Building the Campus Infrastructure to Support Civic Engagement June 2006

1. Building the Campus Infrastructure to Support Civic Engagement June 2006

2. Workshop Goals To explore the context for civic engagement at Montclair State University To identify the academic, administrative and co-curricular framework that has evolved over the past 15 years in support of civic engagement To describe how the ADP is linked to service-learning and other curricular and co-curricular planned initiatives To discuss the outcome of the ADP audit and the impact on planning for years 2 and years 3

3. Presenters/ MSU Steering Committee Members Freyda Lazarus, Director of the Center for Community- Based Learning and Campus Coordinator of the ADP Gregory Waters, Director of the Honors Program; former Deputy Provost and Vice President for Institutional Advancement Bryan Murdock, Associate Director of the Center for Community- Based Learning and the Service-Learning Program Rick Brown, Coordinator of MSU Student Leadership Programs, Director College Leadership New Jersey Gurvinder Khaneja, Associate Director of Institutional Research

4. Building the Infrastructure ofCivic Engagement

5. Montclair State University is like many if not most AASCU institutions, a former teachers college that became comprehensive in the sixties, was granted university designation in the nineties and now offers 250 majors, minors and concentrations along with a select number of doctoral programs.

6. We have grown from a few hundred students in 1908 to over 16,000 now, with a goal of 18,000 by our centennial year. We have 45 undergraduate majors awarded through five schools and colleges: a School of Business and a School of the Arts, a College of Education and Human Services, a College of Math and Science, and the biggest, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.

7. We have about 500 full time faculty lines and about 700 part timers or adjuncts. Our students are very much like your students: 61 % female, 40% students of color, very reflective of the community of Northern New Jersey where we are located.

8. In fact we are only 14 miles from New York City in a leafy suburban town on the first mountain range west of Manhattan. Our students are for the most part commuters as is our faculty: dispersed throughout the North Jersey/ New York metropolitan area, with some driving in from Pennsylvania or taking the bus or train from New York.

9. Our urban/metropolitan location provides us with a high degree of excitement, a fast pace, a rich cultural life, a sometimes argumentative attitude and a high degree of toleration for the diversity of ideas…at least on good days.

10. Ours is a campus that has experienced recent and dramatic change: over 50 % of the faculty have arrived since 1996; a rapid building program during the same time period has increased classroom capacity by 40%.

11. The student population has boomed and will continue growing even as the state appropriation continues to shrink. Next year’s budget could present us with a shortfall of 28% in our state appropriation. Capturing the attention of the faculty and student body in the midst of all this change has not been easy.

12. I believe we all saw the promise of the American Democracy Project reflected in the diversity of our faculty and staff and in the hopes of our students.

13. The majority of our students are among the first in their families to attend college, 19% have a family income of less than $30,000. 74% performed volunteer work in high school, 59% participated in a demonstration while in school (perhaps over school budgets) though only 9% worked on a political campaign.

14. Most gratifying, 80% believe that through hard work you can still succeed in America, and more than two thirds believe an individual can bring about change in our society.

15. My colleagues will describe the various activities we undertook to launch the project, through a survey, a variety of activities sponsored by the Student Affairs division and more recently with some very exciting proposals for new courses.

16. Although the project is still very much in its infancy, we are proud of the results of the first year and look forward to creating programs that respond to the survey responses and build on our success.

17. Operating Definition of Infrastructure An internal framework of an inter- connected system of people, programs, partnerships and policies

18. The evolution of civic engagement over a 15 year period Administrative Academic Co-Curricular

19. Administrative (1993-2000) Senate Committee for Experiential Education Created Community-Service Survey MSU joins Campus Compact

20. Academic (1993-2000) Service-Learning Program established CNS/Learn and Serve grant propels development of Service- Learning program Service-Learning Faculty Fellows Program Propels Growth Created Student Citizen Scholars Program Established Center for Community-Based Learning HUD/COPC grant advances campus-community partnerships

21. Co-Curricular (1993-2000) Community Service Linked to Greek Organizations Volunteer Projects Linked to SGA Clubs Politicians come to Campus Voter Registration Encouraged College Leadership New Jersey Begins

22. Academic/Administrative/Co-Curricular (2001-2006) Service-learning courses linked to Emerging Leaders Program and Freshman Experience Courses ADP Steering Committee Formed Constitution Day Programming Presidential Invited Lecture on Civic Engagement ADP Campus-Wide Survey

23. Overview of the Service-Learning Program at Montclair State University

24. MSU Service-Learning Definition Service-learning is a course-based, credit bearing educational experience in which students participate in an organized community-based service activity. This activity meets identified community needs, and provides a student with sufficient time to reflect on the service activity in such a way as to gain a greater understanding of course content and an enhanced sense of civic responsibility. (Approved by MSU's University Senate in May, 1998)

25. Service-Learning Program Mission As a Program of the Center for Community-Based Learning, Service-Learning Program seeks to foster the development of informed and involved citizens through the integration of service to the community with academic course work.

