The 2025 Washington State University Community Engagement Summit will showcase the university’s application for Carnegie recognition, discuss how community engagement fits into faculty tenure and promotion, and recognize the first recipients of a new community engagement award.
The virtual gathering, scheduled from 9–11 a.m. on Monday, May 12, offers faculty, staff, and community partners across the WSU system a chance to learn about some of the university’s most prominent community engagement initiatives.
One key initiative is the renewal of WSU’s Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement, an initiative led by the Office of the Provost and the Center for Civic Engagement (CCE). This classification is evidence-based documentation of policies and practices focusing on institutional culture and mission, curricular and co-curricular programming, continuous improvement activities, and the recruitment and reward of faculty, staff, and students.
As a land-grant institution, community engagement should be at the heart of everything we do.
Ben Calabretta, director
Center for Civic Engagement
Washington State University
WSU first received Carnegie classification in 2008, and it was renewed in 2015. For this year’s application, CCE Director Ben Calabretta said strong data and inspiring stories of community engagement were gathered from across the system, providing compelling evidence to support WSU’s renewal application.
“As a land-grant institution, community engagement should be at the heart of everything we do,” said Calabretta. “Not only does the Carnegie recognition validate our efforts, but it also helps set the tone for what WSU should be doing in the future.”
‘Moving beyond traditional scholarship’
While more faculty are becoming involved in community engagement activities, there has not been a systematic way to reward those efforts in the tenure and promotion process.
According to Doug Call, WSU senior vice provost and regent’s professor, guiding principals have been adopted by the Faculty Senate that move beyond traditional scholarship to include “scholarship of application, integration, and/or community engagement” when evaluating faculty promotion and tenure.
The summit will discuss what this means and the impact it has on faculty, students, and WSU as an institution.
“As a land-grant institution, our mission has always been about access and opportunity, which derives directly from community engagement, community-engaged research, and Extension,” Call said. “We need to lean into this mission more than ever going forward and faculty need to be recognized and elevated for their efforts in these critical endeavors.”
Partners in innovation
The Office of the Provost and the Center for Civic Engagement will also announce the recipients of the new Partners in Innovation Community Engaged Learning Award during the summit.
The award recognizes individuals for their innovative community engaged learning practices that create transformative and high-impact opportunities for students and communities. All recipients have been a partner with CCE and were evaluated on mutually beneficial partnerships, integration of academic learning and civic engagement, critical reflection, and enhancing the student learning experience and success.
“It is important for WSU to recognize people who are doing this important work,” said Calabretta. “Community engagement is such an effective way for students to learn and understand what it means to be part of a community, and at the same time, they play a critical role in helping community partners achieve their goals.”
Two WSU faculty members, Elizabeth Candello from the Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at WSU Vancouver and Dave Martin, an English professor from WSU Pullman, will highlight the impact of community engagement by sharing their projects. Candello has partnered with the non-profit Blue Sky Minds, which works to eliminate food insecurity in Okanogan County and the Colville Reservation. Martin partnered with TerraGraphics International Foundation which does environmental work across the globe.
The summit will end with an optional workshop where participants can learn more about how to get involved in community engagement and the resources available to them.
“While it does take time, effort, and attention, the return on investment is significant for student retention and meeting our land grant mission,” said Jessica Perone, CCE assistant director. “We welcome the opportunity to work with faculty to incorporate community engagement in their teaching, research and service at WSU.”
