Quality, Not Quantity: Metrics Made for Community Engaged Research

Abstract

Without a doubt, an intense focus on numbers and metrics is the current zeitgeist of higher education. When community-engaged researchers and their supporters meet, the question “What are our metrics?” often arises. While metrics are typically used to support market-driven goals and can oversimplify complex research-such as community engaged scholarship-they can also be valuable when used grounded in a humanizing and relational stance. Dr. Jeremy Price, supported by the CUMU-Collaboratory Fellowship, has been developing a set of metrics that better capture the true essence of community-engaged research. These new metrics consider the full context, relationships, and efforts involved in this type of work. Drawing inspiration from Neil Postman’s constructive approach to change, Dr. Price will discuss the benefits, challenges, and opportunities that come with using these more human-centered metrics.