Institute for Urban Learning and Action

Posted by on March 18, 2005

[please note: these dates are different from what was previously listed.]

Trinity College’s Institute for Urban Learning and Action will convene again on May 31-June 3, 2005 to help colleges, universities and activists build, broaden, and sustain their community engagement. This year’s Institute will have a special focus on creating, caring for and advancing partnerships between academic institutions and their surrounding communities.

Colleges and universities increasingly seek urban engagement to bridge the campus and the community. Last year, representatives of more than 40 colleges, universities and community organizations convened for one week in Hartford to build community and college teams and create strategies for change on their campus. Participants have said the institute gave them “time to plan systematically with institutional partners” and to “hear what others institutions are doing.” Another said, “we are now ready as a team to meet with our Dean and administrators.” Participants should plan to focus on one important issue at the Institute with the hopes of leaving with a concrete action plan.

The Trinity Institute addresses the challenges of sustaining and adapting partnerships by drawing on nationally-recognized faculty, including Barbara Holland, Director of the National Service-Learning Clearinghouse, national donors, including the Kellogg Foundation, federal agencies, local and regional foundations as well as the rich array of experiences among the participants themselves. Participants spend their time interacting with speakers, visiting project locations in the community, and collaborating with their colleagues in workshops and in small consultative sessions. Participants depart with a new project or plan and with an understanding of challenges and opportunities facing other campuses.

The Institute hosts 8-12 teams of 4 participants drawn from college administrators, faculty, students and community members. Participants come from institutions and communities with some experience in urban engagement and community learning. They should represent a cross-section of their campus and must include at least one member from the community.

Speakers and workshops will focus on how individuals and organizational structures can strengthen partnerships. Special sessions will be devoted to evaluation, fundraising, dissemination, and strategies to maintain institutional support. Individual thematic sessions will allow participants to address topic-specific needs such as health professions, organizing community knowledge, creating partnerships with secondary schools, and creating programs at liberal arts colleges. Sessions will also offer practical advice and support on writing proposals, obtaining funding from the government and other agencies, using internships as an opportunity for reflection and community service, and combining academic study with community organizing.

Community engagement models at Trinity include a technology center, an historical archive center, a community film project, a center to build and support grassroots organizing groups, a faculty community learning program, student volunteer groups, academic internships and an administrative office of community relations.

Foundation underwriting allows us to offer the Institute for $400 per person including room, board, and registration, with participants paying their own roundtrip transportation costs to the Institute site. One community member for each team will receive free tuition and a $100 stipend for participating. This single tuition subsidy can be split among multiple community members if a team includes more than one. Please call or write with any questions. Todd Vogel, Director, 860-297-4274, Todd.Vogel@trincoll.edu, http://www.trincoll.edu/UG/UE/TULA