passed, the National Webinar Series call for presenters deadline was extended until…

Director’s Update – February 2019

Warm wishes from CCWI! Wow, those winter storms really came through over the past several weeks! But I hope this email finds you warm and safe today! Our office kicked off this semester with some additional campus visits to UW – Milwaukee, Mount Mary University, UW- Whitewater, and UW – Green Bay, and I am looking forward to additional campus visits throughout the Spring semester. I also hope to see many of you at our 2019 Civic Engagement Institute at Alverno College on March 21-22, 2019. Registration is now open! Harry Boyte will be our keynote speaker, and new this year, we’ll…

Director’s Update – January 2019

Happy New Year! Collectively, the Campus Compact network achieved a great deal in 2018. This is thanks to the coalition of individuals and institutions across the country who are dedicated to the public purposes of higher education. This coalition includes Campus Compact for Wisconsin, our members, and the many, strong supporters we have throughout the state. As we enter 2019 I am feeling hopeful for the future, and I am grateful for your continued support in the the work that lies ahead. I am looking forward to additional campus visits throughout the Spring semester. I also hope to see many of you…

Director’s Update – December 2018

While the Fall 2018 semester may be wrapping up, there are quite a few exciting opportunities coming up in the next few months for Campus Compact for Wisconsin members! Whether you are a student, staff, faculty, or a community member, there is an upcoming opportunity for you! Are you a student, staff, faculty, or a community partner involved in an excellent community engagement project? Consider nominating yourself or someone you know for one of our 2019 CCWI Awards, or encourage your President or Chancellor to nominate a student for the 2019 Newman Civic Fellows Program. Are you an instructor or faculty…

Director’s Update – November 2018

As we enter into the month of November, I am feeling thankful. In particular, as mid-term elections are just around the corner, I wanted to take the time to say I am so proud of the work being done by our Campus Election Engagement Project (CEEP) Fellows and their advisors this Fall, as well as the support provided by the CEEP WI Director, Luke Verdecchia, and CEEP WI Assistant Director, Alejandra Gonzalez. Collectively, these students and the faculty and staff that support them, are great examples of the passion and drive it takes to make change in our society. In…

Director’s Update – October 2018

  Fall is a time of change, and with this past week marking the official beginning of the Fall season, I am pleased to announce a few changes for our office! We’re excited to be moving into our new office space at Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee this week! We’re grateful for the support of the Stritch Hub for Innovation and Community Engaged Learning and to have neighbors like the Experiential Learning and Career Education Center and the African American Leadership Program on our floor. The new location reflects our long-term relationship with the Cardinal Stritch community and continued involvement by Cardinal…

From the Director’s Desk

From the Director’s Desk Hello Wisconsin Campus Compact Nation! It has been a very busy first few weeks as the new director of Wisconsin Campus Compact, but I am grateful to have colleagues like Lynne Blinkenberg, Luke Verdecchia, and Alejandra Gonzalez working alongside me in Wisconsin, as well as great support from the Campus Compact national office staff and other Compact directors from around the country. I have also appreciated the warm welcome notes from faculty and staff at WiCC member institutions. My primary focus these past couple weeks has been on settling into my new role, including attending a…

FROM THE (INTERIM) DIRECTOR’S DESK- June 2018

Greetings! As we move out of celebrations and graduations and into planning, organizing and strategizing for the summer months, I urge you to take some needed time to reflect. We know that reflection is the beadrock of effective service-learning (for students) and community engagement (for deep partnership building), but we often don’t do it on behalf of our own growth and development. Think about this past year. What gave you joy and energy? What activities brought about the most impact and change? What will you do differently or say “no” to next year? How did you grow? What do you need to…

Advisory Board Chair Update

Greetings, Wisconsin Campus Compact Network!   I trust this finds you well and enjoying the last few weeks of the spring term.   This is perhaps my favorite time of the academic year because so many events — honors banquets, poster sessions, student research events, etc. — feature the culminating work of our students. I am particularly drawn to those events that feature the many ways our students are actively engaging with their communities through service-learning, community-based research, advocacy, education. These activities, and so much more, is what WiCC exists to champion in Wisconsin!   It’s been just about two…

