Canadian Pilot Cohort

The Carnegie Foundation’s Classification for Community Engagement is an elective classification and has been the leading framework for institutional assessment and recognition of community engagement in US higher education for the past 13 years. It is based on voluntary participation by institutions. The elective classification involves data collection and documentation of important aspects of institutional mission, identity and commitments, and requires substantial effort invested by participating institutions. There are currently 361 campuses with the elective Community Engagement Classification in the US.

A Canadian Pilot cohort has been convened to explore the Classification and consider how it might support community engagement in the Canadian context.  KPU has been selected as one of 16 institutions in Canada to participate in this pilot, with framework submission complete by March, 2020.

The initial convening of the CPC, hosted at Simon Fraser University in February 2019, brought together sixteen Canadian, post-secondary institutions of different types from coast to coast to coast.  These institutions included Assiniboine Community College, Carleton University, Kwantlen Polytechnic University, McMaster University, Mount Allison University, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Saskatchewan Indian institute of Technologies, Simon Fraser University, University of Alberta, University of British Columbia, University of Calgary, University of Ottawa, Université du Québec, University of Windsor, York University, and Yukon College.

Together, representatives from participating institutions shared, discussed, learned, dreamed, and planned next steps to explore possibilities for the development of a Canadian framework for the Carnegie Elective Community Engagement Classification.