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Announcements Event News

2nd Annual Place-Based Community Engagement Symposium a success

The 2nd Annual Place-based Community Engagement Symposium was a success last week. Participants engaged around the theme of “Listening, Learning, and Leading: A Place-based Approach to Promoting Public Responsibility and Community Engagement in a COVID-impacted World.” 114 registered for the two-day symposium.

The conference planning committee chose this theme due to their observation of the challenges posed by COVID-19; our community engagement landscape has evolved significantly, from decreased volunteer participation to heightened community needs.

Conference registrants helped shape this year’s symposium. The planning committee had over 60 questions submitted for our opening session and panel discussion. Plus, questions were arranged as discussion topics at the networking event on Thursday evening.

Audryanna Reed, Associate Director for High-Impact Practices, Co-initiative Manager of Engage Dallas, and Chair of the conference planning committee, shared, “Engage Dallas is grateful for the opportunity to bring together non-profit and civic leaders in Dallas as well as staff and faculty across SMU and Dallas College. Such inspiring words, cultural context, and critical challenges posed by our keynotes Latosha Bruff and Jerry L. Hawkins, M.Ed., as well as our panelists and workshop hosts!”

A copy of the program booklet is included below.

Reed and the conference planning committee are underway with year three planning. Building off the dialogue from this year’s conference, the theme will likely incorporate the concept of “under-championed communities,” which was prevalent in this year’s sessions. Reed says to expect a save the date soon for the November 2024 symposium.

This Engage Dallas symposium collaborated with Residence Life & Student Housing, The Budd CenterThe Office of General Education, the Cary M. Maguire Center for Ethics & Public Responsibility, and The Center for Teaching Excellence.

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Event News

Registration open: 2nd Annual Place-Based Community Engagement Symposium

Hosted by Engage Dallas, in collaboration with Residence Life & Student Housing, The Budd Center, The Office of General Education, the Cary M. Maguire Center for Ethics & Public Responsibility, and The Center for Teaching Excellence, this two-day event will take place on November 2nd and 3rd.

About the Place-Based Community Engagement Symposium

The Place-Based Community Engagement Symposium is a gathering of thought leaders, academics, community leaders, and nonprofit professionals from SMU and the DFW area.

This event is designed to explore the transformative potential of community engagement within specific geographic contexts.

Our goal is to delve into the strategies and innovations that have the power to catalyze positive change within communities, with emphasis on campus and community collaboration and sustainable, mutually beneficial relationships.

RSVP

Seats are limited, so please RSVP by October 20, 2023. You will be able to opt to register for one or both days.

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Announcements News

Engage Dallas publishes first end-of-the-year report

Engage Dallas is excited to share our first end-of-the-year report. 

This year’s report contains words from our initiative manager, Commons partnerships, student experience, Engage Dallas by the numbers, #1Day4Dallas, One Night for Dallas recap, social outreach, team members, and more!

SMU students provided over 3,815 hours of service this academic year, and we are just getting started. Take a gander at the report for yourself.Report cover

Thanks again for being here and for your continued support of this one-of-a-kind initiative. We couldn’t do it without you.

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Announcements

Love to serve? Consider new individual service opportunity, solo service

As a new initiative, Engage Dallas is consistently seeking feedback and insights on ways to innovate our work, improve our processes, and reaffirm mutual benefit between SMU and the South and West Dallas communities.

Student cleaning classroomHere’s what we discovered since our modest beginning in October 2020: While our community partners enjoy having Engage Dallas groups come on-site and serve alongside them, sometimes they need only one or two students — not an entire group. 

Engage Dallas also knows SMU students have varied schedules and may not always be available to serve with their Residential Commons during scheduled group service.  

So, what’s the solution? A new form of individual service called solo service. Solo service launched to students on February 14, 2022. 

Student and faculty planting vegetables While Engage Dallas still offers monthly, group service through the Residential Commons, solo service is a type of Engage Dallas Individual Service. Solo service provides semi-structured opportunities for students to volunteer and provide direct service on an individual basis. Engage Dallas curates these individual service opportunities for students, based on their Residential Commons affiliation, to volunteer as their schedule and the community need align.  

 

Solo Service is characterized by:  

  • Individual, or sometimes a pair, of students participate in service  
  • Students organize their own transportation to and from the service site 
  • Students sign-up or schedule directly with the Community Partner representative  
  • An Engage Dallas Student Director is not present during service 
  • Students must register and respond to monthly check-in emails from Engage Dallas until complete 
  • Students track their individual service hours via the Community Partner process or on their Engagement Hours Log 

Students can learn more and find out how you can get started with solo service today. 

Plus, recognized Engage Dallas community partners can submit solo service opportunities via our online form 

 

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Announcements News

Engage Dallas publishes fall 2021 executive summary

Engage Dallas is a place-based community engagement initiative via SMU’s Residential Commons to address community needs focusing on South and West Dallas which launched in October 2020.  

Engage Dallas published a 4-page summary of fall 2021 accomplishments and spring 2022 goals. Accomplishments included: 735 students attended Engage Dallas events in the fall semester, #1Day4Dallas service day included 7 service sites with 105 participants, and 16 new community partners announced.  

Explore the executive summary for yourself: