The community is our classroom - Scripps Howard Center for Civic

January 11, 2018 | Author: Anonymous | Category: N/A
Share Embed


Short Description

Download The community is our classroom - Scripps Howard Center for Civic...

Description

The community is our classroom

stew·ard·ship (stü ‘ ərd ship) noun 1. The office and obligations of a steward; 2. The conducting or supervising of something; 3. The careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care, especially with respect to the principles or needs of a community.

“The university embraces its regional stewardship role as reflected in its significant contribution to the intellectual, social, economic, cultural and civic vitality of the region and the commonwealth…. “Northern Kentucky University is the commonwealth’s only regional university located in a major metropolitan area. The university values its role as an integral part of the metropolitan region and recognizes the region as a powerful source of knowledge and experience that can strengthen, enhance and enrich every aspect of the university. Regional stewardship informs every dimension of the university’s mission.“ -Northern Kentucky University mission statement

Norse mascot Victor E. Viking is a regular at sporting events, of course. But you’ll also find him at fundraisers, volunteer events and other activities where NKU students, faculty and staff are giving back to the community.

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

Ent

1

E

xa

NO.

Em

Public

g En ag

m p lE

Regional stewardship is built into the mission It begins with a mission statement that commits NKU to regional stewardship. That, in turn, establishes a climate and expectation of service that takes many forms. Students, faculty and staff all embrace this mission and work toward its execution. No single class, program or initiative tells the whole story. But together, they underscore a commitment. Some activities happen outside the academic structure. Perhaps a sorority, fraternity or other student organization volunteers at a nonprofit. Thousands of volunteer hours are recorded by our students every year. Other examples are part of NKU’s academic structure. Service learning classes and applied research lead the pack in this category. Still other examples are more individualized, with members of the NKU family serving on community boards and committees. Add them all together and the sum of the parts is an inspiring whole.

Students mend a fence at Spring into Service, an annual volunteer blitz during which students tackle numerous community improvement projects on a Saturday morning in spring. Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

101 examples and counting What is public engagement? For NKU, it is how we extend the university beyond the campus boundaries for the mutual benefit of our students and our community. learning still occurs in a classroom, but deeper learning occurs when the community is our classroom − when students learn by doing. In this report, you’ll find essays on how NKU puts this idea into practice along with 101 examples that bring our definition of public engagement to life.

Northern Kentucky University | Page 3

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

a statue of a young abe lincoln stands on the grounds of NKU, a reminder that america’s brightest minds understood the importance of service and citizenship.

Breadth and depth define engagement NKU has made a point of putting an institutional infrastructure in place to support regional stewardship, with time, talent and money dedicated to strengthening campus/community collaborations.

Ent E

xa

m p lE

Public

Em

2

T

here was a time, in the not-so-distant past, when universities were islands, separated from the people and life in the towns and cities that surrounded them. Today, higher education institutions are increasingly community partners where students and faculty help solve real-world problems and delve into important local issues using university resources and talent. George Mehaffy has observed the transition with an especially keen interest. A key responsibility for

him at the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, where he is vice president for academic leadership and change, is to monitor this trend and to support its growth. “Traditionally universities were quite separate from the community, quite literally up on hills,” Dr. Mehaffy said. “Many were religious in nature and not connected to daily life, but were places to contemplate and think. In the modern era, public universities take their public obligation seriously. They want

to serve their students, their community and their region.” NKU has long been on AASCU’s radar not only as a university with a stated commitment to public engagement – but also as a university with a strategy to build an institutional infrastructure to translate the idea into action. “It’s very rare in higher education for people who have developed the theory of a particular strategy to be the same people who are in a leadership position to carry it out. NKU is an unusual example of a leadership team that has

Film is a how-to guide to volunteering

g En ag NO.

by Feoshia Henderson

The documentary “Humanity, I Love You” debuted in December with a campus screening. It is the work of seniors Stephanie Mathena and Kelsey Robinson, who produced it as their capstone

project. The documentary follows eight volunteers as they work to rebuild a New Orleans home that was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina. The project took a full academic year and countless

hours to complete. Mathena and Robinson are showing the film to community groups in the hope that it inspires viewers to help the needy in New Orleans and to volunteer closer to home as well.

Northern Kentucky University | Page 5

“i like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. i like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.” -Abraham Lincoln

Embedding public engagement across the university is not automatic. Even with strategies and procedures aligned, professors must be persuaded every bit as much as players must be persuaded to believe in a playbook. Today, the Center for Integrative Natural Science and Mathematics (CINSAM) is a campus leader in public engagement, but Gail Wells, NKU’s vice president for academic affairs and provost, remembers the early days. “Some scientists and mathematicians wanted to focus purely on research and did not see the value of public

h NKU is a repeat honoree on the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. The Honor Roll highlights colleges and universities committed to “solving community problems and placing more students on a lifelong path of civic engagement.” h In 2005, NKU was selected as one of 13 universities to advise the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching on the development of an elective classification system based on community engagement.

engagement. This soon changed as several high-performing faculty became involved in such efforts as improving science and mathematics education in the P-12 schools, water quality initiatives, brownfield work, wetlands restoration, etc.,” Dr. Wells said. “It became clear that public engagement can be rigorous, academically demanding and applied research at its best, with high positive impact for our community. The faculty and students working on these projects had rich learning experiences and provided great benefit to the community. These efforts have attracted millions of dollars in funding, and they have been cited as national models of public engagement.” That national notice is frequent at academic conferences, in scholarly

h In 2006, NKU became one of only 76 institutions nationwide to receive such recognition by the Carnegie Foundation, and one of only 66 recognized for both “curricular engagement” and “outreach and partnerships.” h Vice President Academic Affairs and Provost Dr. Gail Wells received the 2010 William M. Plater Award for Leadership in Civic Engagement by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. The award recognizes “the critical role of the chief academic officer in advancing the civic mission of the campus.”

journals and on lists that recognize colleges and universities for their public engagement work. “NKU has been a leader and has a continued interest in sharing knowledge as part of that leadership,” said Maureen Curley, president of the National Campus Compact. The compact, a coalition of 1,100 colleges and universities united around public engagement, has an especially strong presence in Kentucky, providing training, grant support and networking for 22 member colleges and universities. Its statewide office is on the NKU campus and NKU provides administrative support. Curley credits NKU President James C. Votruba, who has served on both the state and national boards, with raising the compact’s status in Kentucky.

“That shows a huge commitment to look beyond the school to see the value of networking with colleges across the state,” Curley said. NKU’s reputation for public engagement has a direct benefit as a recruiting tool for top faculty. Though a young university (founded in 1968) and midsized (2011 enrollment is 13,517 undergraduates and 1,615 graduate students), NKU routinely attracts professors who want to be part of a place that has staked a claim on campus/community collaboration. The end result is an even stronger commitment, as more champions of public engagement join the NKU ranks. Daryl Harris, an associate professor of theater, joined the faculty in 2003 in part because of NKU’s Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project, a program that incorporates grant-giving into 10 to 15 courses each year. He has built the Mayerson components into some of his theater classes, awarding, for example, $1,000 to the Kincaid Regional Theatre Company in 2010. Before awarding funds, students must get to know the applicants through interviews and site visits. “It’s a learning tool for students,” Dr. Harris said. “You have an exchange with people off campus and learn some life lessons that you cannot learn in the classroom. It also exposes others to what we offer at NKU and the potential of a university education that some might not get otherwise.”

Contest rewards writing excellence Public

NO.

3

E

their families, teachers and friends to an awards ceremony, and their submissions are published in a chapbook (a pocket-sized booklet) that is displayed in local public and school libraries.

Ent

Northern Kentucky high school students, the contest awards cash prizes ($100 for first place, $75 for second and $50 for third) to the top entries in the poetry, fiction and personal essay categories. Winning writers are invited with

Em

The Northern Kentucky Area High School Creative Writing Contest is an outreach program sponsored by the Department of English that seeks to foster a greater interest in the literary arts and to recognize student achievement. Open to all

g En ag

m p lE

NKU’s framework begins with a mission statement that calls for “excellence in outreach and public engagement.” The university’s core values (listed on every faculty and staff business card) include “public engagement that advances the progress of the region and commonwealth.” Documents for accreditation as well for the strategic plan mention engagement prominently. Job postings call on applicants to be committed to community service. The faculty handbook values service for promotion, retention and tenure –a provision that gives professors the go-ahead to invest time and effort in teaching and scholarship that connect NKU to the community. Add to those the university’s home page, where a news blog features at least one example per week of NKU’s public engagement

Known in the nation

xa

developed a framework that they not only are able to write about but are also actually able to put into practice,” Dr. Mehaffy said.

2012 Public Engagement Report

W

Putting an emphasis on P-12 an area of emphasis for NKU’s public engagement is elementary and secondary education.

hen it comes to collaboration with primary and secondary education, Northern Kentucky University’s public engagement is an intended consequence. “We will,” NKU’s strategic plan asserts, “deepen our regional commitment to P-12 education.”

By name, those four NKU examples are the Museum Without Walls, Upward Bound, KYOTE and the Early Childhood Education Database. What they represent is an array of P-12 collaborations between NKU and the school districts in the university’s service area.

In practice, that means when a challenge rises from within the P-12 arena, NKU is a ready partner in fashioning a solution.

“Of all of the institutions I have seen in Kentucky and elsewhere, I think we have the best working relationships with our districts,” said Dr. Mark Wasicsko, dean of NKU’s College Education and Human Services.

Consider: • Problem: Limited time, money and transportation keep many elementary and secondary teachers from taking their students on field trips to local museums. Solution: Create virtual field trips online that bring the museum to the classroom. • Problem: Young people in families without a parent or sibling who has attended college lack role models and see higher education as beyond their reach. Solution: Provide a program to support college preparation for high school students who might otherwise miss the opportunity for higher education. • Problem: Many high school seniors lack the math skills to succeed in college. Solution: Intervene quickly with testing to benchmark the students’ standing, a curriculum to advance their learning, follow-up testing to confirm progress and, finally, guaranteed placement in a college math class for those whose skills improve.

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU Geared to gifted and talented students in grades K-8, the ExploreMore! Enrichment Program offers a broad range of courses in science, art, math and more.

Ent E

xa

m p lE

Public

Em

4

The inventory includes support for afterschool programming; professional development; online portals for curricular resources; databases for tracking regional progress; summer camps with academic missions; college credit courses available to qualifying high school students; and some two dozen centers that have P-12 support as at least one of their goals. Among the targets of NKU’s P-12 public engagement are students not on track for college – with the goal of getting them on track, as Upward Bound does. Doors open. The impossible seems possible. “I’ve seen sophomores who didn’t think they’d be able to write a research paper and present it publicly, realizing that they could, and even using some of that research in their entry level col-

Doctoral students work in stewardship teams

g En ag NO.

• Problem: Schools and agencies working in early childhood development collect a lot of data but don’t store the results in one place. Solution: Build a passwordprotected, online database that stakeholders can access from any computer to find numbers and analysis crucial to continuous improvement.

The emphasis on P-12 is inescapably evident in any review of public engagement at NKU. The list of efforts is long and diverse, with many directed toward the STEM disciplines of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. But the arts are well-represented, too, with history fairs, creative writing workshops and a music prep program that features choirs and orchestras for elementary and secondary students.

Service is built into the curriculum for students seeking a doctoral degree in educational leadership. That’s part of an NKU strategy to assure that public engagement is valued by graduates who have or will have classrooms of their

own in our region’s primary and secondary schools. How the graduate students meet the service requirement is where their creativity comes into play. One group of students partnered with a community agency, the Brighton

Center, that serves inner-city families in Newport. The students created the Artistic Expression Program, a monthly event giving at-risk young adults an opportunity to express themselves through art. 

Northern Kentucky University | Page 7

“We’ll nurture young P-12 talent and support the strengthening of P-12 education. We’ll prepare collegiate talent in fields important to the region and state.” -Dr. James C. Votruba, NKU president

lege classes years later,” said Eric Brose, Upward Bound’s director. “I’ve seen secondary students who didn’t think they’d be able to spend weeks away from home in the summer but finding that they could, and that they could create a supportive and ambitious academic world for themselves.”

The School-Based Scholars program allows high school students to take NKU college classes prior to high school graduation. These students are at Dixie Heights High School in Crestview Hills, where some of the classes are held.

professionals at NKU supporting initiatives like Success by 6, our region would not have a kindergarten readiness definition and therefore I doubt the state would have one,” Williams said. “The state modeled Northern Kentucky’s definition, and NKU faculty served on the committee that drafted the state definition.”