26. Service-Learning Program Goals Provide support systems for faculty to create and offer academic courses. Establish and sustain community partnerships that are based on reciprocity and rely on long-term commitments. Offer training and developmental activities to meet the needs of students, faculty and community partner. Build an institutional infrastructure that supports faculty, community partners, and students. Recognize and award student, faculty and partners who make a significant contribution to the campus and community.

27. The Issue-Based Model Our initiatives are sorted by issue area in order to provide a continuity of service to partners over time. We also believe that the social issues that are addressed by our partners are best attended by a variety of disciplines and specialties working together in partnership.

28. Areas Education Substance Abuse Mentoring Issues in Aging Conflict Resolution Digital Divide Disciplines Anthropology Child Development English Legal Studies Business Community Health Education Psychology Communication Studies Issue Areas

29. Role of the Service-Learning Program Build and Maintain Partnerships Develop and maintain partnerships with CBOs, NPOs, and governmental agencies with whom students serve Work to ensure effective supervision and risk management oversight Work with partners to develop projects and understanding of service-learning Develop partnership policy and procedures documented in handbook and website

30. Role of the Service-Learning Program Student Development and Support Conduct classroom visits to provide overview of Service- Learning Program Conduct student orientations to prepare students for service Manage student placement and logistics Maintain all information on Blackboard SLP Community

31. Role of the Service-Learning Program Coordination and Assessment Monitor completion of progress reports and other program requirements Troubleshoot problems and issues as they emerge Coordinate and supervise student service in the field Participate in and conduct student focus groups and debriefings Conduct and analyze student and partner evaluations

32. Role of the Service-Learning Program Faculty Development and Support Offer a faculty fellows program to educate interested faculty in the pedagogy, philosophy, and practices of service-learning Support faculty in management and development of service-learning courses Support faculty in using service-learning as a gateway to scholarship

33. Service-Learning Faculty Participation Teach a service-learning course that meets university- established criteria Assist with and participate in student orientations, debriefing sessions, task force meetings, and student recognition events Conduct a minimum of one visit at each community partner site Attend service-learning faculty meetings Assist with any program and evaluation activities conducted by the Service-Learning Program

34. Standards for Student Participation Placing students in roles where they will gain exposure to real social problems Placing students in roles where they will experience making a difference Placing students in positions where their roles are clearly defined and their relationship to the program infrastructure and larger initiative are clear Service project roles should be consistent with course material Job descriptions should be specific and consistency with actual service activity should be ensured Students should have appropriate support and supervision when providing service

35. Service-Learning at MSU Today Service-Learning Program participation: 2002-2004 1,180 students enrolled 49 service-learning courses conducted 40 different community sites/partners addressing a variety of social issues 29 faculty from multiple disciplines now teach service learning courses with 6 new faculty fellows joining the program for AY 2007

36. Co-Curricular Community Service Linked to Greek Organizations Volunteer Projects Linked to SGA Clubs Politicians come to Campus Voter Registration Encouraged College Leadership New Jersey Begins

37. MSU ADP AUDIT PROCESS Initiation and Planning: Summer and Fall 2005 Formation of sub-committee Identifying Measurement Constructs Development of surveys: local vs. national surveys Identifying Factions to be Surveyed Mode of Surveys: traditional vs. web surveys Incentives IRB Approval

38. MSU ADP AUDIT PROCESS Survey Administration: Spring 2006 Setting Timeline Hosting Surveys on Web Site Obtaining E-mail Address Listings for Students and Faculty/Staff Sending Reminders Dissemination of Rewards

39. MSU ADP AUDIT PROCESS Results and Discussion: Summer 2006 Response Rate Analysis of the results (SPSS/PC) Surveys Results on Web Site Sharing Results with Committee (Retreat: June 20th 2006) Implications and Directions for next year

40. Q’s and A’s Thank You!