Community-Engaged Teaching program
The Community-Engaged Teaching (CET) program will support the effective and intentional use of community engagement in teaching and learning via regular meetings of a faculty learning community.
Each meeting will be hybrid, with 45 minutes of preparation work online, 75-minute meetings, and follow-up discussion board posts. Meetings will involve a guest speaker presentation and a discussion of current teaching practices, pedagogical research, and why and how to integrate community engagement in teaching. For help with the nuts and bolts of designing and implementing community-engaged courses, participants are invited to “drop by” the OSLCE office or schedule one-on-one meetings with OSLCE staff.
Participating faculty will be encouraged to:
- Reflect on their current teaching practices and civic professionalism;
- Expand their knowledge of research-based best practices in community-engaged teaching;
- Develop individual projects through collective dialogue and collaborative inquiry;
- Learn from the experiences, insights, and ideas of other faculty; and
- Exchange ideas about community-engaged teaching with other faculty through online discussions.
Faculty and graduate students at all levels of experience with community-engaged teaching are invited to participate.
Faculty testimonials
"Community-engaged teaching was a professional development experience that resulted in immediate applications throughout the program. As an educator working with preservice math and science teachers, the program helped me see community engagement through the lens of others, including colleagues in different fields. The program also challenged me to be reflective of my own practices to improve the learning experiences of our students to be more relevant and meaningful while serving our community's needs." - Mandi Collins, Master Teacher, NevadaTeach
"As someone who came in with zero experience with community-engaged teaching, and from a discipline where service-learning is not as common a practice, I benefited so much from this program. Between learning more about the amazing work my colleagues at the University are doing and dedicating time to read and expand my pedagogical practice, I feel confident and excited about the prospect of making community engagement central to my teaching practice." - Seth Cosimini, Teaching Assistant Professor, English
Learning outcomes
- Participants will identify and describe the principles, components, and benefits of community engagement and community-engaged scholarship.
- Participants will be able to intentionally design and effectively cultivate and implement community-engaged teaching practices.
- Participants will be able to facilitate and assess critical reflection to enhance student learning and engagement.
- Participants will be able to establish and maintain mutually beneficial relationships with community partners that are grounded in reciprocity, respect, and trust, and will acknowledge community partners as educational collaborators (i.e. co-educators).
- Participants will also understand and navigate University policies and resources related to community-engaged scholarship.
- Participants will cultivate a learning community that provides professional and intellectual development, feedback and accountability, social-emotional support, and access to community engagement opportunities and resources.
How to apply
Interested applicants must by Sunday, September 1, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. Applicants are asked to provide a short explanation of why they are interested in participating in the certificate.
Criteria for completion
To earn the Community Engaged Teaching Certificate, faculty will have two semesters to complete the following requirements:
- Attend the Orientation in September and the Wolf Pack Discoveries Fall and Spring Symposiums
- Attend at least seven out of eight meetings through the 2024-2025 academic year
- Post to the discussion board at least eight times and reply to other posts at least eight times
- Complete a final project; Possible final projects could include one of the following:
- Integrate CET into an existing course and apply for the service-learning course designation (SL) through Curriculog;
- Obtain IRB approval for a community-engaged teaching research project;
- Prepare and submit a proposal for a paper or a presentation to an appropriate community-engaged scholarship conference or journal;
- Give a presentation to your department or college concerning community-engaged teaching and scholarship at the university;
- Apply for the Service-Learning Mini-grant, which is designed to support faculty to create, enhance, or participate in service-learning instruction or scholarship; or
- Apply for the Community Engaged Teaching Fellowship Program, which provides selected faculty members with an opportunity to apply their knowledge to promote the institutionalization of community-engaged teaching within their department, college, or the university.
- 3-5 page reflection on your project, target audience, any pedagogy/theory used, and any goals that you are hoping to achieve through such praxis.
CET schedule
Second Thursday of every month, 10:30-11:45 a.m.
| Meeting | Date | Topics |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 17, 2024 | Orientation and Community Engagement Overview |
| 2 | November 14, 2024 | Student Learning Outcomes |
| 3 | December 12, 2024 | Community Identified Needs; Establishing Community Partnerships |
| 4 | January 9, 2025 | Integrating Community Engagement in a Course (Mid-Point Presentations on Final Project) |
| 5 | February 13, 2025 | Critical Reflection |
| 6 | March 13, 2025 | Assessment and Evaluation |
| 7 | April 10, 2025 | Community-Engaged Scholarship |
| 8 | May 8, 2025 | Advanced Community-Engaged Teaching (Final Presentations) |
* Attendance is required at Orientation and Wolf Pack Discoveries Fall Symposiums. Symposium dates are TBD.
Please note: The schedule is tentative, and modifications may be made to accommodate participant interests and presenter availability.
Certificate recipients
2023-24
- Alana Walls, Graduate Student, Department of Anthropology, Gender, Race, and Identity Studies
- Alycia Barnwell, Lecturer, School of Social Work
- Cody Hunter, Teaching Assistant Professor, Department of English
- Jessica Reimche, Lecturer, Department of Biology
- Jia Feng, Assistant Professor, Department of Geography
- Lara Katrina Schott, Reference Librarian, Savitt Medical Library
- Melody Huslage, Assistant Professor, School of Social Work
- Rachel Salas, Associate Professor, College of Education and Human Development
- Samantha Bickert, Lecturer II, College of Business