Much of the effort is geared toward drawing students who will be the Setting first in their families to attend college – a a priority social reality in both h NKU completed the urban and rural a strategic planning parts of the region process in 2007 that served by NKU. set goals through Informed by research 2012. that shows such efh Among the goals: forts must start early Collaborate with to succeed, one of P-12 educators to NKU’s most frequent enhance student focus areas is early performance and prepare our region’s childhood education.

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

• Financial aid: The Promise Program covers tuition, fees and books for students who are recent graduates from Covington and Newport. Its goal is to remove any financial barriers for academically prepared students. While many programs involve the use of NKU resources on behalf of community partners, the metaphor that most defines NKU’s P-12 collaborations is a two-way street. NKU gives, but it

also receives. Schools, for example, provide countless opportunities for NKU’s education majors by being in the classroom for practicums and student teaching. No one sees the mutual advantage more than Dean of Education Wasicsko. “There has never been a request from me for assistance from a local district that has not been received with positivism and sincere interest to help,” Dr. Wasicsko said. “I have tried to reciprocate at any opportunity.”

Summer camps bring young learners to campus Public

NO.

5

E

on activities to explore planets and constellations. They gain an understanding of spectroscopy and use of the scientific method. And as camp wraps up, they try out their newfound knowledge in an astronomy game show.

Ent

Camp, Math and Statistics Camp, and Ohio River Ecology and Applied Research Camp. Each is designed to include active learning. At Astronomy Camp, for example, students in grades 6 through 8 engage in hands-

Em

NKU has developed a series of summer camps for elementary and secondary students. These include Astronomy Camp, Emerging Technology Camp, English Language Learners Camp, Fun with Science Camp, Java Computing

g En ag

m p lE

part of the Urban District Preparedness Program.

xa

Another notable NKU/community collaboration is the Strive Partnership, a comprehensive effort to work toward academic success for every child in the region’s three urban school districts: Cincinnati, Covington and Newport. Strive’s approach is at both ends of the P-12 scale, with programs students for college. targeted toward “All of the work done kindergarten on one by NKU is impresend and programs sive, but I have to smoothing the transition from say I believe the work of the early high school to higher ed on the childhood faculty has transformed other. how providers, educators, and Among the Strive initiatives with community partners in the early direct ties to NKU: childhood world work together and support early learners,” • College readiness: NKU develsaid Kara Clark Williams, vice oped the implementation and president for strategic initiatives at evaluation plans for the Newport/ Vision 2015, a regional planning Covington Collaborative, which agency that identifies educaprovides essential teacher training tion and economic development in college readiness assessments. among its focus areas. • Teacher recruitment: NKU is She specifically cites NKU’s work one of several partners drawing on Success by 6, a national proon best-practice approaches from gram supported by United Way. other cities to prepare and place top teachers in urban settings as “Without the early childhood

NKU biology student Rebecca Ortwein, left, instructs high school students from the Greater Cincinnati region in fish identification while aboard a boat on the Ohio River, where they attended NKU’s Fun with Science Camp for English language learners.

NKU photo

Service learning is a win-win For students, lessons come to life with real-world applications. For community partners, the ‘deliverables’ include websites, photos, marketing plans and more. by claire Higgins

I

t’s easy enough to put a drop of river water on a slide, slip it under a microscope and instruct students to look closely to see what they can identify. With a textbook nearby to show what’s what, the students might see something that looks like a hairy, oblong pill swimming

Ent E

xa

m p lE

Public

Em

6

These days, she’s taking that approach a step further. First, she teaches her Northern Kentucky University students the skills they need in the field. Next, she asks them to teach high school students those same skills. They do it aboard a boat on the Ohio River.

Biology has been taught this way for generations. It works well enough. But Miriam Kannan’s approach is a little different. She’d rather take her students to the field and let them collect water samples, “We’re using the river as a hook to draw students to the STEM then break out the microscopes disciplines,” Dr. Kannan said, and Petri dishes on the spot.

using the popular acronym for science, technology, engineering and mathematics. “We do physics, we do chemistry, we do biology – showing them that science is fun.” The classes are part of a weeklong summer camp for English language learners called Fun with Science and operated by NKU’s Center for Integrative Natural Science and Mathematics (CINSAM),

Nursing students prep for demographic shift

g En ag NO.

among other hairy, oblong pills. If so, they’ve spotted trouble: E. coli, a bacterial indicator of sewage.

The Hispanic population is growing dramatically in most Kentucky counties. Aware of the trend, NKU’s College of Health Professions joined with the Kentucky Institute for International Studies (a consortium of colleges

and universities) to send nursing students to Mexico to observe and work at clinics and hospitals. Eleven NKU students went to Mérida, Yucatán, for five weeks in 2011, the program’s fourth summer trip.  The students live with local

families and eat local food. “I am convinced that this experience will help to improve the health of Hispanic clients in this region,” said NKU Professor Adele Dean, who works with the program.

Northern Kentucky University | Page 9

“What they are learning has so much more meaning when they can see the value of it to their community rather than just the dry learning from a book. and it sticks with them longer.”

Biology Professor Miriam Kannan was NKU’s 2011 Frank Sinton Milburn Outstanding Professor of the Year, an award given for her research and her public engagement.

-Dr. Miriam Kannan, NKU professor of biology NKU photo

The camp is part of a larger NKU initiative, the Ohio River STEM Institute, designed to use the river as a classroom for high school and college students. Scratch the surface of the institute’s programming and you’ll quickly find a pedagogy known as service learning that began to find its way into higher education in the 1970s. NKU was an early adaptor, and Dr. Kannan is a committed practitioner.

h This definition, derived from peer-reviewed research on service learning, was adopted by NKU in January 2006 in order to set a standard for what is and isn’t service learning at NKU. Establishing a definition sent a message that the university values service as an academic component of the classroom.

Every academic year, NKU teaches more than 100 service learning classes with about 2,000 students enrolled. These are not classes in which students simply volunteer. Their service experience must, by NKU’s parameters, “directly and explicitly link to the course learning objectives.” For the science camp, NKU students enroll in a class taught by Dr. Kannan, a biologist at NKU for more than 30 years with a national reputation for her research. By the time camp rolls around, the NKU students

h Service learning is a course-based, credit-bearing educational experience in which students (a) participate in an organized service activity that meets a community need and (b) reflect upon their service activity as a means of gaining a deeper understanding of course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, an enhanced sense of civic responsibility, and/or a greater interest in and understanding of community life.

are ready to teach what they’ve learned. Information gathered by the camps’ students about water quality is shared with another community partner, ORSANCO, an interstate commission that monitors Ohio River pollution. Eventually, the data will be posted online for site called “River on the Web,” or ROW. Although the variety of classes taught as service learning varies, certain principles don’t. Service learning involves collaboration between classes and community partners, with benefit to both. The classes get the opportunity for applied learning; the partners get deliverables. Web design classes have designed websites for nonprofits. Photography classes have provided a portfolio of images for brochures

and other marketing materials. Public history classes have created museum exhibits. The list goes on. NKU also encourages professors who teach service learning classes to make presentations at academic conferences and to write for academic journals, which are compiling an increasing body of evidence that service learning is one of the most effective ways to teach. For those who wonder why a university should bother with service learning, Dr. Kannan has a ready answer: “What they are learning has so much more meaning when they can see the value of it to their community rather than just the dry learning from a book. And it sticks with them longer.” The service doesn’t replace lec-

tures, textbooks, homework, tests or other traditional learning tools; it is, instead, an added tool, and in many professors’ estimation, a power tool at that. As another NKU professor, Missy Jones, puts it: “Service learning makes connections between theory and practice.” She builds service learning into her special education class, EDS 364, Characteristics of Learning and Behavior Disorders. During the semester, learning disabled students from local high schools visit NKU to explore life on a college campus. The visitors are mentored by Dr. Jones’s students, who guide them through activities of self-discovery and goal setting. Many would not have thought of college as an option; but in the four years that Dr. Jones has taught the class, four students have decided to enroll at NKU. As is typical for service learning, Dr. Jones requires a reflection paper. “Students have to think about what this means for them in their profession, as people, what changes are going to happen as a result of this, even commit to this. It’s almost a contract to themselves.” Dr. Jones said.

Clown school PR campaign was serious business Public

NO.

7

E

to pass along the clowning arts. He was less qualified to design a PR strategy. Enter Dr. De Blasio’s students – who found a little mojo of their own by applying classroom learning to a real-world challenge.

Ent

big-top skills while also teaching self-confidence and creativity to kids who would find their mojo through the circus arts. With a college degree in drama and a higher hilarity degree from clown college, Miller was plenty qualified

Em

Professor Greg De Blasio’s public relations class picks a client each semester and creates a PR plan. A recent client was Circus Mojo, a storefront school located in Ludlow. Former clown Paul Miller started the school to teach

g En ag

m p lE

Defining service learning at NKU

xa

which works with the region’s primary and secondary schools to advance the teaching of math and science. Another NKU partner, the Office of Latino Student Affairs, is deeply involved, too, as is the Center for Applied Informatics, which designs web components.

2012 Public Engagement Report

The community giving board of Toyota motor Engineering and manufacturing North america listens closely as NKU students recommended how to allocate $60,000 to nonprofits seeking Toyota funding.

Aly Durrett/NKU

Student philanthropy changes lives in and out of class after more than a decade as part of the university’s course offerings, NKU’s highly regarded ‘mayerson’ classes are marquee examples of service learning. Students have distributed thousands of dollars to dozens of nonprofits. along the way, they’ve learned lasting lessons about community stewardship.

Ent E

xa

m p lE

Public

Em

8

I

n Julie Olberding’s fall semester class at Northern Kentucky University, she gave her graduate students an unusual goal: help Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing North America allocate money. Quite a bit of money, actually. The class, part of the university’s growing Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project, analyzed grant applications received by Toyota and advised the company on how to distribute more than $60,000. Although the company’s board had the final say in distribution, many of the students’ recommen-

dations were approved – sometimes with changes to the amount the nonprofit would receive based on Toyota’s available resources.

asked, ‘Can I volunteer for Jobs for Cincinnati Grads? I went there and I’m amazed by the work they do,’ ” Dr. Olberding said. “It’s wonderful. Students go through, and they This story was originally find a match and an published in December 2011 organization that in Soapbox Cincinnati, an fits their interests.” online news magazine focusing

Since starting the philanthropic program more than a decade ago, NKU has found that when students on creativity and innovation take a class and At a recent awards in Cincinnati and Northern participate in givKentucky. It is reprinted here ceremony, Dr. with permission. ing, they are more Olberding said, four likely to continue executive directors the behavior. They of nonprofits which tend to donate, to volunteer and were receiving Mayerson Awards even to serve on nonprofit boards. were former project students. “It “This semester, before class ended, was really inspiring,” she said. one student raised a hand and

Working with Toyota was part

Magnets celebrate Norse Pride and a cause

g En ag NO.

by taylor Dungjen

They are starting to show up on bumpers around town: fourby-six inch ovals that proclaim Norse Pride. The magnets were the brainchild Joe Graf, an NKU graduate student in the Master of Public Administration program,

which prepares students for jobs with nonprofits and government service. The magnets are $5 each, with proceeds going into a student philanthropy funding pool. Off the bat, the magnets accounted for $700. Order a magnet by calling

(859) 572-1448. Or mail $5.50 (includes shipping and handling) along with your name and address to the NKU Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement, Founders Hall 536, Highland Heights, KY 41099.

Northern Kentucky University | Page 11

“i learned there are a lot of nonprofit organizations out there that want to help people in our community live better lives.” -Student in ENG 344, a Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project class

Measurable impacts

$506,905

h Total direct investment since the Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project’s inception

233

h Nonprofit programs to receive funding from NKU classes over the past 11 years

2,250

h Students who have taken student philanthropy classes at NKU Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

at the end of each semester, student philanthropy classes award checks to the nonprofits they’ve selected. The ceremony is always a time for hugs and smiles.

“One thing that is amazing about it to me is to see the change in individuals and how they see their ability to make an impact on the world,” Dr. Olberding said. “NKU students are middle income mostly, lower income, sometimes first-generation college students, and so they’ve said on evaluations, ‘I didn’t think I could make a difference. I’m one person. I’m not a millionaire, but this program has made me realize every little bit helps and my little bit can help change a person’s life.’ ” UPDATE: NKU has nine Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project Classes for the Spring 2012 semester. They are in six disciplines: social work, history, Spanish, communication, English and organizational leadership. NKU adds student philanthropy to at least one new discipline each year.

