Presenters: Madeline Marcotte, Christine Guaragno, Olivia Edwards, Michael Miles, Michelle Lopez, 

Audience: Faculty, Administrators

In-Person: 

Learning Goals

Participants will:

• Identify the key components and steps involved in planning and implementing a community engaged learning project in collaboration with the Institute for Community Engagement and Civic Leadership. 
• Evaluate the impact of community-engaged learning projects on student engagement, academic development, and career readiness, using student reflections as evidence. 
• Recognize the resources and support available through the Institute for Community Engagement and Civic Leadership to enhance their teaching and community-engaged learning initiatives.
• Learn the step-by-step process of envisioning, planning, and implementing a community-engaged learning project. 
• Hear students’ voices through excerpts from their reflective essays, showcasing the personal and professional impact of the project. 
• Discover practical strategies for integrating community-engaged learning into their own courses, including how to connect with the Institute.

Seminar Description

This session will explore how community-engaged learning can transform both teaching and student engagement through collaboration with the Institute for Community Engagement and Civic Leadership. Using the Introduction to Literature community-engaged project as a case study, we will share how faculty and the Institute worked together to create a meaningful partnership with a local elementary school. Designed to give students a sense of purpose by connecting classroom learning to real-world impact, the project fostered confidence, career readiness, and community connection. By rooting students in purpose and revealing the possibilities within them, this project embodies CCP’s 60th anniversary theme. Participants will walk away with practical steps and inspiration to begin community-engaged projects of their own—with the full support of the Institute for Community Engagement and Civic Leadership. This session is ideal for faculty interested in fostering student engagement, building community partnerships, and creating impactful community-engaged learning opportunities.