community engagement – CCBP | The University of Alabama

Week-long UA STEM Entrepreneurship Academy Gives High School Students a Head Start in Science and Related Areas

July 27th, 2016
in News, STEM Entrepreneurship Academy

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From July 18–22, some 40 high school students from schools throughout West Alabama got a jumpstart on some of the most important areas in society in general and higher education in particular — math, science, engineering and technology — in the weeklong STEM Entrepreneurship Academy at the University of Alabama. The camp demonstrated in meaningful, memorable and enjoyable ways some of the most important tools and concepts in modern society.

On Wednesday, the students learned more about engineering at a lab in the Science and Engineering Complex at the university. Surrounded by state-of-the-art equipment, they observed the process of combustion and other areas of science and technology that might one day become their life’s interest.

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Several students echoed the words of Xavier Turner, who’ll be a junior this fall at Sumter Central High School. Turner told a Tuscaloosa News reporter, “I wish this was longer. I could be here a while.”

The big sell of the program, according to program director Dr. Rosianna Gray of the Center for Community-Based Partnership (CCBP), is that it gives science exposure to students who otherwise may not get it. This was the third year of the program.

Campers also got to see and use many campus facilities, including Morgan Hall, the Bashinsky Computer Lab, Farrah Hall, the Biology Building, and the EDGE Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

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Schools represented were Amelia L. Johnson High School in Thomaston; Aliceville High School; Greene County High School in Eutaw; Hale County High School in Moundville; Holt High School; Oakman High School; Pickens County High School in Reform; and Sumter Central High School in York.

“This camp is one of the premier activities of the Center for Community-Based Partnerships,” said Dr. Jim McLean, CCBP executive director. “The message it conveys with respect to potential careers and skills learned are critical to the future of our state.”

The four colleges responsible for organizing camp activities are The College of Arts and Sciences, Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration, College of Education and the College of Engineering. Camp faculty included Dr. Jim Gleason, associate professor of mathematics; Dr. Marcus Ashford, associate professor of mechanical engineering; Dr. Ryan L. Earley, associate professor of biological sciences; Jonathan Corley, computer science doctoral student; Adriane Sheffield, educational psychology doctoral student; and Douglas Craddock, higher education doctoral student.

Winds of Change open house 4/19

April 19th, 2012
in Events, Issues, News

Tonight is the public open house for Winds of Change: Youth perspectives on Community Recovery at Holt High School in the auditorium from 6:30 to 8:30. The Winds of Change program is a set of interactive exhibits for youth and by youth related to the youth’s experience of the April 27 tornado and possibilities for community recovery. Over 500 Holt area youth have been participating each day this week and sharing their views. Tonight’s open house is for the community. Drop in at any point during the open house tonight to see what the youth have been up to! Further information is attached.

To view a PDF of the Winds of Change program, click here.

Call for Editor: International Journal of Research on Community Engagement

March 22nd, 2011
in Conferences, Funding & jobs, News

For the past decade, the Advances in Service-Learning Research volume series has served the service- learning/community engagement community as a primary publishing venue and a major source of current information on theory, issues, and findings in this rapidly-expanding research field.

The International Association for Research on Service-learning and Community Engagement (IARSLCE) is pleased to announce that as of 2012, the Advances in Service-Learning series, sponsored by the IARSLCE, will become a journal, published by Information Age Publishing, Inc. The new International Journal of Research on Community Engagement will be edited by an active member of the IARSLCE. In the first three years of its publication, the journal will be published once a year. The Journal Editor will solicit manuscripts at large annually in January and will send them out for peer review, with the aim of making final decisions by April of each year.

The IARSLCE Publications Committee is seeking applications for the position of Editor of this new IARSLCE journal. This position is an exciting opportunity to shape and contribute to emerging scholarship in the field of service-learning and community engagement. The Editor will be involved with appointment of the editorial review board (see below), supervise the review and publication process, and supervise all marketing for the journal.

Please see the attached document for full instructions, or click here to view on our website.

Call for Applications: Editor Advances in Service-learning and Community Engagement Journal

March 21st, 2011
in Conferences, Events, News

For the past decade, the Advances in Service-Learning volume series has served the service learning/community engagement community as a primary publishing venue and a major source of current information on theory, issues, and findings in this rapidly-expanding research field.

