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K-State Today

November 21, 2013

Engagement benchmarking tool online survey

Submitted by Dr. David E. Procter

The provost's office and the Center for Engagement and Community Development are launching the engagement benchmarking tool in the first week of December. The tool is an online survey of faculty and academic staff regarding their scholarly outreach and engagement. The tool will be emailed directly to faculty, on campus extension specialists and selected unclassified staff.

Engagement is a form of research, teaching or service in which collaborative efforts between university and community stakeholders result in scholarly activity and community benefit around a public issue. Engagement occurs when an individual's scholarly work connects with citizens, communities and/or organizations outside the academy with the direct goal of improving outcomes for those who live and work in those communities. That is, engagement is some scholarly activity conducted for the direct benefit of audiences external to the academy. Through engagement, K-State endeavors to fulfill its historic land-grant mission.

Data collected through the K-State engagement benchmarking tool will have the power to demonstrate the university’s collective commitment of time, scholarly resources and research discoveries for the direct benefit of citizens, communities and organizations in Kansas, the nation and the world.

These results will help colleges and departments chart their progress toward Vision 2025 engagement, extension, service and outreach goals. Results will also be important as K-State seeks reaccreditation as an Engaged University from the Carnegie Foundation. Results from the tool will also assist K-State in communicating the impact the university is having in areas of economic development, public health, civic engagement, food security, sustainability, innovation, arts and culture to parents, students, legislators and citizen leaders. Questions regarding the tool can be directed to David Procter, Center for Engagement and Community Development.