FacultyCommunity

The Center for Community Engagement (CCE) promotes research and other scholarly activities produced in collaboration with community partners with the explicit goal of contributing to the public good. While many forms of research may directly or indirectly benefit the public in some way—Community Engaged Scholarship (CES) involves working with a community partner to design a project, collect and analyze information, then implement and disseminate findings to relevant audiences and create solutions to public issues.

To encourage faculty participation, the CCE has developed a Community Engaged Scholars cohort program. Throughout the semester, the cohort members learn more about CES, share research ideas, discuss ways to develop meaningful partnerships and explore ways to make this work more visible. The first cohort will finish this spring, with the second cohort starting in the fall.

“I am very excited to be a member of the inaugural cohort. As a scholar in the criminal law and justice field, engaging with the community through research and service is extremely important to me, especially as it relates to system reform and social justice. The opportunity to receive mentorship and guidance is invaluable,” Professor Miltonette Craig said.

Faculty member and community-engaged scholar, Phillip Mulvey, believes cohort participation has provided valuable networking resources.

“The program has allowed me to think about my research in new and creative ways and opened me up to an entire network of individuals at the university and in the local community who are invested in many of the same initiatives that I am,” Mulvey said. “Being new to Texas, this has jump-started my network building by introducing me to a variety of community agencies.”H or most students, leaving high school life behind and transitioning into a new future is challenging. This major milestone can be even more daunting for students with disabilities.