Campus Compact is an incorporated nonprofit organization founded in 1985 by the presidents of Brown, Georgetown and Stanford Universities , and the Education Commission of the States. Today, it manages a rapidly expanding membership and challenges all of higher education to make civic and community engagement an institutional priority (www.compact.org).
State compacts are independent coalitions formed by a core group of committed presidents and campus staff across various sectors. They are organized to provide better access to local and national resources, increase the potential for statewide collaboration, and improve the networking capacity of the national office. They see themselves as playing a critical role in helping colleges and universities prepare students to be leaders and more responsible future citizens. The civic mission of higher education is also re-invigorated.
The mission of a State Compact is to promote collaborative partnerships through service-learning as a component of effective teaching and learning to address the needs of the state that may be fostered by civic engagement. Its goal is to leverage federal, state, and local funding for statewide implementation of best practices in service-learning pedagogy and practice to enhance student learning and development while strengthening communities. A State Compact is dependent on the political will of a lead president and host site, and the commitment of necessary resources.
Thirty-two states in the United States now have State Compacts and several more states are currently committed to developing State Compacts. A State Compact must be formed by university presidents, and should therefore be chaired by and consist of a majority of presidents/chancellors.
In Tennessee , there are 33 private and public two-and four-year institutions statewide that are potential member institutions to a Tennessee Campus Compact. Currently, thirteen maintain individual memberships in the national Campus Compact and manage a modest office or an ad hoc committee that oversees service-learning initiatives - integrating teaching and scholarship while enhancing service and impact in the community. A consolidated state Campus Compact would leverage funds, expertise and support through connection with a national network of academic leaders in 47 states and over 900 institutions of higher learning.
Tennessee is about to eye this opportunity to enhance the college education experience. A Tennessee Campus Compact to promote coordinated statewide programming of academic service-learning is currently under development. A seed grant of $10,000 was just awarded (January 2006) to the Child and Family Policy Center at the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies to facilitate a statewide dialogue on the initiative.
For more information please contact Mani Hull at (615)322-5608 or by e-mail: Mani Hull.
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Mani Hull is a Research Associate for the Child & Family Policy Center at the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies.
