Our History
Clarion Call – Evolution of Partners for Campus-Community Engagement
For 30+ years reciprocal community engagement has had champions in the Mid-Atlantic, enabling higher education to fulfill its mission of contributing to the public good. These were years of leading the charge to advance equitable, place-based community engagement, grant support for campuses, and innovative professional development. This ensured that Pennsylvania and New York colleges and universities graduate students who not only become future leaders in their chosen fields but also civically engaged leaders in their communities.
Thirty-four years ago, Pennsylvania Campus Compact initiated a process of building capacity among member campuses to develop community connections, address local concerns, and work alongside partners to deepen student learning and increase community resources. Thirteen years later New York Campus Compact became that capacity builder for its own member campuses. In 2018, the two organizations merged their efforts as CCNYPA to make a larger impact on campuses and in communities across the region. As the organization evolved, so did higher education and the field of community engagement. Now all are reckoning with centuries-old injustices, inequity, and a breakdown of cooperation toward the public good.
The changing landscape of life in New York and Pennsylvania compels CCNYPA to evolve in order to concentrate on place-based community engagement here in the region. To that end, and through deep, strategic, and candid conversations, Partners for Campus-Community Engagement emerged. Partners for Campus-Community Engagement will build capacity among our partners to deepen community-engaged learning and expand partnerships to advance equitable, place-based community engagement. Partners for Campus-Community Engagement will also bolster support of local/regional campuses and communities to enable more time for collaboration.
Partners for Campus-Community Engagement’s mission is simple but powerful – to convene, connect, and empower campuses to build equitable and just relationships with communities in order to advance a democratic society for the public good.
For 30+ years reciprocal community engagement has had champions in the Mid-Atlantic, enabling higher education to fulfill its mission of contributing to the public good. These were years of leading the charge to advance equitable, place-based community engagement, grant support for campuses, and innovative professional development. This ensured that Pennsylvania and New York colleges and universities graduate students who not only become future leaders in their chosen fields but also civically engaged leaders in their communities.
Thirty-four years ago, Pennsylvania Campus Compact initiated a process of building capacity among member campuses to develop community connections, address local concerns, and work alongside partners to deepen student learning and increase community resources. Thirteen years later New York Campus Compact became that capacity builder for its own member campuses. In 2018, the two organizations merged their efforts as CCNYPA to make a larger impact on campuses and in communities across the region. As the organization evolved, so did higher education and the field of community engagement. Now all are reckoning with centuries-old injustices, inequity, and a breakdown of cooperation toward the public good.
The changing landscape of life in New York and Pennsylvania compels CCNYPA to evolve in order to concentrate on place-based community engagement here in the region. To that end, and through deep, strategic, and candid conversations, Partners for Campus-Community Engagement emerged. Partners for Campus-Community Engagement will build capacity among our partners to deepen community-engaged learning and expand partnerships to advance equitable, place-based community engagement. Partners for Campus-Community Engagement will also bolster support of local/regional campuses and communities to enable more time for collaboration.
Partners for Campus-Community Engagement’s mission is simple but powerful – to convene, connect, and empower campuses to build equitable and just relationships with communities in order to advance a democratic society for the public good.