It is vitally important that universities structurally change the way that they operate to affect the lives of those around them.
Our contribution to that effort will be to shift the paradigm for scholars to think differently about our own role in creating and using scientific knowledge to solve social problems. The collaborative and multi-perspective orientation of community-engaged scholarship shifts the goals of research from simply producing “new knowledge” to a focus on mutually beneficial, action-oriented research for positive change. Community-engaged scholarship achieves a shift through the rebalancing of power dynamics regarding what knowledge is considered valuable, through the creation of new tools for data-rich advocacy, and through the building of capacity within the university and lay communities. Our contribution to that effort will be to shift the paradigm for scholars to think differently about our own role in creating and using scientific knowledge to solve social problems. The collaborative and multi-perspective orientation of community-engaged scholarship shifts the goals of research from simply producing “new knowledge” to a focus on mutually beneficial, action-oriented research for positive change.
As each faculty member endeavors into community identified goals, the Equity Center can be supportive in the following arenas:
- Grant Writing
- Support grant writing
- Grant submission through the Equity Center
- Post Award and Project Administration
- Manage the hiring of graduate students,
- Budget management and reconciliation
- Facilitate payments to community partners in alignment with The Equity Center's Honorarium Guide
- Grant report submission
- Logistics and Operations
- Coordinate calendars of stakeholders
- Providing free access to The Equity Center's meeting spaces
- Coordinate A/V and other needed meeting materials
- Fellowship and Cohort Building
- Help facilitate the meetings between and retreats for faculty who are engaged in equity work.
- Identification of Community goals
- Thought partnership on connecting to different community driven initiatives or goals.
- Coordinate guest speakers for classes and ensuring they are paid an honorarium for their time.
- Communication
- Hosting work on the Equity Center website.
- Help get course descriptions out to students who want to do this work.
- Highlight work of the co-designed work of students, faculty, and community partners through social media.
- Local Youth Partnership
- Work with youth organizations and/or schools to coordinate the logistical aspects of working with students to include volunteer protocols, background checks.
- Program Evaluation or Report Writing
- Provide reports to stakeholders on the tangible impact and progress of the coursework