Office of Community Engagement
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The Office of Community Engagement creates a coordinated, strategic approach to professional development and corporate education; neighborhood, school, and family partnerships; volunteerism and service; and a campus wide culture of engagement.
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Item Assessing Hidden Outcomes of Civic or Community Engagement during College(2017-08-03) Weiss, H. Anne; Norris, KristinPedagogies of community engagement have been touted as one way faculty or staff can produce or strengthen disciplinary or subject-related learning outcomes or skill development for students in higher education. This has, consequently, left other learning and developmental outcomes often unspoken or, more often, unmeasured and hidden across teaching and learning experiences during college . These unstated learning and developmental outcomes are, however, intrinsic to community engaged pedagogies and initiatives: civic learning/knowledge, civic identity, civic agency, civic mindedness, and much more! In this presentation participants will begin with the PUBLIC goals, objectives, outcomes, etc. in mind and end with articulating a strategy to identify and assess these, often, unstated outcomes of community engagement pedagogies or initiatives.Item Best Practices Framework for Out-of-School-Time Program Parent & Family Engagement(At Your School, IUPUI, 2017-07) Grim, JimThis framework outlines five steps based on best practices and strategies to enhance parent and family engagement in out-of-school time programming observed at AYS program locations in MSD Decatur Township, Spring Semester 2017, as well as evidence-based activities recommendations from the Harvard Family Research Center, Harvard Graduate School of Education, National PTA and our own Indiana Afterschool Network. The framework also reflects two decades of engagement in out-of-school time programming with parent, family and school communities by the author. It is intended to inspire innovative and creative ideas for expanding parent and family engagement in diverse AYS program settings. While no two school communities may seem the same, solutions to further engage families in programming cannot be cookie-cutter either. Evidence-based, targeted strategies help to move efforts in a productive direction.Item Building on a legacy – taking a community schools project to scale(Partnership Press, Children's Aid Society, New York City, 2016) Grim, Jim; Medina, MonicaSchool community partnerships provide a bedrock of stability and continuity in the midst of a tsunami of educational change on the Near Westside of Indianapolis. Central to the firmly imbedded partnerships is George Washington Community High School (GWCHS) — as well as Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center and IUPUI (Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis), two key collaboration facilitators for decades.Item Building Trusting Relationships. Evaluating a School-Based Community Health Worker Program to Reduce Chronic Absenteeism(2023-10-12) Garcia, Silvia; Roelecke, Kate; Grim, Jim; Mohlman, Rachel; Peterkin, AllysonIn 2021, MCCOY and the Daniel Webster School 46 (DWS) were awarded two grants1 to implement a Community Health Worker intervention at DWS to increase student engagement as a protective factor to prevent juvenile delinquency and improve youth outcomes. The project took a holistic approach to engage families and students who were chronically absent throughout the school year. Relying on multiple evidence-based and promising practices in youth violence and juvenile delinquency prevention, a certified Community Health Worker partnered with the school social workers and teachers to encourage consistent student attendance using coaching, referrals, goal setting, and family engagement activities to facilitate learning and address family needs. The evaluation, conducted one year after implementation, yielded the following results: The CHW at DWS has proved valuable for students, teachers, and families in several ways. The CHW provides services and builds trusting relationships with families, eventually influencing how families engage with the schools and their students' education. The CHW also connects directly with students, providing emotional support and encouragement, hence supporting the teachers’ work. Being part of the community where parents came from and previously volunteering in the school made the difference in becoming the bridge between the school, the families, and the community. Regarding absenteeism, several improvements in reducing the number of absent days were observed in students receiving support for themselves and their families. Some of the students reduced their absent days to less than half. More importantly, three chronically absent students became “improved attendees” after the first year. The short time the CHW has been in the school (10 months) has brought small but significant changes in students’ behavior.Item #CLDE16: Democracy Plaza Tour @ IUPUI(AASCU American Democracy Project, 2016-05-07) Weiss, H. AnneThis brief article introduces readers to the unique place of Democracy Plaza on the IUPUI campus and its' role in the national conference: Civic Learning & Democratic Engagement (CLDE).Item Closing the Gap between School & Community Partnerships, A Needs Assessment in Indianapolis, 2021(MCCY, 2021-01) Education Action Team, Early Intervention Planning CouncilOur children spend a significant amount of time in school – and success in school sets the foundation for successful careers and contribution to our communities. However, in recent decades, we have seen what the disinvestment to public education has done to individual schools and school systems. The past year, during the Covid-19 global pandemic, schools have faced even more challenges, navigating school closures, virtual learning, and hybrid models. Research clearly connects multiple external factors and academic success. With a global pandemic layered onto limited funding and capacity, schools continue to struggle to provide the supports students and their families need to address the challenges and struggles reflected in the classroom. In 