Learning to give has a lasting impact Do the lessons of student philanthropy last after graduation? In a word, yes. Political Science Professor Julie Olberding found that 86 percent of the alumni of Northern Kentucky University’s student philanthropy classes had recently made charitable contributions, 71 percent reported volunteering and 15 percent served on nonprofit boards − higher percentages than national averages for those behaviors. Her research, titled “Does Student Philanthropy Work? A Study of Long-term Effects of the ‘Learning by Giving’ Approach,” will be published in an upcoming issue

of Innovative Higher Education, a peer-reviewed journal that focuses on innovations and new ideas in higher education. Dr. Olberding, who teaches student philanthropy classes at the graduate level, collected quantitative and qualitative data that let her see that the overall impact on alumni was a positive one. “The experience empowers individuals who may have thought that the world’s problems were too big and beyond them,” Dr. Olberding said. “But once they engage locally and see they can make a difference, then they want to do more.”

Student letters raised money for nonprofits Public

NO.

9

E

doubling the pool. The classes awarded the money to the Literacy Network of Greater Cincinnati, the Mathis Foundation for Children, the Music Resource Center and New Beginnings Family Services.

Ent

raised the money? Writing letters to family and friends to seek small donations, students raised $1,500 during the Spring 2011 semester. The Fall 2011 class raised $1,525. The Scripps Howard Foundation in Cincinnati matched that –

Em

For most student philanthropy classes, outside donors give NKU the money that the classes in turn award to nonprofits. Jeff Fox, who teaches CMST 340: Strategies of Persuasion, wanted to try a different way. What if his students

g En ag

m p lE

There have been other classes in which the students have been tasked with raising the funds for the giving. The class starts with no money and has to devise a fundraising campaign. One class did letter writing, bringing in about $1,500. The Scripps Howard

center then matched it with funds from outside donors.

xa

of “indirect giving,” meaning the students couldn’t directly give money to an organization. Students in other classes, however, have participated in direct giving. The class can span any discipline and typically includes $2,000 provided by a third-party donor which can be given to one program or split equally between two. Students “investigate a need and determine what nonprofits meet the need,” said Mark Neikirk, director of NKU’s Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement, where the student philanthropy program is headquartered.

2012 Public Engagement Report

It’s a holiday tradition at NKU for the president to read to children at the W. Frank Steely Library. The little ones are from the nearby Early Childhood Center. With President Votruba is Provost Gail Wells.

IT STaRTS aT

The TOP

When NKU hired Dr. James C. Votruba as its fourth president, he already had established a reputation as a leader in the national movement to elevate public engagement in higher education. Now, as he prepares to retire and step back into the classroom where his devotion to public engagement was first nurtured, he reflects on why campus-community collaborations are indispensable.

Q

From your first day at NKU, you made public engagement a signature strategy of your presidency. Why?

A

American public higher education has always been deeply invested in advancing national and community progress. Before coming to NKU, I was involved in leading Michigan State University’s efforts to

support Michigan’s progress in the areas of economic development, P-12 education enhancement, improved healthcare delivery and a host of other public priorities. What this taught me is that, if a university invests itself in the hopes and aspirations of the larger public whom we serve, benefits will accrue to both

the public and the university itself. This principle has been demonstrated over and over again over the past fifteen years as NKU has become a full partner in advancing regional progress and, in return, we have received enormous public affirmation and support.

Q

What would you say to someone who sees public

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

With the proceeds from his book, the President did more than just talk about stewardship h Published in 2010 by Jossey-Bass, “Becoming an Engaged Campus” is a how-to book for colleges looking to institutionalize public engagement. Its authors were NKU President James Votruba, Provost Gail Wells and Special Projects Director Carole Beere – three nationally recognized champions of public engagement. Not only did their book elevate NKU’s profile as a campus where public engagement is valued, it also is providing a revenue stream for student philanthropy classes. All proceeds from sales were directed to the classes. The first check was for $1,461.08. Over the next year, students will invest the money in local nonprofits they select for maximum impact.

Northern Kentucky University | Page 13

-Dr. Gail Wells, NKU Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost

engagement in the classroom as an “extra” that interferes with rigor and detracts from core content?

A

Public engagement should complement the core teaching mission of a campus like NKU. This occurs through involving faculty and students in real-world problem solving which not only benefits the public but deepens faculty and student understanding of the world.

In order for public engagement to contribute to a student’s education, it must have a reflective as well as action component. Public engagement involves analyzing complex problems, determining appropriate solutions, and then working with partners to implement thoughtful strategies. This process is applicable to problem solving in any setting. We have hundreds of undergraduate students who each year become involved in community-based problem solving and, in the process, deepen their understanding of themselves and their field of study.

Q

How unique is Northern in placing an emphasis on public engagement?

A

Many universities across the nation are involved in public engagement. However, in most cases this work exists on the periphery rather than as part of the core university mission. What distinguished NKU both in 1997 and today is our treatment of public engagement as a core element of our academic mission. This means that every college and every department is involved in this work. In addition, we have made sure that the campus is organizationally aligned to support public engagement work. We describe this as weaving public engagement into the fabric of the campus at every level. Today, NKU stands as a national model for this work and the creation of an organizational environment that supports it.

Q

Many argue that we must teach differently to a generation that grew up texting, Googling and gaming. Is there a role for public engagement in crossing that

“digital divide” to reach a generation of high-tech multitaskers?

A

Students today expect to learn anything, anytime, anyplace. They are active learners who want the freedom to create learning communities of likeminded people, sometimes using technology that allows such communities to be virtual. Public engagement involves active learning. It involves collaborative effort. And it often is enriched through the application of technology to connect people to each other and to knowledge resources that would otherwise not be accessible. Today, information technology enriches every aspect of our lives and every dimension of our educational mission, including public engagement.

Q

Is there a story or instance that stands out for you from your time at NKU when you saw public engagement do exactly what you hoped it would do?

A

This is a difficult question to answer. Over the past fifteen years, there have been hundreds of public engagement efforts that have had a significant impact on both our students and our community. However, let me highlight three efforts that I believe represent the strength and diversity of our engagement efforts. The first is our Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project which involves hundreds of undergraduate students in studying and then making investments in community nonprofit organizations. Over the past ten years, this project has demonstrated what a powerful pedagogic tool student philanthropy can be. The second is our Kentucky Center for Mathematics which is making a significant and measurable impact on P-12 mathematics performance through the application of best teaching practices in school settings throughout Kentucky’s 120 counties. The third is the College of Informatic’s Center for Applied Informatics which involves faculty and undergraduate students in the application of information technology to advance economic competitiveness.

As NKU’s vice president for academic affairs and provost, Dr. Gail Wells is the university’s chief academic officer. She offers her insights on the return on investment for students, faculty and the community.

StuDEntS h “Students report significant benefits from taking part in service learning, engaged research in the community and volunteerism. Such learning engages student’s minds and hearts, and they are often willing to spend increased time on task because they are quite motivated by such learning opportunities.  The learning is deeper when students are actively engaged and can see firsthand the results of their work. h “The research indicates that student engagement is positively associated with persistence in college, development of leadership skills, commitment to diversity, development of critical thinking skills, and a greater likelihood of becoming active citizens after graduation.  Many students discover that community engagement activities are beneficial as they pursue employment or applications for further study.”

FacultY h “Faculty are eager to provide better learning experiences for their students and discover that involving their classes in public engagement profoundly enriches the learning environment.  Engagement with the community often influences the curriculum and helps faculty keep the curriculum current, provides powerful examples for use in the classroom, involves the students in active, real-world learning experiences and energizes both faculty and students.  h “Public engagement also generates new research, publication and grant opportunities.  In addition, engagement often results in a sense of satisfaction and the knowledge that through their expertise they and their students have made a real difference in their community.”

cOmmunitY h “The community benefits by having access to faculty and student expertise as together they work for the common good.  It is sometimes possible to attract grants or other external funding when communities and universities partner.  Perhaps, most importantly, communities benefit when universities produce graduates who genuinely care about their communities and are prepared to be good citizens committed to working collaboratively to meet the needs of their region.”

Young researcher learned public health by doing it Public

NO.

10

E

undergraduate research fellowship awarded jointly by NKU’s Honors Program and the Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement. The fellowships – launched in 2010 – encourage students to engage in community-valued applied research.

Ent

Head Start staff and parents, leading to incomplete medical forms. She developed training for parents that emphasized the importance of being involved in their children’s activities and healthcare. Sams’ research and field work were supported by an

Em

Meryl Sams, a 2011 graduate from Lakeside Park, worked in Newport with Head Start, a program focused on improving the health and education of low-income children. Sams, a nursing major, found a communication breakdown between

g En ag

m p lE

their public engagement work.”

engagement’s R.O.I.

xa

“Students are often transformed by

“nKu graduates excel in their chosen fields, whether business or biology, English or engineering, nursing or new media. but they also excel at citizenship. that’s on purpose.” -Mark Neikirk, executive director, Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear greets students at a Northern Kentucky Forum, held at the NKU Student Union, where he answered questions during a town-hall style event.

Center connects campus, community programming is rooted in parallel themes: citizenship and stewardship

N

early all of the 30-plus centers and institutes at Northern Kentucky University have public engagement as part of their missions. But for one, the Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement, it’s the central mission. With every program or project, the center is looking for a way to strengthen the commitment among NKU’s students to being good citizens and good community stewards.

“On the stewardship side, that may mean serving on a nonprofit board, donating to community needs or leading a volunteer effort. On the citizenship side, it means knowing what’s going on in Frankfort, Washington and the world – and how to have an effective voice in public affairs.”

“The goal is straightforward: that when our students graduate, they

The center was launched in 2003 with a gift from the Scripps How-

Ent

11

Em

NO.

ard Foundation in Cincinnati. As the charitable affiliate of the E.W. Scripps Company, the newspaper and television corporation whose motto is “Give light and the people will find their own way,” the foundation had a particular interest in civic affairs and the idea that a democracy, to work well, requires engaged, educated citizens. “So we started a conversation about what we wanted our involvement to be and what such a project would look like, and from those discussions came the Scripps Howard Center for

Civic Engagement,” recalled Judith Clabes, the retired president and CEO of the foundation. In the early days, hosting speakers on public policy and coordinating voter registration drives led the center’s agenda – customary programming for a center with “civic engagement” in its name. While those remain, the center’s programming today has evolved into a wider set of offerings to bolster stewardship and citizenship: • Stewardship: The center is often the starting point when a nonprofit is looking to connect with

Turning a wetland into a learning lab

g En ag

E

xa

m p lE

Public

leave here with a sense of responsibility to the place where they live, and the skills to act on that calling,” said Mark Neikirk, the center’s executive director.

On 100 acres owned by the Sisters of Divine Providence in Melbourne, NKU’s biological sciences faculty and students are working with partners to turn a rare wetland into a living lab for ecological study.  The St. Anne Wetlands

Research and Education Center includes a 3,500-foot, self-guided trail, complete with interpretive kiosks.  The NKU team conducts research at the site and has designed teaching tools for P-12 and higher education, including

a website. Other partners include NKU’s Center for Applied Ecology, the Campbell County Conservation District, LaFarge Industries, the Boy Scouts, Thomas More College, Xavier University and the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service.

Northern Kentucky University | Page 15

Alongside the stewardship and citizenship efforts, the center is playing a role in expanding what President James C. Votruba has described as NKU’s “public intellectual” obligation. That role is best expressed by two efforts, the Northern Kentucky Forum and the Six@Six Lecture series, both of which rely strongly on community partnerships. The Northern Kentucky Forum, launched in October 2008, is a joint venture with Legacy and Vision 2015. Legacy is an association of young leaders (40 and under) in Northern Kentucky. Vision 2015 is a community agency that sets and monitors goals for the region in such areas as education and economic development. “The Forum’s mission is to encourage civil, substantive dialogue – something our democracy especially needs right now,” said Tara Ford of Vision 2015. Ford, a Forum board member and past chair, calls it “an important and growing resource for

Theater professor mark Hardy delivered his Six@ Six lecture at the Carnegie in Covington, where he was directing “Carousel.” He talked about the challenges of presenting the 1945 play with its difficult themes, including spouse abuse.

Visit us and speak out h The Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement is on Facebook, where each week the center posts a question drawn from the headlines. Public comment is invited. The same question is posted on a whiteboard at NKU’s Steely Library, and students are invited to comment in writing. A sample of the students’ comments is posted online at civicengagement.nku.edu.

