INDIANAPOLIS – With its demonstrated ability to contribute to improving the community and educate students for civic and social responsibility, IUPUI won the 2018 Engaged Campus of the Year award from the Indiana Campus Compact.
The Indiana Campus Compact is a partnership of Indiana’s public, private and community college higher education institutions and is focused on advocating, implementing and improving service engagement. The Engaged Campus Award recognizes exemplary commitment to advancing the civic purposes of higher education.
“IUPUI’s commitment to community engagement began when the campus was founded in 1969 and is a guiding principle for all of our students, faculty and staff,” IUPUI Chancellor Nasser H. Paydar said. “We’re honored to receive this award as a symbol of our strong historic commitment to the public good, which continues to be a major force in our strategic priorities.”
The IUPUI Strategic Plan: Our Commitment to Indiana and Beyond articulates the campus priorities of student success; advances in health and life sciences; and contributions to the well-being of the citizens of Indianapolis, the state of Indiana and beyond. Engagement is pervasive throughout the strategic plan – in the curricular and co-curricular experiences, research, service, economic and community development, and more.
In 2014, as part of that strategic plan, IUPUI developed an Office of Community Engagement to support, promote and recognize campus engagement with the community and to develop a strategic approach to community engagement at IUPUI.
Community engagement is integrated into the curriculum on an institution-wide level. From the newly launched Community Corps program, which gives students an introduction to community development, to residential and commercial developments designed for social justice impact to an American Studies “cultural ecologies” internship exploring how art and culture impact a community’s well-being, IUPUI weaves community into courses, majors and departments across the campus.
As home to the nationally recognized Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, the Center for Service and Learning, and The Polis Center for place-based solutions, IUPUI has been lauded for years for being a shining example of how an urban university can be the conduit for collaboration and reciprocal partnerships with surrounding communities while at the same time offering a robust, rigorous and socially just education to its students.
“Indiana Campus Compact’s mission to prepare college students to advance the public good in their communities is only possible when our partner institutions dedicate themselves to the same mission. Fully engaged colleges and universities work hand-in-hand with community partners to improve community life and to educate students for civic and social responsibility,” said J.R. Jamison, executive director of Indiana Campus Compact. “Community engagement is embedded in IUPUI’s culture, and its faculty, staff and students are connected to the community in meaningful, lasting ways that advance the public good.”
IUPUI received a $1,000 prize with the award. The money is being donated to one of its community partners, Christamore House, which provides youth education services, senior programming and life skills training to residents of Haughville and the near-west side of Indianapolis.
About Indiana Campus Compact
Indiana Campus Compact is a partnership of Indiana’s public, private and community college higher education institutions focused on advocating, implementing and improving service engagement so that students graduate as well-informed, engaged and productive members of society who are fully enabled to provide leadership and service that advances the public good in their communities. Indiana Campus Compact is an affiliate of National Campus Compact, headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