2018, the Education Action Team of Marion County’s Early Intervention Planning Council launched an assessment to identify the issues impeding student success from the perspective of school personnel. Additionally, we sought to identify barriers to building stronger partnerships with community resources. Marion County, Indiana is resource rich but systems poor – our community lacks a cohesive network of community services for schools to tap into, thus teachers and staff navigate a fragmented system. Through an online survey, three community conversations, and key informant interviews, we were able to identify key findings that can inform strategic actions moving forward to strengthen the ability of schools to meet student needs – whether they develop within the classroom or not. Our findings show some of the top issues impacting student success are challenges that all exist outside of the school building: • Social and Emotional Health • Trauma and Violence • Mental Health • Chronic Absenteeism • Social Media and Internet School staff are often left trying to address the symptoms of these complex, adaptive challenges, yet they do not have the capacity to fully tackle the root causes nor should they be expected to do so alone. This emphasizes the need to build strong partnerships with community resources, in addition to building the capacity of school personnel to carry out effective solutions inside the classroom. Moreover, schools realize that family engagement is a proactive strategy to support students and building trust with families is paramount. Stronger school-community partnerships and networks will more effectively work towards the systems change necessary to support learning. The recommendations put forth in this report work across multiple levels to provide holistic solutions to the complex problems discussed in our findings from the assessment. Schools and community organizations can join us in taking the necessary steps to building supportive community networks around our schools and advocating for the investment needed to create safe, healthy learning environments for our children.Item Closing the Gap between Schools and Community: University/Community Collaboration Addresses Identified Barriers to Student Learning(Office of Community Engagement, IUPUI, 2023-03) Roelecke, Kate; Grim, Jim; Garcia, SilviaItem Co-Constructing Culturally Relevant College & Career Readiness Resources for Latinx Families(2021-04-15) Wolfe, Devin; Garcia, SilviaRecent studies show that Latinx newcomer parents are not prepared to support their children throughout the college preparation process due to a lack of understanding of the U.S. college process, the complex financial aid system, and the diversity of post-secondary choices. Utilizing a design-based implementation research methodology, the research team (1 faculty member, 1 staff member, 1 graduate student, and 3 community partners) conducted virtual meetings with Latinx parents and 2 college students to understand and address their major questions and concerns about college and career readiness, as well as their approach to better communicate this content. Based on the knowledge gained so far, the research team is co-developing prototypes to discuss, implement and co-evaluate with parents.Item Cocreating Culturally Responsive Resources With Communities Using Design-Based Implementation Research: The Challenges of Online Research(SAGE Research Methods, 2022-03) Garcia, Silvia; Wolfe, Devin; Fox, Sarah; Gil, Cindy; King, Gloria; Colgan, SusanaThis case study highlights the methodological and practical implications of modifying an investigation with community partners to fit an online format. Research interactions took place between November 2020 and June 2021, under the social distancing restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Twelve Latinx parents/caregivers participated in co-designing culturally relevant college and career readiness resources for Latinx families. A research partnership of two school faculty and a community partner collaborating with university faculty, staff, and students led the study using design-based implementation research (DBIR) as the primary methodological approach. The means of communication and resource sharing with parents were Zoom videoconferencing, WhatsApp text messaging, social media, and phone calls. Parents also received printed materials sent through students attending school under a hybrid modality (face-to-face and online classes). The use of online environments posed challenges in getting participants fully engaged in the co-design process. Some parents lacked technological skills or access to adequate technology, leading to communication barriers in some cases. The implementation phase, a significant component of DBIR, could not be achieved online. This case is about the strategies put forward by the research team to overcome the restrictive research conditions, the adaptations made throughout the process to facilitate community engagement, and lessons learned. It is an invitation to think about the implications of the decisions made by the research team and reflect on creative solutions to address the challenges faced.Item Community Engagement Through Partnerships: Lessons Learned from a Decade of Full-Service Community School Implementation(Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk, Special Edition Prospectus, 2020) Medina, Monica; Cosby, Gayle; Grim, JimImproving performance in an environment often tested by intermingled social problems, including poverty, racial isolation, cultural clashes between teachers and students, and school funding disparities requires authentic, committed family, school, and community partnerships. Using Bryk’s (2010) model for effective and improving schools, our study describes challenges and achievements experienced over a decade of implementing the full-service community school (FSCS) reform in two neighborhoods in Indianapolis, Indiana. We also share lessons about funding, collaborative structures and processes, and organizational responses to change. The study has broad implications for both FSCSs and urban schools with comparable demographics that are working to build effective partnerships to address social problems in lasting ways