January 7, 2009

Purdue honored for commitment to engagement

Purdue joins 118 other colleges and universities selected for the 2008 Community Engagement Classification.

"Purdue, like many other institutions of higher education, wants to help Indiana businesses and communities address challenges," said Victor L. Lechtenberg, Purdue vice provost for engagement. "We've made great strides in recent years in dedicating our resources to boost economic development, P-12 education, community service and lifelong learning. While Purdue’s partnerships make a difference in our state, they also enrich our research and coursework to benefit faculty and students. We look forward to making an even bigger impact in 2009."

Engagement-related accomplishments during fiscal year 2006-07 include record economic impact results from Purdue's Technical Assistance Program, which opened new offices in Columbus and Jasper, Ind. and launched new programs aimed at helping companies increase energy efficiency and improve workers' health. The North Central Indiana WIRED project, administered by Purdue, also saw a 600 percent increase in the amount of state support for industry training. 

Purdue also reached out to schools. Through Project Lead the Way, the university works with 232 schools to teach engineering and technology. Working with nine other universities,  Purdue enhances science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education throughout the state. Science Bound, Purdue's partnership with Indianapolis Public Schools and the Indianapolis business community, provides eligible IPS students an opportunity to earn a four-year full-tuition scholarship to study for a science-related career. More than 250 students are enrolled in the program.

Another area of engagement emphasis is community service. More than 150 service-learning courses allow students to use the skills they learn in the classroom to serve local, regional, national and international communities. Student organizations and individuals also volunteer for non-academic projects. It is estimated that 73 percent of undergraduate students participate in community service.

Continuing Education and Conference also contributed to Purdue's engagement success by facilitating more than 650 conferences that attracted more than 80,000 participants in 2007. The Purdue Cooperative Extension Service served more than one million people that year.

Carnegie Foundation directors said more universities like Purdue realize the value in using their areas of expertise to help others.

"The Carnegie staff and our panel of advisers were heartened by the exemplary institutionalized practices of community engagement of the selected institutions," said Carnegie Consulting Scholar Amy Driscoll, who directs the Community Engagement Classification process for the Foundation. "We noted strong alignment between institutional mission and budgetary support, infrastructure, leadership, marketing, and faculty hiring, orientation, and development. There is also an increase in students' curricular engagement with the community."

The Ohio State University, Pennsylvania State University, the University of Illinois, the University of Michigan and the University of Wisconsin also received the national recognition. For a complete list of selected universities and colleges, visit the Carnegie Foundation Web site at: https://www.carnegiefoundation.org

Founded by Andrew Carnegie in 1905 and chartered in 1906 by an act of Congress, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching is an independent policy and research center dedicated to the improvement of teaching and learning.

Writer: Marydell Forbes, (765) 496-7704, mforbes@purdue.edu

Sources: Victor L. Lechtenberg, (765) 494-9095, vll@purdue.edu

Amy Driscoll, (650) 566-5100

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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