ODU among only 119 universities in the nation selected for 2020
The Carnegie Foundation has named Old Dominion University one of the nation’s leaders in engagement and outreach with a 2020 Community Engagement Classification.
“This designation confirms that Old Dominion is a leader not just in instruction, research and diversity, but also in community service,” said Old Dominion University President John R. Broderick. “Our success relies on a broad-based effort, starting with our Office of Community Engagement and including faculty, staff and students.”
The University is one of 44 institutions that earned the recognition for the first time; 75 others were renewed after first being classified in 2010 or 2015. ODU is one of 119 institutions nationwide, and one of only nine Virginia schools, to earn the designation.
Among the 2020 recipients of the classification, 67 are public institutions and 52 are private. Fifty-two, including ODU, are classified as research universities, 39 are master’s colleges and universities, 22 are baccalaureate colleges, three are community colleges, and three institutions have a specialized focus – arts, medicine, and other health professions. They represent campuses in 37 states and U.S. territories.
“Earning this classification required an extensive review and documentation of ODU’s commitment to community engagement across all aspects of the institution, especially with our curriculum, outreach and partnerships,” explained Austin Agho, ODU’s provost and vice president for academic affairs. “It is gratifying to know that our hard work has steadily strengthened ODU’s impact across the Hampton Roads region.”
The classification is awarded after a process of self-study by each institution, which is then assessed by a national review committee led by the Swearer Center for Public Engagement at Brown University, the administrative and research home for the Carnegie Community Engagement Classification.
The Carnegie Community Engagement Classification has been the leading framework for institutional assessment and recognition of community engagement in U.S. higher education for the past 14 years.
“These newly classified and reclassified institutions are doing exceptional work to forward their public purpose in and through community engagement that enriches teaching and research while also benefiting the broader community,” noted Mathew Johnson, executive director of the Swearer Center.
“We also note that many more institutions who are not receiving classification today are doing similar important work and we celebrate them as well,” Johnson said. “It is clear that many campuses are facing difficult times and finding it challenging to maintain and advance their community engagement in the current climate. It is our hope that by celebrating these classified campuses, others might come to see community engagement as part of the strategy to address the current set of challenges in higher education.”
ABOUT THE CARNEGIE FOUNDATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF TEACHING:
The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching aims to build a field around the use of improvement science and networked improvement communities to solve long-standing inequities in educational outcomes. The Foundation, through the work of the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education, developed the first typology of American colleges and universities in 1970 as a research tool to describe and represent the diversity of U.S. higher education. The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education (now housed at Indiana University Bloomington’s Center for Postsecondary Research) continues to be used for a wide range of purposes by academic researchers, institutional personnel, policymakers and others. For more information, visit www.carnegiefoundation.org.
ABOUT THE SWEARER CENTER FOR PUBLIC SERVICE:
In 1986, Brown University President Howard Swearer founded one of the first public service centers in the nation, now named for him — the Swearer Center for Public Service. The Swearer Center is a hub of community, scholarship, and action at Brown University. Through innovative programs and fellowships that reach across Rhode Island and around the globe, the Swearer Center connects people to co-create knowledge and positive social change, advances the field of engaged scholarship, and integrates social innovation with community engagement. In 2017, the Swearer Center became the administrative and research home of the Carnegie Community Engagement Classification. For more information, visit www.swearer.brown.edu.