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Categories of Engagement

Upstate faculty, staff, and students engage in our community in a variety of ways.

Here are some of the most prevelant categories with examples of organizations, programs, and events. 
Please note that in many, perhaps most, examples below, the primary moving forces reside in our community. The Office of Service Learning and Community Engagement hopes to encourage and celebrate faculty, staff, and students as they come alongside our community in big and small ways that support and enhance the great work that's already being done.   

Service Learning
Formally designated mergers of course and community partnerships
- e.g., BIOL 310, NURS 461

Civic Engagement
Non-partisan support of the voting process and other civic endeavors
- e.g., get-out-the-vote, census completion efforts

Civic-minded Career Readiness
Connections between the University and community employers
- e.g., clinicals, internships, practicums

Volunteer Programs
Engaging students and others in collaborative efforts to altruistically support our community without direct connection to academic endeavors
- e.g., IMPACT, Alternative Breaks, Student organization service projects, Athletics service projects

Town & Gown Educational Endeavors
Talks, colloquiums, and other events that seek to integrate faculty, staff, students, and community members in learning and discussion
- e.g., NEH Landmarks Grant, CAAS Campus-Community Book Club & Study Group, Black Carolina Lecture Series, SunTrust Financial Literacy Program, Johnson Innovation Speaker Series, Wells Fargo Speaker Series

Community Advocacy
Working to enhance the well-being of a set of people (geographic or demographic)
Common Advocacy domains include:

  • Education (e.g. ACHIEVE Program)
  • Environment (e.g. Watershed Ecology Center)
  • Gender equality (e.g. Bodies of Knowledge)
  • Bridging generations (aspirant)
  • Health (e.g. Way to Wellsville)
  • Intercultural perspectives & identities (e.g. Alianza Spartanburg, Racial Equity Institute)
  • Public safety (e.g. Public Safety Policy Review Committee)
  • Workplace and economic concerns (e.g. Start:ME, Amplify)
  • Crossover efforts (e.g. Race, Equity, and Economic Mobility Commission)

Arts & Creative Endeavors
Sharing of craft and culture with our community for pleasure and productivity
- e.g., The Studio, the Upstate Gallery on Main, and the Mayfair Art Studio

Community Engaged Research
Non-traditional scholarship designed by and/or for the community
- e.g., Community Indicators Project

Public Scholarship
Traditional scholarship with community participation &/or focus
- e.g., journals, conference presentations, etc.

Board Membership & Other Professional Volunteerism
Enhancing our community through investing time and talent related to one's profession
- e.g., Urban League of the Upstate, Upstate Regional Education Center’s Workforce

NOTE: This list is meant to celebrate and describe, not to prescribe or proscribe. 
If you are aware of other categories in which Upstate folks engage, plese let us know & we'll update the list! 

 

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