Northern Kentuckians to become better informed on current events and public policy.” Healthcare, local government structure, education reform, community inclusion and government regulation of business have all been Forum topics. The Forum also has hosted town hall meetings, including one with Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear and another with Carolyn Washburn, the new editor of The Cincinnati Enquirer. An annual Forum event is a teach-in on how to have a voice in the state legislature, with how-to guides and experts available to answer questions. While the Forum is designed as an external activity – open to the public and often held offcampus – it also has important internal connections to public engagement: Some NKU faculty members serve on the Forum’s board, others have been panelists at Forum events and many invite their students to attend, sometimes incorporating Forum topics into classroom assignments. Like the Forum, Six@Six is a community partnership. The Behringer-Crawford Museum in Covington, Carnegie Visual & Performing Arts Center, also in Covington, and the Mercantile Library, in downtown Cincinnati, partner with the Center for Civic Engagement to present six lectures – each costing $6 and beginning at 6 p.m. Again, the general public is the target audience but admission is waived for students. The lectures feature NKU faculty

NKU Photo

members discussing their research and interests. In season one, for example, history professor and author James Ramage relayed the story of how a rawboned frontier lawyer’s speeches propelled him to national attention and made him a presidential contender. Abe Lincoln, Ramage told his audience, was unspectacular at best and ridiculed often – until he began to speak and people began to listen. Season two – the current season – features lectures on presidential politics, World War II espionage, medieval manuscripts, nanoparticles, 100-year-old AfricanAmerican recipes and the science of cycling. What’s happening at NKU reflects a new vision for civic learning in higher education that is described in a January 2012 report by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, “A Crucible Moment: College Learning and Democracy’s Future.” What AAC&U imagines is teaching traditional civics and history but adding instruction in how to be an active participant in public life. The report points out that the United States ranked 139th in voter participation of 172 world democracies in 2007. Its call to action is for a “newly broadened schema of civic learning (that) expands the historical definition of civics that stressed familiarity with the various branches of government and acquaintance with the basic information about U.S. history. This knowledge is still essential but no longer sufficient.”

Study examines the region’s nonprofits Public

NO.

12

E

jointly by two NKU offices, the Center for Economic Analysis and Development and the Office of Regional Stewardship, the study also identifies opportunities for collaborations among similar nonprofits.

Ent

Midwestern cities. The study, released in March 2011, finds that not all nonprofits are created equal, they don’t all compete for the same donor dollars and there are some stark differences between our region and others. Produced

Em

“Holding Our Community Together: The Nonprofits of Greater Cincinnati” provides a new perspective on nonprofits in the tri-state, dividing organizations into 12 categories and comparing them with nonprofits in five other

g En ag

m p lE

• Citizenship: One of the center’s newer initiatives is Democracy Square Live, a series of faculty-facilitated public policy and current event dialogues for students held about every two weeks during the school year. The topics have included the economy, evolution, immigration, new media, presidential politics and Middle East relations. The center also has boosted programming around state and national elections, including an online mock election that asks students not only to vote but to identify key issues that

influence their votes.

xa

NKU, as it was with The Point, a Covington-based agency that provides opportunities for people with special needs. The center matched The Point with Professor David Raska and his class, the Principles of Marketing (MKT 305). Dr. Raska’s students created a marketing plan for the S.S. Bean Company, a social enterprise operated by The Point that involves packaging and selling soup mixes. Future marketing classes will follow-up, building added components to market the soups.

2012 Public Engagement Report

DOUBLe The IMPaCT SCHolaRSHIp aND ENGaGEmENT

Partnership grants underwrite projects designed to address community needs. by greg Paeth

I

n her role as the chair of Northern Kentucky University’s Department of Advanced Nursing Studies, Marilyn Schleyer is absolutely convinced of two things: the burgeoning demand for nurses and the vital importance of convincing middle school students that nursing is a rewarding profession.

“A large part of what makes this program work is the help from our nursing students who plan and execute the activities of the various events. They are able to share their experiences as college students on the career See grants on page 17

Faculty, students team up on research that is as inspiring as it is practical.

C

hemistry Professor Heather Bullen’s community lecture on nanoparticle research was nearly complete. She was on the last few slides of her PowerPoint, a tutorial on tiny particles that are upend-

As she directed her laser pointer to each young face, she relayed a succession of post-graduate success stories: Pat has a job in Silicon Valley designing programs for the iPhone. Shannon is in medical school. Heather is a lead scientist at Lexmark in Lexington and Thomas at Pilot Chemical in Sharonville.

With those ideas in mind, Dr. Schleyer and her colleagues have been working with about 50 schools in the region to expose middle school students to nursing careers. “All of the research shows that if you want to influence young people about careers you have to start at the middle school level,” said Dr. Schleyer, adding that sixth grade seems to be the optimum year for making these lasting impressions. Pathways to a Nursing Degree began in 2006 when NKU and St. Elizabeth Healthcare partnered initially to interest high school students in nursing careers. Later, the middle school component was added so that the message might be delivered even earlier. Though faculty coordinated, Pathways also has a strong component of student involvement – something typical of the NKU approach to public engagement.

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

Kristi Haik, associate professor of biology, and Heather Bullen, associate professor of chemistry, collaborate with students and each other on research projects that benefit the community.

Grants support service, research Of the nearly $14 million in grants received each year at NKU, almost 40 percent support either service or research. Much of NKU’s research is applied research, with faculty and students examining questions the community identifies as important. Equipment 21% ($2,854,400)

Instruction 35% ($4,929,819)

Student support 4% ($505,987) Service 17% ($2,378,653)

Research 23% ($3,213,625) NKU Office Grants, Research and Contracts; data is for FY2010-11.

Ent E

xa

m p lE

Public

Em

13

Once through the list, Dr. Bullen turned to the audience at Covington’s Behringer-Crawford Museum and added one more bit of biography: “All of these students are first-generation college students. No one in their family had ever gone to college before.” Although not a research university by definition, Northern Kentucky University has an abundance of faculty members who are active researchers and often include students in their work. “One of the most effective ways to teach our students is by involving them in undergraduate research,” Dr. Bullen explained. “In our labs, students are getting graduate-level experience, which has prepared them for whatever career path they choose.” See Research on page 17

Learning filmmaking while capturing history

g En ag NO.

ing what we thought we knew about things too small to see without a microscope. Her final slide looked much different. It looked more like a page from a college yearbook. These, Dr. Bullen explained, are students who worked in her lab.

After the Kentucky River’s Middle Fork was dammed in 1960 to create Buckhorn Lake, a popular state park soon opened. Lost to time was Bowlingtown, a mountain community near present-day Hazard and dating back to

when Daniel Boone led settlers there. “The Lost Community of Bowlingtown” is the working title of a film by NKU students and faculty capturing the history and impact with archival photos, interviews and on-location video. Scheduled

for festival and internet release in 2012, the documentary is a collaboration of NKU faculty, classes and the student-run NorseMedia, which also produces radio, television and web programming for community benefit.

Northern Kentucky University | Page 17

Grants continued from page 16

days and at camp,” said Professor Adele Dean, who with colleague Judi Frerick launched Pathways and now co-coordinates it with Professor Erin Robinson. What Pathways represents is one

of an array of campus-community collaborations underwritten in part by NKU’s UniversityCommunity Partnership Grants (UCPG), which funded the Pathways launch and then its expansion to middle schools. Since 2002, about $1 million in grants has been invested in community projects, ranging from

supporting a regional conference for gifted children to a study of invasive plants on local farms. Most of the projects include a research component, and that work, said Associate Provost for Research, Graduate Studies and Regional Stewardship Jan Hillard, has “resulted in significant, substantive changes in the com-

munity.” A 2007 grant for $55,421, for example, was instrumental in creating a pilot program for the mental health court in Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties. “This program illustrates the ideal of being a bridge builder between the university and the community,” said Dr. Hillard, whose office oversees the grant award process.

2011 GRaNTS nKu awarded $40,000 in university-community Partnership grants in 2011.

LITeRaCY

INCLUSION

SeRVICe LeaRNING

h $14,500 to Dr. Jonathan Cullick, English, to expand Bookfest, a program already in 25 middle schools. Bookfest encourages reading and writing in grades 5-8. Students read selected books during the school year and attend a workshop at NKU to discuss the books and meet authors.

h $15,000 to a faculty team led by Dr. Jimmie Manning, communication, to look at social diversity in our region. Data gathered will update the biennual report, Bridges Progress Report on Human Relations in Cincinnati.

h Three mini-awards of $3,500 each to support service learning: Dr. John Rockaway, geology, for work relating to research at Big Bone Lick State Park; Jennifer Smith of Steely Library for work on Whiz Kids Book Links; and Dr. Holly Riffe, social work, for work with military veterans and their families.

A prime example is Melissa Toms, who is researching detection methods for synthetic cannabinoids – that is, fake pot. “My research on these substances has provided me with an insight to the dangers of their use. The fact that these products are easily purchased just a few minutes north of Kenton County in Cincinnati makes them a significant threat to the community,” Toms wrote in a proposal seeking a fellowship to underwrite her work. She’s working on a quick, reliable saliva test that police can use in the field. This kind of community-oriented approach to research is typical at NKU, whether the work is by students, faculty or both working together. In the College of Education and Human Services, faculty members have worked with the United Way and other partners to

The campus-community connection is encouraged at NKU because the goals of scholarship and public engagement dovetail when the university’s research capacity is applied to community needs. Imagine, President James C. Votruba offered by way of example, a faculty member working with a high school to implement and evaluate dropout prevention measures. “Imagine as well that this faculty member involves both undergraduate and graduate

students to give them a real-world experience in addressing the dropout prevention challenge,” he said. “Such an initiative is simultaneously applied research, teaching and public engagement.” In NKU’s Master of Public Administration program, students routinely undertake community research, finding nonprofits, local governments and others who can put the research to use. Welcome House of Northern Kentucky, an agency working with the homeless, called a press conference in June 2011 to spotlight an example of such work. Lisa Desmarais, an MPA student, initiated a study evaluating the public cost of supporting the chronically homeless. She partnered with Boone County Human Services to conduct the study. “Typically the costs range between $35,000 and $150,000 per year to service a chronically homeless person,” Desmarais said in an

interview on WNKU. “If you took a look at different models of care for this particular population, we can generally provide housing and support services anywhere from $13,000 to $25,000 per year if we do things differently.” The study tracked 37 chronically homeless people and found a public expenditure of nearly $1 million. More than half of that went to medical care that is inefficiently and ineffectively delivered from emergency rooms rather than primary care doctors. The study found programs in other cities where homeless costs were more effectively managed, including one in Columbus, where a focus on “housing first” gets people off the streets and into a permanent home or apartment. “We found that there are some excellent best practices right in our backyard,” Desmarais said.

Joining the battle against human trafficking Public

NO.

14

E

volunteer handbook, a survey and a database.  MPA student Jenny Brady is working with Crossover to research social enterprises that help sex trade survivors in India, Cambodia and other countries.

Ent

and self-sufficient individuals. Some students in Dr. Olberding’s Volunteer Management (PAD 622) class worked with the Crossover Foundation, a nonprofit created and supported by Crossroads Church in Cincinnati, to design a

Em

Professor Julie Olberding, the director of NKU’s Master of Public Administration program, and her students are supporting volunteer efforts to transition victims of sex trafficking in India into healed, educated

g En ag

m p lE

continued from page 16

improve preschool and primary education. A multi-year research project by NKU’s nursing faculty has provided crucial strategies to reduce children’s exposure to lead in Northern Kentucky. And a team of faculty and students in the Department of Communication is examining social relations in Greater Cincinnati and will report its findings to Bridges for a Just Community, a regional nonprofit that promotes inclusion.

xa

Research

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

Heads take on bizarre looks during Tau Kappa Epsilon’s Cuts for the Cure, an annual fundraiser for alzheimer’s association in which the high bidder gets to play barber.

They make giving fun nKu students know how to give back to the community. they also know how to have a good time doing it.

by greg Paeth

T

his is what public engagement sometimes looks like: Amateur barbers shaving heads, leaving random patches of hair atop strikingly ridiculous bald spots in shapes too odd to describe. This is what public engagement sometimes sounds like: A gathering crowd, chanting, “Mullet! Mullet! Mullet!” It’s called Cuts for the Cure and the willing victims are members of

NO.

Ent

15

Em

E

xa

m p lE

Public

g En ag

the Northern Kentucky University chapter of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity. Come March, they grow their hair out, then submit to the whims of their fellow students by agreeing to have their hair butchered by the highest bidder. The money goes to the Alzheimer’s Association, which has been a TKE philanthropy across the country for 10 years. Senior Austin Green, TKE vice president, said Cuts for the Cure

raises a couple of thousand dollars at NKU for a project that was first conceived to recognize former president Ronald Reagan, a TKE fraternity brother who suffered from the incurable disease. As unusual as the haircuts might be at Cuts for the Cure, there is nothing unusual about the community service the event reflects. In any given academic year, barely a week passes without some example of a fraternity, sorority, club or

Cold water but warmer hearts NKU’s Leadership Mentors recruit divers and raise money for the Polar Bear Plunge, a February fundraiser for the Special Olympics in Bellevue. Dressed for summer but taking the plunge in winter, participants cannon ball and belly

flop into a near-freezing pool of water in payment of the pledges they’ve gathered. The Leadership Mentors have raised thousands of dollars over the years including more than $6,000 in 2011. For the mentors, public engagement is

year-around commitment. They are NKU students with advanced leadership skills who work with other NKU students and area high school students to mentor them for future leadership roles.

