The Carnegie Foundation defines community engagement as a “collaboration between institutions of higher education and their larger communities (local, regional/state, national, global) for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources in a context of partnership and reciprocity.”
Community-engaged education, also known as community-engaged learning, is an experiential teaching approach that centers on mutually beneficial outcomes for students and community partners.
Programs offered by the Confluence Collaborative that support community-engaged education and learning include:
From Campus to Community
In a civic learning course, students gain knowledge and skillsets to contribute to a thriving democracy. They build awareness of local issues and how they can contribute.
In a community-connected course, students learn from the St. Louis community through guest speakers, site visits and tours, and community-generated readings, viewings, trainings, events, etc.
In a community-engaged course, faculty and community partners collaborate on course and community project development, course/project facilitation, and group communication. Student learning and community outcomes are equally valued.
For more information about our community-engaged education, teaching, and learning support, please email David Pole: