Campus Spotlight: Portland State University’s Second International Institute on Partnerships

By Cecilia M. Orphan, National Manager, American Democracy Project

This week’s Campus Spotlight is on Portland State University (PSU). PSU is hosting its Second International Institute on Partnerships: From Reciprocity to Collective Transformation: Achieving the Potential of Community-Campus Partnerships in Portland Oregon, May 23-25, 2011.

Portland State has earned an exemplary reputation for facilitating and researching equitable and effective community/university partnerships. In ADP, we see effective community/university partnerships as a Signature Practice in Civic Engagement. When a university partners with the community with the goal of helping to solve local, public problems, it is also fulfilling part of its role as a Steward of Place. Community/university partnerships are also one of the most important tools a campus has to facilitate the development of civic agency on the part of students. It is imperative that these partnerships serve both the community’s and the university’s interests. Of equal importance is that universities  are deliberate about building reciprocity into the partnerships they establish. This institute will be an excellent event for those in higher education looking to deepen their understanding and practice of community/university partnerships. Please see below for more information, and consider submitting a proposal for presentation.

International Institute on Partnerships: From Reciprocity to Collective Transformation: Achieving the Potential of Community-Campus Partnerships

May 23-25, 2011

PSU Campus, Portland, Oregon

We have extended the proposal deadline to Monday, Jan 17^th, 2011. For details, visit this website.

The 2011 International Institute on Partnerships will utilize a variety of session formats to engage participants in a unique learning environment that brings together national and international leaders in partnership research and practices. We are thrilled to welcome a wide variety of Institute facilitators to share their unique insights on partnerships from the perspectives of community organizations and higher education institutions.

Why “PARTNERSHIPS”?: Insights from decades of practice and emerging research confirms that the most effective community-campus collaborations must be supported by solid partners who work regularly on their partnership development and sustainability.

Why “INTERNATIONAL”?: Community-campus engagement is now a global phenomenon. Thus, we invite colleagues from around the world to focus with us on the many kinds and types of partnerships that undergird local, regional, state, national, and/or international collaborations.

Why an “INSTITUTE”?: The Institute program is directed to strengthening the capacity of both community and higher education constituents for participation in transformative partnerships.  This “hands-on” program will empower attending participants to extend and enhance the foundations of community-campus partnerships with contemporary understandings, research, and practices within a supportive national and international network.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND: Join community partners, faculty, administrators, and students interested in deepening their understandings and practices of community-higher education partnerships.

How will this gathering be “DIFFERENT”?: Through a blend of presentations from the field, plenaries and working sessions, we will deeply explore strategies to address persistent challenges, analyze promising practices, and examine research to advance the study of partnerships.

A sampling of this year’s facilitators includes the following:
Maria Avila, Director, Center for Community Based Learning, Occidental College

Patti Clayton, Consultant, PHC Ventures & Senior Scholar at IUPUI

Amy Driscoll, Senior Scholar, Portland State University Partnership Initiative; Consulting Scholar, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching; Visiting Scholar, New England Resource Center for Higher Education (NERCHE)

Katherine Lambert Pennington, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Memphis

Karen McGee, Steering Committee Member at South Memphis Revitalization Action Project

Seth Pollack, Professor of Service Learning and Director of Service Learning Institute at California State University, Monterey Bay

Kenneth M. Reardon, Professor in City and Regional Planning Department at the University of Memphis

Curtis Thomas, Deputy Executive Director at The Works Inc.

Facilitator bios are now available on our website.