Northern Kentucky University | Page 19

“We have 200 student organizations, and all of them do something in the area of service.... i mean, every group has their niche for something they’ve taken on as their project.” -Betty Mulkey, director of Student Life

Much of the public engagement at NKU is on the academic side, where classes collaborate with community partners for service learning and applied research. But the co-curricular, or nonacademic side, provides a robust

• The Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity raised $2,025 for youth AIDS awareness during its inaugural Youth AIDS Week last fall with a Dine to Donate event at an Applebee’s, team penny wars in the Student Union and a dodgeball tournament with Theta Phi Alpha, a sorority. • Hundreds of students turn out each fall for Service on Saturday in the fall and again for Spring into Service in March, two events that dispatch teams of student volunteers to preselected community locations where volunteer projects await. Trails are mulched, See Student on page 20

TKE members were good sports, knowing their hair will grow back for the 2012 Cuts for the Cure.

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

by greg Paeth

W

hen Northern Kentucky University baseball players visited patients at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, they spent time in the playroom with kids too sick to be home with siblings and friends – lifting spirits. Back on campus, the team launched its annual toy drive to benefit the hospital. The golf team dropped by the Newport Independent School District’s Preschool Village, reading stories and working puzzles. They came first for Halloween, bringing along the ingredients for caramel apples. They returned for Christmas to make ornaments with the kids and brought hats and mittens for all 38 students. Although college athletes aren’t required by the NCAA to volunteer on or off campus, the NCAA “strongly encourages” universities and their athletes to play positive and prominent roles that drive home the point that “there are some good people stories out there and one of them is that athletes are more than just jocks,” NKU Athletics Director Scott Eaton said. Eaton said virtually all NKU athletes participate in public engagement projects. One of the biggest projects is Adopt-A-Class, a program started in 2010 and continuing since. Student athletes

for military personnel and their families to relax as they travel to and from assignments. The lounge is open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and has Internet, refreshments and other amenities.

Other barriers fall as well. On their last visit, the golf team left signed Norse basketballs. Why, one boy asked, did they leave balls for the girls? Girls don’t play basketball. “So we talk about that,” Neikirk said.

g En ag NO.

16

E

is dedicated to helping veterans navigate college. Fill the Boot is a campaign for donations to support a military lounge at the Cincinnati/ Northern Kentucky International Airport. The lounge is a quiet place

The gifts are appreciated – and needed. The princess and superhero winter hats were worn immediately and every day afterward. But more importantly, the children bonded with their golf buddies and began to see life possibilities that were unclear before. They are children who live in some of Northern Kentucky’s poorest neighborhoods, where college often seems distant reality. Now, Neikirk said, when college is mentioned her kids have a better grasp of what it is and that it is something they, like the golf buddies, can also do one day.

Ent

Help Fill the Boot is a partnership of two NKU students groups, Phi Alpha Theta and VETS. Phi Alpha Theta is the history honor society while VETS (Veterans for Education and Transition Support)

“When they come, the kids feel very special,” said Kate Neikirk, one of the teachers whose class the golf team visits. “We call them our golf buddies.”

Em

Fill the boot, help a soldier

work throughout the year with fourth, fifth and sixth graders in Newport, tutoring and joining special events to drive home the importance of a college education. The program included special guest status at a Norse basketball game and an Olympic Day visit to NKU. The preschool visits also are part of the AdoptA-Class initiative.

Public

“We have about 200 student organizations, and all of them do something in the area of service. They don’t always necessarily report that service to our office,” Mulkey said. “Every group has its niche for something they have taken on as their project.”

• NKU’s Greek community partnered with Hoxworth Blood Center to host an on-campus blood drive. The drive took place Nov. 21 in the University Center Ballroom. A hundred people rolled up a sleeve and withstood the needle, supplying enough blood and plasma to save about 300 lives.

athletes team up off the court, too

m p lE

It adds up – although putting a number on what it adds up to be is educated guesswork. One report showed that students had contributed at least 5,000 hours to community projects, but Betty Mulkey, NKU’s director of the Office of Student Life, is absolutely confident the figure represented only a fraction of the real total

complement of services to the community as well. Consider these examples:

xa

other student organization raising money, collecting used clothing or canned goods, or volunteering at a shelter, a food pantry or some other nonprofit.

2012 Public Engagement Report

Student continued from page 18

flower gardens put to bed for the winter or vegetable gardens prepped for the summer, baseball dugouts painted, furniture moved – whatever is needed at the site. “You name it, they’ve done it all over the place,” said Tiffany Mayse, the Student Life staff member who coordinates Service on Saturday. Service on Saturday now coincides with NKU’s annual family weekend, when parents are invited to spend a couple of days on campus. The hours donated have grown exponentially because many of the parents volunteer to help during their visit, Mayse said. About 600 students and many parents work with 25 community partners, including parks, senior citizen homes, museums and hospitals.

Many of those same agencies return to campus for an annual volunteer fair, where they provide information about their missions and encourage students to get involved.

beyond,” Waple said.

Among the usual list of service recipients on Service on Saturday and Spring into Service is NKU’s “hometown” – Highland Heights. “They say we’ve saved them at least 800 man hours of time with the things that we’ve done, and they have been very gracious. They actually gave our office the Good Neighbor Award,” Mayse said.

Dustin Robinson, the 2011-2012 president of the Student Government Association, is SGA’s former secretary for student involvement.

“We always tell the students about paying forward, and many of them have already done some kind of civic engagement work before they get here.”

Dean of Students Jeffrey N. Waple stressed that community engagement is critical to the university as it prepares students for life beyond the campus.

“Until you go out and see what other people experience, you can’t really grasp it,” said Robinson, referring to some of the work that he’s done for the less fortunate when he volunteered to work with the Brighton Center in Newport and the Housing Opportunities of Northern Kentucky, two nonprofits that work with low-income residents.

“They’re not only students, but they’re also citizens of the community – of Highland Heights and

Although his role with student government requires him to focus on being an advocate for the

interests of students, Robinson still finds time to get to work on projects that aren’t on campus. “Involved students care, and getting involved makes the college experience so much better,” said Robinson. Dannie Moore, NKU’s director of African-American Student Affairs, agrees and is making community engagement a top priority for his office after starting here last summer. He reflects on his own experience as a college student and his time spent volunteering with a church group in Atlanta. The experience provided for him a stark illustration of homelessness and how it impacts children. “It’s important to give the students the opportunity to give back to the community and enhance their college experience,” Moore said.

Student Steve Weatherbee braces for impact at Eggerator, held to generate pre-event publicity for alpha Tau omega’s annual Basketball marathon, a fundraiser for the St. Elizabeth Foundation and breast health research.

Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

Sororities combine volunteering, learning

NO.

Ent

17

Em

E

xa

m p lE

Public

g En ag

NKU’s Panhellenic Council has made a commitment to facilitate women’s participation in service opportunities. In May, the council sponsored two students, Kerissa Hicks and Maddie Mann, for a service trip to New Orleans,

where they and other Greek student leaders from around the country volunteered with Habitat for Humanity.  In December, the council sponsored two other NKU students, Cassandra Juniet and Ashley Overbey, for

a similar trip to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to join the relief effort after that city’s devastating tornado. Both trips were designed as “immersion experiences” – meaning they combined service with learning about values and leadership.

NKU BY THE The NUMBERS NUMBeRS A modern, metropolitan university h 15,748 students h 12,390 full-time equivalent enrollments h Students from 109 Kentucky counties and 42 states

h Moderate admissions selectivity h 70% Kentuckians, 30% non-resident h 8,401 students from Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties

h 509 international students from 52 countries h 84% white, 6% black, 1% Hispanic, 8% other h 86% undergraduate, 10% graduate, 4% law

h 14% of undergraduates live on campus h 2,838 degrees and certificates conferred in 2010-11 h 49,825 alumni across 50 states and 53 countries

h 86% of undergraduates commute h 32% of all students attend part time h 87% of undergraduates work (36% work 30 hours a week or more)

h Average class size: 24 h Student-to-faculty ratio of 17:1 h $214 million budget (FY 2011-12)

h Average age: 24 h 70 bachelor’s programs h 49 master’s programs/certificates

h $68 million in endowment funds h $7.5 million in grants and contracts expenditures h 2,043 faculty and staff

h 2 professional doctorates h 1 juris doctor

Source: Office of Institutional Research (2010-11 data unless otherwise noted)

h Transitioning to NCAA Division I Athletics in fall 2012 Timothy D. Sofranko/NKU

Celebrating public engagement role models

18

xa

m p lE

Public

NO.

E

the 2011 awards, NKU President James C. Votruba remarked: “Lincoln understood, much as NKU and tonight’s Lincoln recipients do, the imperative for Americans to be stewards of place.”

Ent

government, and Joseph W. Gross, the retired chief executive officer of St. Elizabeth Healthcare, under whose leadership St. Elizabeth was named by Modern Healthcare magazine as one of the 100 top hospitals in America. In presenting

Em

Each spring, NKU presents the Lincoln Awards to honor community leaders who exemplify outstanding citizenship. The 2011 winners were banker and business owner Rodney “Biz” Cain, who also served a cabinet secretary in state

g En ag

2012 Public Engagement Report

101 GENERAL EXAMPLES OF PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT

These examples range from one-day volunteer events to student research projects. Most are from calendar year 2011, although some are ongoing projects that began in past years and continue today.

19. Resources for nonprofits The W. Frank Steely Library provides visitors with free public access to grant directories, books on nonprofit management, and the databases of the Foundation Directory Online Professional and Foundation Grants to Individuals Online. The fully searchable databases include detailed profiles of all active U.S. foundations as well as an extensive file of recent grants awarded by the nation’s top funders. Steely also hosts workshops for nonprofits throughout the year, including one in 2011 on the basics of seeking grants.

20. Charity begins at home Since its founding in 1995, the NKU Benevolent Society has supported university employees and contractors who are experiencing a health crisis or other emergency and need money or other assistance. Seven faculty and staff members appointed by the president and two permanent ex officio members oversee multiple fundraising events and also welcome the donation of sick-time hours from healthy colleagues. A March chili cook-off and a December soup-and-dessert contest are among the society’s annual fundraisers.

21. Community website for nonprofits NKU’s Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement assists in the administration and oversight of NKYHelps.org, an online, one-stop shop for matching donors and nonprofits in Northern Kentucky. Anyone looking to donate time, talent or treasure

exaMPLeS OF PUBLIC eNGaGeMeNT

While it is impossible to capture every instance of public engagement at an institution where public engagement is just part of the air, the 101 examples in this report underscore an institutional commitment as Northern Kentucky University has aligned itself to value this work not as a passing fad but as a sustained strategy. The first 18 of our 101 examples appear in the preceding pages, highlighted in Norse Gold boxes. Here are the remaining examples, divided into three categories: general public engagement, service learning classes, and centers and institutes.

can go to www.nkyhelps.org and find an opportunity. The Kentucky Enquirer, Vision 2015, Children Inc. and Legacy are “Helps” partners. Launched in 2008, the site has 224 member organizations and 2,200 registered volunteers.

22. Earth Day, a springtime tradition Every April since 2004, Environmentally Concerned Organization of Students (ECOS) and other NKU partners have produced awareness events for Earth Day, with an invitation to the community to attend. Activities in 2011 included a panel discussion with environmental activists; campus workshops for middle and high school students; and presentations on sustainable agriculture, community gardens and building green. Earth Day is only one expression of NKU’s commitment to environmental stewardship. President Votruba has signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. The signatories believe colleges and universities must exercise leadership by modeling good environmental practices and by educating students to value protection of the planet.

23. Frankfort comes to campus During sessions of the Kentucky General Assembly, NKU hosts the Northern Kentucky Legislative Caucus on campus for town hall meetings with the public. The Saturday morning forums give state lawmakers from the region an opportunity hear what their constituents are thinking and brings attendees up to date on what’s happening in Frankfort.

24. Honoring veterans on 11-11-11 Each year on Veterans Day, the community is invited to campus for special ceremonies. For 2011, NKU joined a nationwide grassroots effort to honor American service men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq and Afghanistan during the past decade. On Veterans Day, Friday, Nov. 11, NKU began its Remembrance Day Roll Call at 6:30 a.m. Volunteers took

turns reading 6,314 names of the fallen. “The reading of individual names is very poignant because it emphasizes the significance of each and every life lost,” said Doug Winford, president of VETS, a student organization supporting veterans who are attending NKU.

