Saluting Professor David Watson

We are very sorry to relate that Professor David Watson died February 8, 2015, following a brief illness.  A dynamic and highly influential champion of university civic engagement, his passing is a huge loss to his colleagues around the world.  A compelling advocate of the engaged university, he was both a prolific researcher of higher education and a visionary innovator in reshaping the academy.  We will miss him immensely.

David was Principal at Green Templeton College of Oxford University.  He previously served as Professor of Higher Education at the Institute of Education, University of London (2005-2010), and as Vice-Chancellor of Brighton University (1992-2005).  While at Brighton, he led the creation of the Community University Partnership Programme (CUPP), which has been a major source of inspiration and guidance to universities across the globe. He was knighted in 1998 for his distinguished leadership in higher education. Read More>>>

Leaders in the Civic Engagement Movement: Mexico

This month, our Leaders in the Civic Engagement Movement (LCEM) series focuses on two impacting universities in Mexico: Tecnológico de Monterrey and the Universidad Veracruzana.

This edition features interviews with three influential women who shine as civic engagement leaders: Dr. Sara Ladrón de Guevara, Rector of Universidad Veracruzana; Dr. Beatriz Eugenia Rodríguez Villafuerte, Vice-Rector of Universidad Veracruzana at Campus Orizaba-Córdoba; and María Fernanda Pacheco Bravo, Coordinator of the “Brigadas Comunitarias” Program, Tecnológico de Monterrey at Campus Querétaro. Read More>>>

Partner Network News

The Association of Commonwealth Universities would like to invite you to complete the first ACU Engage Community Annual Survey. The survey explores the many forms of engagement being undertaken, the sources of funding and the support provided by institutions. Through the collection of this information the ACU will map the ‘state of engagement’ today, identifying areas that require more support and highlighting success stories. Learn More>>>

Engagement Australia invites the network to participate in the 12th International Conference of Engaged Scholars and Practitioners. This event will take place in Sydney on July 20-22, 2015. Paper abstracts will be accepted until March 27th. Learn More>>>

AsiaEngage has announced the tentative agenda for the 2015 ASEAN Youth Volunteer Programme, which will begin on August 2nd, 2015. Learn More>>>

Talloires Network Programs and Announcements

MacJannet Prize: Thanks for Submitting Your Nominations: The deadline for nominations for the seventh annual MacJannet Prize has now passed. Thank you to everyone who submitted a nomination this year. The Talloires Network received 61 nominations from 48 universities in 17 countries, representing the diversity of our membership. The MacJannet Prize recognizes exceptional student civic engagement initiatives based in Talloires Network member universities around the world. Three prizes will be awarded: 1st Prize ($7,500), 2nd Prize ($5,000), and 3rd Prize ($2,500). Winning programs will be profiled on the Talloires Network website and in communications that reach thousands of higher education professionals worldwide in May.

Talloires Network Leaders Conference Call to Action: We are proud to announce the release of this document summarizing the key findings and agreements discussed among the leaders from 134 universities around the world who attended our conference. This proclamation will guide our network's work for the years to come. Learn More>>>

Steering Committee meeting minutes: The leadership of the Talloires Network met right before the Talloires Network to discuss ideas, visions, and transitions. A record of the minutes from this meeting is available on our website. Learn More>>>

Opportunities and Announcements

The National University of Malaysia (Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia) welcomes proposals for sessions at the 1st International Conference on Empowering Entrepreneurship (ICEE 2015). This event will focus on the role of academic institutions in creating a social entrepreneurship environment. It will take place on June 8-9, 2015 in Kuala Lumpur. Submissions are due on March 31st. Learn More>>>

The International Society for Third-Sector Research (ISTR) welcomes papers to be presented at the ISTR Africa Network Conference. The conference's theme is "Civil Society and a Renascent Africa: A Stock Taking." The event will take place on September 16-18 in Ghana. The deadline for abstracts is March 15, 2015. Learn More>>>

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2015 Lynton Award for the Scholarship of Engagement for Early Career Faculty. This award recognizes a faculty member who is early in their career and who connects their teaching, research, and service to community engagement. Learn More>>>

The UNESCO Chair in Community-Based Research and Social Responsibility in Higher Education continues to look for responses to their survey, "Building the Next Generation of Community-Based Researchers". This survey, which only takes about ten minutes to complete, seeks to gain an overview of teaching and training in Community-Based Research (CBR) in order to increase access to high quality learning opportunities in CBR for the Global South. Learn More>>>

Papers and Publications

The Kettering Foundation's 2014 Higher Education Exchange issue looks at university engagement presented under a variety of terms and from a number of different perspectives. Pieces by Claire Snyder-Hall and Ted Alter, Jeffrey Bridger, and Paloma Frumento examine faculty "public happiness" and their "democratic mindsets," and how institutions either support or undermine faculty efforts to teach and engage. Adam Weinberg discusses the civic purposes of liberal education, while articles by Lorlene Hoyt, Rick Battistoni, and Romand Coles and Blase Scarnati look at ways in which students are practicing democratic engagement through their college experiences both in and out of the classroom. Marietjie Oelofsen reviews Peter Levine’s latest book, We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For. Learn More>>>

The editors of the International Journal for Service Learning in Engineering, Humanitarian Engineering and Social Entrepreneurship (IJSLE) are pleased to announce publication of the most recent special edition of the Journal entitled 'University Engineering Programs That Impact Communities:  Critical Analyses and Reflection.'  We hope you enjoy this edition and find it useful. Learn More>>>

University World News reports on how and why universities need to move beyond the mantra of knowledge and skills and consider ways to bring students into, and equip students for being in, the world in new ways. The article, which is titled "Developing Civic-Minded University Graduates," quotes leaders from TN-member, University of Cape Town. Learn More>>>

Upcoming Events

Nurturing University Community Engagement: Integration, Innovation, and Impact. Kathmandu, Nepal. 6-8 May, 2015.
The idea and approach of university and community engagement is a fairly new approach for most of the colleges in Nepal, even though it has been in practice in many universities abroad. The conference is an initiative of the Nepal School of Social Work (NSSW) to bring together the people in such engagement to improve understanding of  role of  university and community  for Integration, Innovation and Impact in the society. Learn More>>>

7th Annual Connecting Campuses with Communities conference. IUPUI Campus. May 10-15. Looking for opportunities to advance your community-engaged teaching or research? Attend and discover what others have found: this event creates a conducive space for thinking and advancing your course/project while also building a strong network of colleagues. The event is hosted by Indiana Campus Compact and the IUPUI Center for Service & Learning. Learn More>>>

We are always updating the conferences calendar on our website. Read More>>>