From the Director’s Desk- April 2018

If you’re reading the messages, it is probably safe to assume that you care about WiCC’s mission.  Even if we haven’t met in person, this newsletter is my attempt to keep you “in the loop” about all Wisconsin happenings community/university-engagement-related.  This segment has been a fun way for me to put thoughts on paper and speak directly to you about what I’m thinking and where I see things headed.  So, it with great sadness that I announce that this will be my last “From the Director’s Desk.”  I have accepted a position as Director of the UniverCity Alliance at the…

From the Director’s Desk- March, 2018

From the Director’s Desk- March 2018 It’s Civic Engagement Institute time! I hope to see many of you on March 8 – 9 at UW-Whitewater at this year’s annual gathering of civic-minded faculty and staff from across Wisconsin.  If you come to our awards dinner, you will get a chance to learn about notable partnerships, outstanding faculty and staff, and inspiring students—all in the name of making universities and colleges more synergistic with communities.  There’s still time to sign up! Do so HERE.  You can also see our diverse program HERE.  Don’t forget to give a special invitation to students…

From the Director’s Desk- February 2018

From the Director’s Desk- February 2018 Greetings Compact Supporters! Hopefully everyone’s semesters are off to a great start.  A shout-out to campuses who made Martin Luther King Jr. Day a day ON, and not a day off. We were impressed by St. Norbert College, Gateway Technical College, UW-Milwaukee, Lawrence University, UW-Green Bay, and UW-Superior for their MLK activities (sorry if I left anyone out!).  It is more important than ever that we are working for racial healing and community partnerships in such a tumultuous time. First thing’s first: WiCC needs your help! We are looking to host a series of regional…

From the Director’s Desk- 1/2018

From the Director’s Desk – January 2018 Happy New Year, WiCC Supporters! Hopefully everyone enjoyed the holiday season and that you got a chance to rest, relax, and reflect.  Now it’s back to work on partnering with communities to address critical issues! And it’s back to being engaged in the WiCC Network! Make sure you’re nominating a student for the Newman Civic Fellowship, nominate your campus/faculty/students for a WiCC award, put into to present at the Civic Engagement Institute, register for the CEI (a keynote presentation about Design Thinking & Community-Based Learning), and host me on campus for a presentation!…

Director’s Desk- December 2017

From the Director’s Desk December 2017 Winter is coming (in higher education, too)! Many of you have seen the polls—fewer people are trusting that higher education is making our society a better place.  This mistrust of colleges and universities even has seeped into the tax bill—scholarships and stipends would become taxable income.  And there are some who doubt that all ideas are welcome on college campuses.  And now (at UW institutions), if a student disrupts a speaker, that student could be expelled.  Add to these critiques about the rising cost of tuition, and it seems like there’s only doom-and-gloom.  There…

Newman Civic Fellows Conference

Katherine Watson, Alverno College, recently attended the 2017 NCF Conference in Boston: On November 17th and 18th 2017, approximately 180 college students from across the country attended the 2017 Newman Civic Fellows National Conference at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate in Boston. As this year’s Newman Civic Fellow from Alverno College, I was fortunate enough to be one of them. Through our discussions with each other and the activities organized by Campus Compact, we as fellows shared our passions for social and political issues, the ways in which we work to promote civic engagement, and…

Director’s Desk: November 2017

From the Director’s Desk – November 2017 Hard to believe it is November already! The semester continues to move along…midterms have come and gone (for the most part), and we creep toward finals and the winter break season! We have been hard at work creating a statewide movement to bolster the civic mission of higher education, and now we really need your help.  WiCC will be hosting a series of “coalition building” breakfasts where we introduce new civic-minded individuals across Wisconsin.  I would love to have institutions across the state host us.  We want to tell the story of how…

From the Director’s Desk-October 2017

Greetings, Campus Compact friends and supporters! Hopefully everyone’s academic year has been off to a great start.  Special thank-you to Lawrence University for hosting me at their annual “Into the streets” freshman program where they get to know Appleton and engage in meaningful service projects!  Also, thanks to UW-Superior for hosting me for their first Center for Community-Engaged Learning Advisory Board meeting (as well as their alumni recognition event)!  WiCC is about to head into the season of regional meetings (please REGISTER for one if you haven’t already done so), which are always invigorating for the network!  They’re a time…