25. Spotlighting American politics The NKU Alumni Lecture Series brings two leading voices from American politics to campus each fall for a public debate. For one evening, a Republican and a Democrat share center stage and offer insight into Beltway politics. The 2011 lecture was the 12th in the series and featured two former presidential press secretaries: Dana Perino, who served George W. Bush, and Robert Gibbs, who served Barack Obama. Past speakers have included Jeb Bush, Howard Dean, Mike Huckabee, Harold Ford Jr., Karl Rove, Dee Dee Myers, Pat Buchanan, Tom Daschle, Bob Dole, George McGovern, Newt Gingrich, Mario Cuomo, George Will and George Stephanopoulos.

26. A closer look at local government Two NKU Professors, Paul Tenkotte and Thomas Lambert, provided research for the Kenton County Governance Study Group, which is collecting educational material for a report to the community on local government. The professors examined the history of municipal government structures in Kenton County. An honors anthropology class (ANT 100H) taught by Douglas Hume also collaborated with the study group. Students conducted field surveys to evaluate resident’s knowledge of municipal and county government. They found that residents have a cursory knowledge of government structure at the local level but a deeper understanding of state and federal government structure.

27. Highlighting STEM disciplines In June 2011, NKU hosted the conference “STEM Opportunities and Needs in Kentucky: Making the Connection Between Education and Industry.” The conference,

presented by the Kentucky Girls STEM Collaborative of which NKU is a member, featured as its keynote speaker Kentucky native Nancy Holliday, the general manager at Microsoft Corp. The STEM Collaborative brings together organizations and programs committed to informing and motivating girls to pursue educational choices in science, technology, engineering and mathematics to build a strong, diverse workforce in Kentucky.

28. Amplifying the citizen’s voice Master of Public Administration student Drew Tilow conducted a pilot study on the various ways that local governments engage citizens and presented his findings at the Northern Kentucky City/County Managers Association. “The role of public administrators in engaging citizens is twofold. The first step it to keep them informed through any avenue that is available, whether it is public hearing, newspaper articles, online newsletters or email messages,” Tilow said. “The second step to engaging citizens in government is to involve them in the decision-making process and even in the delivery of public services.” MPA students routinely partner with government and nonprofit agencies to research public policy and community need questions.

29. Earthquake relief NKU’s Executive Leadership and Organizational Change program sponsored a relief concert benefiting victims of Japan’s earthquake and tsunami. Held in the Student Union ballroom in May 2011, the concert featured Japanese choral and drums musical performances, crafts and games, and it raised $1,200 that was donated to the International Red Cross. ELOC is a master’s of science program to helps leaders and professionals develop skills to transform their current organizations into more effective ones.

30. Running in circles, purposefully For the Nearly Naked Mile, NKU students “dressed” strategically if minimally and

Timothy Sofranko/NKU

NKU’s annual Veterans Day event honors those who have served. In 2011, the names of 6,314 who died in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts were read in a roll call. See Example No. 24. then ran on the Albright Health Center’s indoor track. Each student team paid $5 to sponsor a runner, with proceeds going to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. The event, part of Homecoming Week, had 100 runners and raised $500 in 2011.

31. Philip Glass lecture

Square Live! dialogue, sponsored by the Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement. DSL dialogues are held several times a semester, covering a wide range of topics: new media, the Arab Spring, the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, labor relations, the economy, gubernatorial politics and more.

Over the course of every academic year, NKU invites prominent figures to campus for lectures open to the public. One such example from the 2011 academic year was a campus visit by composer Philip Glass, who spoke at Greaves Concert Hall in September. The Department of Music sponsored the lecture. Glass was in town for a Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra performance of his Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra. As part of his visit, he agreed to appear at NKU to discuss his writing.

34. Canned goods drive for a food pantry

32. A history of government regulation

35. Showing off show tunes

History Professor Jeffrey Williams provided a history of the tug-of-war between government and business as part of the introduction to a public debate on pros and cons of regulation. The Northern Kentucky Forum (NKU is a partner) hosted the event. Dr. Williams also serves on the Forum’s board of directors. The Forum holds about 10 public policy discussions each year, drawing 50 to 300 people at each even. NKU faculty members often help plan the forums and participate as panelists.

33. A closer look at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict It’s been in the headlines all of our lives, but understanding what it’s like to live in the crossfire of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict became much clearer in November 2011 when residents and activists from the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh came to campus for a moderated dialogue with students and the community. About 175 people attended, hearing challenging information about how protestors and authorities routinely clash and how justice is, in the view of some, unequally delivered. The event was a Democracy

On Nov. 9, 2011, Norse Code Radio hosted a can drive for the Henry Hosea House, a Newport nonprofit that offers free meals to area citizens. Donors’ names were read on the air. Norse Code is NKU’s online student-run radio station. The station routinely profiles examples of studentdriven public engagement on campus, as do other student media outlets, including the newspaper, The Northerner.

The Broadway Chorus Tour Troupe performs standards from the American songbook in a program called “One Hundred Years of Broadway” for community and university events. Freshman sopranos, altos, tenors and basses/baritones makes up the troupe. Local primary and secondary schools are among the tour troupe’s regular stops.

36. A taste of the real world Practicums, work studies, co-ops and internships take NKU students into the community to work with nonprofits and other partners, in paid and unpaid positions.  Federal work study students, for example, tutor at the Greater Cincinnati YMCA and Brighton Center, a community agency in Newport. One of NKU’s strongest partnerships is with the Scripps Howard Foundation in Cincinnati, which funds public relations internships at area nonprofits. For Spring 2012, NKU students were placed at 11 agencies: the American Lung Association, Bethany House Services, Behringer-Crawford Museum, Catalytic Development Funding Corp., Center for Great Neighborhoods of Covington, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, the Family

Nurturing Center, Greater Cincinnati Health Council, Historic Southwest Ohio, Jobs for Cincinnati Graduates and Redwood.

37. Honoring community contributions NKU hosted the Behringer-Crawford Museum’s inaugural Two-Headed Calf Awards in March 2011, celebrating community contributions to the arts, culture and history. The awards are named for a well-known novelty item at the Covington museum, and the award description notes that community contributions (like the calf with two heads) typically are plural not singular. The award winners included two people with direct NKU ties: historian Jim Claypool, a professor emeritus, and philanthropist Alice Sparks, a former NKU regent. NKU art student Daniel Calderon designed the Two-Headed Calf Award that was presented to Claypool and Sparks.

38. A message to girls: Good health matters The ongoing “Healthy Girl Project” examines girls’ health in our region and what we as a community can do to improve it. Led by Communication Professor Sara Drabik, NKU students interviewed young girls and other community members in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky urban neighborhoods to produce a video and toolkit used by United Way and others to help girls lead healthier lives. The toolkit was created through collaborations with NKU, Harmony Gardens and multiple community partners to start conversations about girls’ health. The film challenges girls to avoid health pitfalls that society presents and ends with a simple challenge: What can you do?

39. Emergency services collaboration WNKU reached out to 104 county emergency management agencies over the summer of 2011, reinforcing the idea that the campus FM station is available in times of emergency. Stephanie Lang, a senior

English major, coordinated the outreach. WNKU is a frequent community partner. In another example, the station joined with People Working Cooperatively and the City of Middletown to present Prepare Affair on Nov. 12, 2011. Prepare Affair is a one-day event during which volunteers help elderly homeowners prepare their homes for winter.

40. Constitution Day Constitution Day is celebrated nationally each year on Sept. 15. NKU marked the occasion in 2011 with a week of activities spotlighting the Constitution, including a panel discussion open to the public, “The Constitution’s Greatest Challenge: The Civil War.” Three professors, John Bickers (law), Debra Meyers (history and women’s studies) and Paul Tenkotte (history) discussed some of the challenging constitutional issues that arose during the Civil War and how those issues continue to impact our government, liberties and obligations as citizens 150 years later.

41. Marking Fort Mitchell’s centennial The Center for Public History is producing a book, “A Home of Our Own: The Suburb of Fort Mitchell,” as a follow-up to the center’s exhibit at the Behringer-Crawford Museum in Covington marking Fort Mitchell’s centennial. History faculty and students did the research and the writing for the exhibit and book.

42. Humanities education at local schools NKU worked with the Kentucky Humanities Council and the Scripps Howard Foundation to introduce the council’s Chautauqua Series to elementary and secondary schools in Northern Kentucky. The series featured actors portraying historical characters, such as Daniel Boone, Henry Clay and Abraham Lincoln. NKU used its extensive networking with local public schools to raise awareness of the series. The Scripps Howard Foundation provided funding to bring in the actors to interested schools.

2012 Public Engagement Report

43. Community concert The Music Preparatory Department presented a free concert in April 2011 at St. John’s United Church of Christ in Newport. The Music Prep program features students from local primary and secondary schools performing on stringed instruments and in choral ensembles. The St. John’s concert was one of several free public performances over the course of the year. With arts funding often tight for primary and secondary schools, the Music Prep program offer music education and performance opportunities to students from public and private schools across Northern Kentucky. In 2011, the choirs were invited to perform in the nation’s capital for its Memorial Day parade and related ceremonies, including at a Kennedy Center concert.

44. Merry Christmas, kids The Freshman Service Leadership Committee (FSLC) has, for more than a decade, hosted an annual Christmas party for the residents of the Northern Kentucky Children’s Home, providing a gift to each child from their wish lists. And then, each January, FSLC conducts the Homecoming Canned Food Drive for Brighton Center in Newport, collecting an average of 4,000 canned goods that replenish the center’s pantry after the holiday rush.

45. Latino history awareness The Office of Latino Student Affairs, in conjunction with the English Department and the World Languages and Literatures Department, celebrated Cesar Chavez’s birthday in spring 2011 with a screening and discussion of “common Man, Uncommon Vision: The Cesar Chavez Story” to illustrate the struggle led by Chavez to improve the plight of migrant farm workers. Latino Student Affairs also held a writing contest for students at Boone County High School. Students were asked to write about topics related to Cesar Chavez, immigration and the Latino community.

46. Evaluating the death penalty Michael J.Z. Mannheimer, a Chase College of Law professor, co-chaired the Kentucky Death Penalty Assessment Team for the American Bar Association, which recommended in December 2011 that the commonwealth suspend executions until it can address fairness and accuracy issues associated with capital cases. The panel cited Kentucky’s high rate of conviction reversals and inadequate protections for mentally disabled people facing the death penalty as areas needing reform. The assessment team was established by a 2001 American Bar Association project designed to collect and monitor domestic and international death penalty data. Kentucky’s review, initiated in 2009, was the project’s ninth state-level assessment.

47. Continuing education for adults

Using feedback from businesses and other employers, NKU has created a series

of noncredit, continuing education and professional development courses that cater to workers across the professional spectrum. Offerings include Effective Presentations; Grammar and Punctuation for Busy Professionals; Leading for High Performance; Foundational Skills; and Effective Interpersonal Communication.

48. Faculty and staff volunteers

NKU employees give their time and talent to area nonprofits, serving on boards and volunteering at nonprofits. For example, Mei Mei Burr, director of First-Year Programs, volunteers with her daughter at Milestones, an equestrian achievement program in Independence. A former school psychologist, Dr. Burr works with a wide range of children who ride at Milestones. 

49. An emphasis for the Honors Program The NKU Honors Program hosted a civic engagement workshop for students and local nonprofits. Over dinner at the Honors House, the group brainstormed about possible capstone projects that could benefit the community. Students and the nonprofit representatives were able to make connections between research ideas and service to the community. The Honors Program is making public engagement a priority for students. A newly launched initiative will incorporate the American Democracy Project’s Seven Revolutions into some honors classes. Seven Revolutions explore policy options for pressing international issues, including climate change, technology and security.

50. Improv for the community NKU’s This Side Up Improvisation Troupe travels to various community venues to perform spontaneous skits and sketches for audiences of all ages, with topics developed through audience suggestions and interaction. Led by Ken Jones, the Lois and Richard Rosenthal Endowed Chair in Theater, the team also participates in a two-semester class experimenting with new improvisational forms and acting methods. 

folk knowledge of invasive plants among farmers in Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties. The results will be published on the Internet (aearg.nku.edu) and are intended to assist the conservation districts in constructing education programs about invasive plants.

52. ARTE 281: Concepts in Art Education • Taught by Lisa Jameson Students in this class learned about teaching with the museum objects at the Taft Museum of Art. They then developed and taught a unit to local elementary students, teaching some of it at the museum. Later, the NKU students went to Moyer Elementary School in Fort Thomas to work with fourth graders for a hands-on studio lesson.