The International Association for Research on Service-learning and Community Engagement (IARSLCE) is pleased to announce that as of 2012, the Advances in Service-learning series, sponsored by the IARSLCE, will become a journal, published by Information Age Publishing, Inc. The new Advances in Service-Learning and Community Engagement Journal will be edited by an active member of the IARSLCE. In the first three years of its publication, the journal will be published once a year. The Journal Editor will solicit manuscripts at large annually in January and will send them out for peer review, with the aim of making final decisions by April of each year.

To Apply:

Each applicant should submit a CV and a letter of interest that details areas of expertise, scholarship, and previous editorial experience. Given that serving as Editor of the journal will require significant professional, unpaid service, it will be also important to indicate the kinds of support that will be provided by the applicant's institution. Such support might include a course release, graduate student or administrative support, office space, etc. (though this is not required to apply).

Applications are due to Stephanie O'Brien at sobrien1@tulane.edu by May 2, 2011. Questions about this opportunity may be directed to KerryAnn O'Meara komeara@umd.edu or Barbara Moely moely@tulane.edu, IARSLCE Publications Committee Co-Chairs.

The IARSLCE Board will review applications and appoint an Editor by May 30. The Editor will work with the IARSLCE's Publications Committee Co-Chairs to appoint an editorial review board that represents the diversity of areas of research on service-learning and community engagement, research designs, forms of scholarship and range of educational settings representative of our membership and conference scholarship. The initial Call for Submissions will be issued in the fall of 2011.

Chancellor Portera to Speak at CCBP Awards Luncheon on May 2, 2008

July 15th, 2010
in Events, News, Previews

May 2, 2008

Release on Receipt
Contact: Dr. Samory T. Pruitt, 205-348-8375, samory.pruitt@ua.edu

TUSCALOOOSA "” Chancellor Malcolm Portera will be the keynote speaker at the second annual awards luncheon of the Center for Community-Based Partnerships at noon at the Sheraton Four Points Hotel Ballroom on the campus on May 2, 2008.

Awards will recognize students, faculty, and community partners and distinguished special achievement in campus and community engagement. A call for nominations went out in March. Winners will be announced at the luncheon, which will also highlight major engagement
achievements over the past year.

"We are especially pleased that Dr. Portera will be our speaker as we honor excellence in engagement," said Dr. Samory T. Pruitt, UA vice president for Community Affairs. "Dr. Portera is a pioneer of campus/community collaboration in the Southeast."

Criteria for the winning projects include community need, academic objectives, documentation of actions to achieve and measure success, and evidence of sustained collaboration.

Among last year's awards, several of which were later featured at a national conference at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, were a student newspaper in West End Tuscaloosa, an after-school dance program, a program to broaden career perspectives, a community garden project, a school photo-documentation project, a children's healthcare project, and a city schools pre-K program.

Assistant Provost Janet Griffith chairs the awards committee. "Projects that extend the classroom, maximize scholarly output, and develop collaboration and capacity within communities "“ rather than just providing one-time services "“ will be recognized and receive small grants that will help achieve ongoing results," Griffith said.

Also at the luncheon, speakers will outline major benchmarks in campus/community engagement, including launching a new research journal and plans to seek Carnegie Engagement classification for the campus.

Dr. Portera is no stranger to campus/community collaboration. His involvement with community partners in industrial development helped bring $5 billion in capital investment to the Southeast. As chief executive officer of The University of Alabama System, the state's largest higher education enterprise, he oversees an enterprise of more than 49,000 students, 25,000 employees, and an economic impact surpassing $5 billion.

Dr. Portera received bachelor's and master's degrees from Mississippi State University and a Ph.D. in political science from The University of Alabama.

Prior to his current tenure as Chancellor of the UA System, Dr. Portera was the 16th president of Mississippi State University. His administrative career began in the 1970s when he worked in The University of Alabama's offices of academic affairs and research and was executive assistant to two presidents before becoming a vice president.

Dr. Portera has been instrumental in the creation of several research and instructional programs, including the Materials in Information Technology Program, which achieved National Science Foundation recognition as an engineering and materials research center.

In 2003 he was inducted into the Alabama Academy of Honor, comprised of 100 living Alabamians elected on the basis of service to the state.

Chancellor Portera and his wife Olivia are natives of West Point, Miss. They have two sons and two grandsons.

Community Affairs will send out invitations to the event this week. Members of the public who would like to attend should send an e-mail to bohannon@ua.edu or call 205-348-8376.

The Office of Community Affairs established the Center for Community-Based Partnerships in 2006 to coordinate and energize campus and community programs that integrate teaching, research and outreach.

Tag: community engagement