North Carolina Campus Compact Faculty Engagement Initiative

NC Campus Compact is a coalition of colleges and universities collaborating to increase campus-wide participation in community and public service.

Presidents (and Chancellors) commit their institutions to join with other schools in becoming “engaged campuses” that enhance students' sense of responsibility, citizenship, leadership, and awareness of community while reinvigorating higher education's concern for improving the quality of life in North Carolina. NC Campus Compact is a member of National Campus Compact, which has over 1,100 presidential members, and 32 state offices.

While member campuses have established visions to create civically-minded graduates who understand the value of volunteering and service, the Compact state office works to provide resources, training, and opportunities that campuses may not be able to pursue individually.

The Chancellor of WCU is a member of Campus Compact (state and national). Lane Perry, Director of Service Learning, is the Compact's Primary Contact at Western Carolina University.

Faculty Engagement Initiative

Purposes 

1. Engage and connect faculty across member institutions
2. Increase the visibility and influence of NC Campus Compact and its members in North Carolina
3. Engage faculty in promoting civic engagement
4. Foster the contributing of faculty research interests and skills to assist in providing information or finding solutions to NC issues
5. Strengthen the Compact by expanding leadership opportunities for faculty
6. Provide civic engagement growth opportunities for faculty
7. Develop the initiative sufficiently to seek major funding for proposed/anticipated research

Specific Initiatives

• Online Journal
• Service-Learning Research
• Learning Communities
• Civic Engagement Administration
• Future Teachers of NC

Responsibilities of Faculty:

1. Attend plenary meetings of all initiatives
2. Contribute to developing and implementing the initiative in which they are participating
3. Involve in the initiative's activities other faculty throughout the network as they identify those with similar interests
4. Participate in bi-monthly conference calls with their team
5. Serve for two years, renewable two times
6. Characteristics: collaborative, committed to civic engagement and service learning, ready to take on a challenge that can make a difference in NC, able to contribute skills and time to the initiative, preferably an expertise in the area for which they are selected.
7. Seek opportunities to be advocates for NC Campus Compact and the Faculty Engagement Initiative

Benefits of Involvement:

1. Further personal research interest and goals
2. Contribute gifts/skills to furthering the field and/or to growing NC
3. Foster personal research/scholarship and service