53. ATG 425: Advanced Graphic Design • Taught by Julie Mader-Meersman Fifteen students created visual design proposals for 15 separate nonprofit agencies, including logos, symbol systems, visual brand and standard guides and complementary literature as well as promotion, awareness and advertising campaigns. The proposals were created under guidelines from the international Sappi “Ideas that Matter” grant competition.

54. EDS 360: Students with Exceptionalities in the Schools • Taught by Stephen Walker Students were required to volunteer 10 hours at a school or social service agency serving children and adults with disabilities. The students provided assistance, for example, in delivering physical or

occupational therapy, recreational therapy, art therapy or music therapy. Another section of EDS 360, taught by Steve Crites, had a similar learning component.

55. EDU 390: Elementary Practicum • Taught by Lynne Smith As the future teachers in this class learned more about to how teach students to read and write, they put their knowledge to work to create learning center activities for Cumberland Elementary School in Harlan County.

56. EDU 391: Middle Grades Practicum • Taught by Shawn Faulkner Working in cooperation with Children Inc., students in this class served as readers and scribes for students with special needs at Kenton County middle schools during state testing.

57. HIS 607: Museum Exhibits • Taught by Brian Hackett Students designed an exhibit about the tragic 1977 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire for the Fort Thomas Military and Community History Museum. Students also raised funds to support the exhibit.

58. INF 286: Intro to Web Development

• Taught by Alina Campan Students designed home page options for the Women’s Crisis Center of Northern Kentucky using concepts and techniques learned in class. The class divided into teams, with each team producing a design so that the Women’s Crisis Center received several design options from which to choose.

SERVICE LEARNING CLASSES

Service learning, as distinguished from volunteer engagement, connects service to what’s being taught in a class. Students have the opportunity to apply what they learn in real-world settings. As is typical of service learning, most of the community partners are either schools or nonprofits. NKU offers more than 100 service learning courses per academic year. Here is a sample.

51. ANT 325: Applied Anthropology • Taught by Douglas Hume This three-semester project is scheduled to conclude in 2012. Classes are working with the Boone, Campbell and Kenton County conservation districts to evaluate

Timothy Sofranko/NKU

Eye clinics at City Heights, a low-income housing complex, are part of the services Advocacy Center for the Underserved. See Example No. 95. by the Nurse advocacy

Northern Kentucky University | Page 25

59. JOU 321: Publication Skills • Taught by Bradford Scharlott Students first learning design and publication skills for journalism and journalism-related fields then applied what they learned to create posters for local social service groups.

60. LAW 995: Nonprofit Organizations • Taught by Phillip Sparkes Teams of students conducted “legal compliance checkups” for preselected nonprofits and made suggestions for improved alignment with laws, regulations and best practices.

61. MGT 205: Business Management Principles • Taught by Daniel Kent Working in teams, students designed fundraising initiatives for Henry Hosea House, a Newport nonprofit that offers free meals to area citizens. The teams set fundraising goals, developed strategies to achieve them, and organized people and resources to carry out the strategies.

62. MKT 305: Principles of Marketing • Taught by David Raska Students in this class designed a marketing plan, complete with web components, for the S.S. Bean Company, a social entrepreneurship initiative of The Point, a Covington nonprofit that provides opportunities to people with special needs. The bean company packages soup mixes for sale at local grocery stores.

63. PSY 333: Abnormal Psychology • Taught by Rachel Clark Students volunteered at community mental health agencies, schools and psychiatric hospitals for at least 20 hours, mentoring children with emotional or learning disabilities.

64. SPI 304: Advanced Spanish Composition & Conversation • Taught by Kajsa Larson Students partnered with the Santa Maria Community Center in Cincinnati on various projects, including providing arts and crafts instruction for children whose parents were at the center for English language instruction.

65. Student Philanthropy Project Classes NKU’s nationally recognized Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project classes involve deep engagement with the nonprofit community. A grant selection process is built into the curriculum of these classes, beginning with determining community needs that will be addressed and then identifying nonprofits that best address those needs. In the end, students award small grants, typically $1,000 to $2,500. There were 10 classes during 2011. Together, they made direct investments totaling $20,000. They also had a hand

in the distribution of another $60,480 through a partnership with Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America.

INSTITUTES AND CENTERS

NKU’s centers and institutes represent the university’s continuing institutional commitment to public engagement. The public is encouraged to contact these centers directly to learn more about their mission and services. Some centers provide their services at no charge; others are fee-based.

66. African American Student Affairs • Contact: Dannie Moore • Phone: 859-572-6684 • Email: [email protected] • Website: www.nku.edu/~aasa This office works to create a support system for academic excellence and to enrich African American cultural experiences at NKU. Through collaborative relationships across campus and throughout the region, the office offers educational, professional and social resources designed to meet the needs of students and members of the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky community.

67. Alternative Dispute Resolution Center

also provides a venue for undergraduate students at NKU to gain valuable experience with real-world problems. The center can provide statistical consulting (for example, advice on data collection, survey design and appropriate sampling methods) and mathematical consulting (for example, conduct numerical simulations in support of the decision-making process).

70. Career Development Center (CDC) • Contact: Bill Froude • Phone: 859-572-5680 • Email: [email protected] • Website: cdc.nku.edu The center is the university’s liaison to area corporations and organizations, bringing them on campus for job fairs and on-campus interviewing. The CDC also coordinates NKU’s Cooperative Education (co-op) program.  Co-op integrates classroom learning with paid, real-life work experience in a related field. Co-op students work in business, government and nonprofits. Employers may post full-time and co-op/internship positions directly into the Norse Recruiting online database via the CDC website.  Employers may also contact the CDC for assistance in developing a campus recruiting strategy.

71. Center for Applied Ecology

• Contact: Michael Carrell • Phone: 859-572-5165 • Email: [email protected] • Website: adr.nku.edu The center can provide a peaceful way to resolve conflicts and disputes through mediation and arbitration services. Disputes are facilitated by a neutral third party.  The goal is to make a positive contribution to the community by providing effective conflict resolution utilizing the center’s professional mediators and arbitrators. Fees are minimal.

• Contact: Scott Fennell • Phone: 859-448-8949 • Email: [email protected] • Website: appliedecology.nku.edu The center partners with government agencies, nonprofits and private landowners to improve environmental stewardship in the region while providing professional training and work experience to NKU student interns. The center implements programs and projects, conducts applied research, and educates stakeholders in practical and sustainable solutions to restore, protect and utilize the regions’ environmental resources.

68. Applied Environmental Anthropology Group

72. Center for Applied Informatics (CAI)

• Contact: Douglas Hume • Phone: 859-572-5702 • Email: [email protected] • Website: aearg.nku.edu This group investigates cultural connections between humans and the environment with special consideration to issues of conservation. The group generally takes on projects as service learning engagements, involving students from one or more anthropology classes at NKU. Key to the students’ method of data collection is the ethnographic interview in which data are collected and qualitatively analyzed to design survey instruments for further analysis by quantitative methods.

69. Burkardt Consulting Center • Contact: David Agard • Phone: 859- 572-1325 • Email: [email protected] • Website: bcc.nku.edu The center provides assistance with projects, studies and experiments that deal with mathematics or statistics. It

• Contact: Tim Ferguson • Phone: 859-572-7610 • Email: [email protected] • Website: cai.nku.edu CAI is housed within NKU’s College of Informatics and provides students with extensive access to internships, cooperatives and experimental learning in a real-world environment. Student employees within CAI work with the center’s professional staff to develop websites, mobile applications and other technology solutions. CAI, for example, built a mobile application for the Freestore Foodbank in Cincinnati that includes a “Take Action” option to provide users with opportunities to volunteer, donate to or advocate for the food bank.

73. Center for Economic Analysis and Development (CEAD) • • • •

Contact: Janet Harrah Phone: 859-392-2413 Email: [email protected] Website: cob.nku.edu/institutes/cead

CEAD’s mission is to conduct high-quality, objective research on issues related to the region’s current and future economic well-being. CEAD publishes a free quarterly newsletter, Northern Kentucky/ Greater Cincinnati by the Numbers, with information, research and analysis on the economic and demographic trends of the region. The center also collaborated with community partners to produce a regional indicators report, released in 2010 and updated in 2011, with a website that benchmarks Greater Cincinnati against similar metropolitan regions.

74. Center for Educator Excellence • Contact: Susan Cook • Phone: 859-322-6067 • Email: [email protected] • Website: nkcee.nku.edu The center partners with school districts to offer high-quality professional development, develop sound teacher recruitment and retention programs, align the secondary and postsecondary curricula, encourage teachers to aspire to National Board Certification, implement procedures to measure teacher excellence, and foster the growth of the Future Educators of America’s middle and secondary school chapters.

75. Center for Environmental Education Contact: Steve Kerlin Phone: 859-572-1545 Email: [email protected] Website: environmentaleducation.nku. edu The center provides professional development for pre-service and in-service teachers through courses, curriculum training and workshops. As part of P-12 outreach, the center leads environmental education field trips, assists schools in the Kentucky Green & Healthy Schools program, and loans resources and activity trunks to teachers.  The center also collaborates with Wildlife Conservation Kentucky to promote conservation of natural lands. Center staff lead guided canoe trips on local streams and can also be found leading community education lessons at events like Great Outdoor Weekend and Paddlefest. • • • •

76. Center for Economic Education Contact: Nancy Lang Phone: 859-572-5155 Email: [email protected] Website: cob.nku.edu/institutes/ CenterforEconomicEducation The center was established to improve the quality and quantity of economic instruction at all grade levels and to promote financial and economic literacy in the community. The center actively serves the eight-county NKU service area through an extensive schedule of professional development programs for K-12 teachers, graduate credit courses, curriculum consultation with teachers and schools, research activities and an extensive lending library. • • • •

2012 Public Engagement Report

77. Chase Children’s Law 81. Early Childhood Center Clinic Center Contact: Amy Halbrook Phone: 859-431-3313 Email: [email protected] Website: chaselaw.nku.edu/academics/ clcc/ The clinic serves children with critical legal needs. In partnership with the Children’s Law Center in Covington, the clinic is staffed by trained and supervised NKU students who represent child and adolescent clients in matters of child protection, high-conflict custody, school and other issues. Students also participate in research, policy development and community education related to children’s issues. • • • •

78. CINSAM • Contact: Kristi Haik • Phone: 859-572-5381 • Email: [email protected] • Website: cinsam.nku.edu The Center for Integrative Natural Science and Mathematics works to enhance the teaching, learning and application of science and math at NKU and in Northern Kentucky schools through interdisciplinary collaboration. One of its key goals it to prepare teachers for science and math by offering integrative science and mathematics coursework for prospective teachers at all levels and by developing programs of outreach and continuing education for current teachers.

79. Center for Public History Contact: Paul Tenkotte Phone: 859-572-6186 Email: [email protected] Website: hisgeo.nku.edu/programs/ public/CPH/center.php The center supports the civic engagement and community outreach activities of the faculty and students of the NKU Department of History and Geography. The center has worked with cities and community museums to gather historical information, preserve artifacts and create exhibits. Students work on projects that provide a glimpse into the real work of museums and cultural heritage organizations such as local historical societies, archives and libraries. • • • •

80. Community Connections • Contact: Melinda Spong • Phone: 859- 572-5600 • Email: [email protected] • Website: communityconnections.nku.edu The center offers classes and workshops for people who want to learn for professional growth and personal enrichment. The department’s P-12 outreach program annually introduces NKU and college life to thousands of area students through group visits, arts performances and its signature NKU Spirit Day event. Community Connections also manages the university’s NKU Connections public events calendar for university-sponsored public events.

• Contact: Melanie Caldwell • Phone: 859-572-6338 • Email: [email protected] • Website: earlychildhood.nku.edu The center provides early care and education for children ages 1 to 14 years of NKU students, staff, faculty, alumni and members of the surrounding community. It also serves as a job training and teacher mentoring site for NKU students and is available for research by faculty, staff and community members. The center is STAR rated through the state of Kentucky and accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. 

82. Educational Outreach • Contact: Victoria Berling • Phone: 859- 392-2400 • Email: [email protected] • Website: adultlearner.nku.edu This office works to expand access to high education and continuing education via nontraditional learning formats and at locations throughout the Northern Kentucky/Greater Cincinnati region. Initiatives include adult-specific programs, online programs, courses taught at high schools and corporations, and the NKU Grant County Center.

83. Educational Talent Search • Contact: Lisa Brinkman • Phone: 859-448-8940 • Email: [email protected] • Website: ets.nku.edu ETS is a federally funded program that identifies and assists individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds who have the potential to succeed in higher education.  The program provides academic, career and financial counseling to its participants and encourages them to graduate high school and continue on to the postsecondary institution of their choice.  In addition to monthly meetings at area schools, ETS offers field trips, college tours and a summer residential camp.

