Community Schools are comprehensive neighborhood centers and democratic institutions built on partnerships. They result in improved student learning, development, and community wellbeing. When universities engage as partners with community schools, they can simultaneously advance university research, teaching, learning, and service. When they are lead partners in long-term engagement of faculty, staff, students, and institutional resources, they are university-assisted community schools. 

This two-part series will explore examples of university-assisted community school partnerships in New York and Pennsylvania, along with other national examples that are mutually beneficial for higher education and their communities. We’ll look at how these partnerships work across disciplines, policies, and practices in higher education to successfully advance community engaged research, scholarship, and long-term, place-based democratic community partnerships that are mutually transformational.

Presented by Cory Bowman (Netter Center for Community Partnerships/University of Pennsylvania) and Naorah Rimkunas (Binghamton University), Part 1 will introduce leading examples from a national network of university-assisted community schools; and Part 2 will explore institutional change in higher education that supports sustained, democratic community partnerships, including tenure and promotion guidelines. We will explore how these partnerships help advance community engagement strategies.

Part 1: March 20, 11am EST

Part 2: April 17th, 11am EST