Posted on Dec 13, 2006

CSUMB honored for community involvement

CSUMB has been selected among the first group of schools to receive the new Community Engagement Classification from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

"Finding new and better ways to connect with their communities should be a high priority for higher education institutions today," said Lee S. Shulman, president of the Carnegie Foundation in a news release.

"The campuses participating in this elective classification provide useful models of engagement around teaching and learning and around research agendas that benefit from collaborative relationships."

CSUMB was among 76 U.S. institutions to be chosen for their involvement in the community through partnerships, community service and other activities, as well as for making community engagement an integral part of campus culture.

"We are pleased that the Carnegie Foundation has recognized that CSUMB's commitment to community engagement is one of our core values and an important part of our mission," said CSUMB President Dianne Harrison.

The Carnegie Foundation is an independent higher education policy and research center. Since 1970, its classification of colleges and universities has been used by organizations such as U.S. News & World Report to differentiate higher education institutions.

The Community Engagement Classification is the first "elective" classification offered by the Carnegie Foundation. Colleges and universities were invited to apply and provide evidence of community engagement. Campuses could apply under categories of curricular engagement, outreach and partnerships, or both. CSUMB applied for, and received, classification in the category of curricular engagement.

"This is further indication that the work that has gone into building our Service Learning program is significant and at the cutting edge of this work in higher education," said Seth Pollack, CSUMB's director of service learning.

Added David Anderson, dean of the College of University Studies and Programs, "It is yet another external verification that CSUMB is a center of excellence in higher education in the field of community engagement."

Other California schools receiving the Community Engagement Classification were CSU campuses in Chico, Fresno, San Francisco and San Marcos, Pitzer College, Otis College of Art and Design, Santa Clara University, UCLA, University of Redlands, University of San Diego and University of San Francisco.

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