84. Fifth Third Bank Entrepreneurship Institute • Contact: Eileen Weisenbach Keller • Phone: 859-572-5931 • Email: [email protected] • Website: ei.nku.edu The institute offers undergraduate academic and outreach programs in entrepreneurship, including use of student teams to address entrepreneurial issues for local companies. About 150 students major in entrepreneurship at NKU.

variety of general education courses and complete an associate degree in integrative studies at the center before transitioning to NKU’s main campus. Adult students may also complete their Bachelor of Art in organizational leadership through PACE at Grant County.

86. Haile Digital Planetarium • Contact: Dan Spence • Phone: 859-572-5309 • Email: [email protected] • Website: planetarium.nku.edu The planetarium is a campus resource used by the Department of Physics and Geology for classes. All introductory astronomy classes are taught in the facility, and other NKU classes are able to schedule times for special presentations. The planetarium also is a community resource, dedicated to outreach programs with local schools and community organizations. The planetarium hosts thousands of adult visitors and P-12 students each year.

87. Institute for Talent Development and Gifted Students • Contact: Kimberly Clayton-Code • Phone: 859-572-6685 • Email: [email protected] • Website: gifted.nku.edu The institute provides learning opportunities for gifted and talented students in the region. Programs include ExploreMore! for students in grades K-8, which offers hands-on courses matched to students’ interests and abilities; the Men’s Leadership Summit and the Young Women L.E.A.D. Leadership Conference for high schools students; and collaboration with the Northern Kentucky Association for Gifted Children to host the Dreamfest Conference, which brings together more than 800 students in a daylong event focused on developing students specific gifts and talents. Annually, the institute’s programs reach more than 2,000 students.

88. Intellectual Property Advisory Center • Contact: John Schlipp • Phone: 859-572-5457 • Email: [email protected] • Website: library.nku.edu When is it OK to use copyrighted material? What is the fair use doctrine? How is a patent obtained? How is it protected? NKU’s newest center – scheduled to open in fall 2012 at the W. Frank Steely Library – will be a campus and community resource for answering such questions. The center will have staff as well as guidebooks and other references on intellectual property.

89. Latino Student 85. Grant County Center Affairs • Contact: Leo Calderon Contact: Betsy John-Jennings Phone: 859-824-3600 Email: [email protected] Website: adultlearner.nku.edu/locations/ grant The Center is dedicated to increasing access to education for residents of Grant, Gallatin, Own, Pendleton and southern Boone counties. Students may take a • • • •

• Phone: 859-572-5821 • Email: [email protected] • Website: latino.nku.edu This office coordinates academic, cultural and social activities on campus for Latino students and in partnership with other campus units. The office also has developed strong partnerships with Latino/a organizations in Kentucky

and Ohio and serves as a consultant to businesses, K-12 educators and public service agencies.

90. Local Government Law Center • Contact: Phillip Sparkes • Phone: 859-572-7577 • Email: [email protected] • Website: chaselaw.nku.edu/centers The center provides technical assistance, research services and support to local governments, their attorneys, and their elected and appointed officials. The center also promotes the study and development of state and local government law through teaching, scholarship and continuing education. It also serves as an information clearinghouse about local government through its newsletters and community outreach efforts.

91. Kentucky Campus Compact • Contact: Gayle Hilleke • Phone: 859-572-7614 • Email: [email protected] • Website: kycompact.nku.edu NKU is the host campus for the Kentucky Campus Compact, a statewide coalition of public and private universities and colleges committed to public engagement. The compact offices and some of its administrative support are provided by NKU. The mission of the compact is “to promote the civic purpose of higher education. Members are committed to integrating service learning as a valued component of effective teaching and learning, meeting institutional civic responsibilities to help address the needs of the commonwealth, and fostering the development of relevant collaborative partnerships between and among campuses.”

92. Kentucky Center for Mathematics • Contact: Kirsten Fleming • Phone: 859-572-7690 • Email: [email protected] • Website: www.kentuckymathematics.org The statewide center is housed at NKU. Its goal is to improve the teaching and learning of mathematics at all levels across the commonwealth. The center organizes annual conferences; offers professional development for P-16 and adult educators; makes resources available for educators, parents and students; sponsors mathematics education research; implements and supports programs to develop the science, technology, engineering and mathematics pipeline; and advises state-level educational bodies on trends and issues in mathematics education.

93. Marketing Research Partnership Program (MRPP) • Contact: Aron Levin • Phone: 859-572-6409 • Email: [email protected] • Website: mrpp.nku.edu MRPP seeks to create excitement and provide opportunities for students to learn from market research professionals in the

Northern Kentucky University | Page 27 Work and Leadership and provides field work for students from Chase College of Law and the NKU Criminal Justice program. NKU partners with community mental health, criminal justice, addiction and other social service agencies to operate and support the center.

100. Training Resource Center

• Contact: Kathy Howard • Phone: 859-572-5572 • Email: [email protected] • Website: trc.nku.edu The center hosts training for foster and adoptive parents. The trainings are planned by a committee that includes representatives of public and private foster care agencies as well as foster and adoptive parents. The topics are selected to enhance the awareness of the parents and provide skills to improve outcomes for children who have experienced abuse and neglect. Training topics have included managing grief and loss issues and working with children diagnosed with attachment disorder.  The center also facilitates training for the Department for Community Based Services as well as community partners. Timothy Sofranko/NKU

Sen. Katie Stine talksStine to a talks constituent at a townathall meeting the Northern KentuckyKentucky Legislative Caucus. State Senator Katie to a constituent a town hall featuring meeting featuring the Northern legislative See Example 23. Caucus. See Example 23. Greater Cincinnati area. Students in the MRPP interact with and network with the MRPP’s corporate partners, which include some of the world’s most successful marketing research supplier companies. In addition, via service learning courses, students provide marketing research consultation services to nonprofits and small businesses in the region.

94. NKU METS Center for Corporate Learning • Contact: Linda Bickel • Phone: 859-647-6387 • Email: [email protected] • Website: www.themetscenter.com METS is a conference center near the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. It is equipped with advanced technology, an auditorium, banquet space, classrooms, and food and beverage service within a comfortable and inviting atmosphere. METS is within walking distance of leading, national brand hotels. METS values its role as an integral part of the metropolitan region and seeks to position the region to compete in a global, knowledge-based economy. One example of METS public engagement is a partnership since 2010 to provide a technologically enhanced, collaborative learning environment for more than 160 Northern Kentucky P-12 educators on a monthly basis.

95. Nurse Advocacy Center for the Underserved • Contact: Cindy Foster • Phone: 859-572-5242 • Email: [email protected] • Website: healthprofessions.nku.edu/nacu The center focuses its outreach on Northern Kentucky’s uninsured and underinsured, working at emergency

shelters, churches and other places where those in need can be found. At the City Heights public housing neighborhood in Covington, for example, the nursing faculty work side by side with students to help residents find access to health insurance, primary care and needed medications. Nursing students also offer a summer health fair, foot care clinics and flu vaccination clinics. In addition, the NKU team works with residents on income stability. A new addition to the center is a computer lab created with surplus equipment from NKU. Residents are able to use the lab for résumé creation, online job applications and social service applications.

96. Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement • Contact: Mark Neikirk • Phone: 859-572-1448 • Email: [email protected] • Website: civicengagement.nku.edu The center serves campus and community through citizenship and stewardship initiatives. The office hosts NKU’s Six@Six Series, featuring community lectures by NKU professors; cosponsors the Northern Kentucky Forum, which conducts town hall meetings on public policy issues; and supports service learning classes that partner with area nonprofits. The center also is the home of NKU’s Mayerson Student Philanthropy Project, which incorporates grant-giving into college classes.

97. Small Business & Nonprofit Law Clinic • • • •

Contact: Sherry Porter Phone: 859-572-7577 Email: [email protected] Website: chaselaw.nku.edu/centers/sbnlc

The clinic provides free legal services to entrepreneurs, small businesses and nonprofit entities in the local community. Law students staff the clinic under the supervision of a full-time clinic director and licensed attorney. Students interact directly with clients to provide legal advice on business-law issues including entity formation, intellectual property and contracts.

98. Small Business Development Center • Contact: Carol Cornell • Phone: 859-442-4281 • Email: [email protected] • Website: smallbiznku.com The center provides consulting and training to small-business owners and prospective small-business owners. Services include free confidential consulting as well as free or modestly priced classroom seminars and workshops. The center and its consultants are qualified to help develop a business plan, understand cash flow and financial projections, engage in market planning and research, pursue financing options, provide ongoing business analytics and assist with buy/sell activities.

99. Training and Development Center Contact: David Wilkerson Phone: 859-760-5099 Email: [email protected] Website: coehs.nku.edu/departments/ counseling/training_clinic.php TDC in Newport houses a unique community-based service and training program developed by NKU that provides low-cost mental health and social services to underserved residents of Northern Kentucky. TDC is a high-quality training site for graduate and undergraduate students from the Department of Counseling, Social • • • •

101. W. Frank Steely Library: Government documents • Contact: Arne Almquist • Phone: 859-572-5457 • Email: [email protected] • Website: library.nku.edu Government documents are housed on the third floor of Steely Library and are available for public perusal at no charge. Most government documents circulate in accord with Steely Library circulation policies. Access to this depository collection is available during library hours. Document data and information retrieval is available as part of the reference service provided at the third-floor public service desk or by phone at (859) 572-5459.

..and one more example: UpTech Are the 101 examples listed in this report the only examples of public engagement at Northern Kentucky University? Not at all. The inventory grows by the day, as the announcement in January 2012 of UpTech underscores. UpTech is a community consortium designed as a super accelerator of hightech startups. Applicants will compete for 50 slots, with each winning idea awarded $100,000 plus accounting, legal and marketing counsel. For NKU, UpTech will offer internships as well as research opportunities for students and faculty, and NKU’s College of Informatics will align its courses to prepare graduates to join the high-tech workforce required to support an informatics industry cluster. Want to read more examples of NKU’s campus-community collaborations? Go to civicengagement.nku.edu.

2012 Public Engagement Report

PUBLIC eNGaGeMeNT THE CommUNITy IS oUR ClaSSRoom

Publication date: February 2012

abOut tHiS REPORt This report is designed to give the community a sense of NKU’s commitment to public engagement across the spectrum of the university’s units. Just as this commitment is valued deeply at NKU, it is also valued in Kentucky. The state Council on Postsecondary Education’s Strategic Agenda for 2011-2015 includes among its values “a postsecondary experience that prepares individuals to be informed, competent, knowledgeable, and engaged citizens and leaders” and “engagement with business, industry and other community partners to improve economic vitality and quality of life.” NKU is committed to those values, and it is the intent of this report to show the breadth and depth of that commitment.

Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement 536 Founders Hall Northern Kentucky University Highland Heights, KY 41099 civicengagement.nku.edu [email protected] (859) 572-1448 Copyright 2012. Northern Kentucky University

OuR PRODuctiOn tEam This report was produced by Northern Kentucky University’s Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement. Executive Director Mark Neikirk led the production team. Bob Driehaus of Cincinnati National News & Features Ltd. assisted with editing and production. Ryan Ostrander of Ryan Ostrander Design & Illustration of Cincinnati designed the report. Other contributors included writers Feoshia Henderson, Claire Higgins and Greg Paeth.

Additional copies of this report are available upon request. Contact the Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement.

Do you have a question about public engagement at NKU? Email us as [email protected].

“to move forward, colleges and universities need to deeply embed public engagement in the fabric of their institutions…. if higher education is to sustain a commitment to engagement, then something has to change: public engagement has to be institutionalized.” From Becoming an engaged campus: a practical guide for institutionalizing puBlic engagement by James C. Votruba, Carole A. Beere and Gail W. Wells of Northern Kentucky University

This publication was prepared by Northern Kentucky University and printed with state funds (KRS 57.375). It is Northern Kentucky University’s policy to ensure equal employment opportunity for all persons and to take the necessary actions needed to recruit, employ, train, promote, and retain qualified faculty and staff, including members of protected groups. Discrimination against any individual based upon protected status, which is defined as age, color, disability, gender, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic, or veteran status, is prohibited. 15194

cit·i·zen·ship (sit ə zən ship) noun 1. The position or status of being a citizen of a particular place; 2. The duties, rights and privileges of such status; 3. The qualities that a person is expected to have as a responsible member of a community. The definitions of “citizenship” and “stewardship” are based on material from www. merriam-webster.com, www.oed.com and The Webster’s New World College Dictionary.

View more...

Comments

Copyright © 2020 DOCSPIKE Inc.