Education and Discovery Grounded in Engaged Scholarship (EDGES)
The Institute for Nonprofit Research, Education and Engagement is leading a new nationally-recognized, campus-wide, multigenerational faculty development program aimed at building capacity for community-engaged scholarship. NC State is only one of six universities selected for this highly competitive program. EDGES is a developmentally-structured, competency-based approach to supporting faculty in the design and implementation of community-engaged scholarship projects during key transition points (or “edges”) in their career paths. The projects will involve students at key transition points in their undergraduate/graduate careers and be developed with community partners.
Twenty-one individuals including doctoral students, new faculty, recently tenured faculty, and end-of-career faculty are involved in EDGES. In addition, a group of undergraduate/graduate students will be recruited to assist the EDGES participants. The program includes professional development activities oriented toward the development of community-engaged scholarship projects focused on teaching and/or research. Most importantly, EDGES is a unique project that creates experiential collaborative learning opportunities for faculty and their community partners, and “softens the edges” experienced by both faculty and students at key stages in their university careers. The connections of community-engaged scholarship to education (teaching) and discovery (research) will enhance the curriculum, and deepen the understanding of community-engaged scholarship across career stages. Ties to community partners will be strengthened and enhanced.
The EDGES Campus Support Council includes Dr. George Barthalmus, director, Undergraduate Research; Dr. Betsy Brown, vice-provost for Faculty Affairs; Michael Giancola, director, Center for Student Leadership, Ethics, and Public Service; Dr. Rebeca Rufty, associate dean, Graduate School; and Dr. Jim Zuiches, vice-chancellor, Office of Extension, Engagement, and Economic Development.
EDGES is housed in the Institute for Nonprofit, Research, Education and Engagement with support from the Office of Extension, Engagement, and Economic Development; the Office of the Provost Collaborative for Research on Engagement; the Office of Undergraduate Research; and the Office of Faculty Development. Program research is led by principal project investigator, Dr. Audrey Jaeger, Department of Adult and Higher Education, and co-principal investigators, Dr. Jessica Jameson, Department of Communications, and Dr. Mary Tschirhart, director of the Institute for Nonprofit Research, Education and Engagement. Dr. Patti Clayton serves as a project consultant. Woody Yates, MBA, is the administrative director of EDGES.
Major funding for this effort comes from the “Faculty for the Engaged Campus” Initiative of Community-Campus Partnerships for Health (CCPH) and the Fund for the Improvement of Secondary Education (FIPSE). This support is gratefully acknowledged.
