Respondents to our 2011 survey on the impact of Community Outreach Partnership Centers (COPC) grants administered by HUD between 1994 and 2005 reported deep and lasting impacts on their respective institutions. These grants affected institutional structures, embedded community engagement within institutional cultures and academic curricula, and…

Since the fall of 2006 a number of Towson University students concentrating in the discipline of anthropology have been part of a civic engagement and service-learning project focusing on an historic African-American community in Baltimore. While the focus of the research project concentrates on the processes of gentrification, individual student…

The University of Dayton's Raymond L. Fitz, S.M. Center for Leadership in Community has a long history that is emblematic of its mission to "initiate and sustain partnerships with urban neighborhoods and larger communities by working at comprehensive community building and providing a context for connected learning and scholarship" (Fitz…

The importance of partnerships between metropolitan universities, local government agencies, and community organizations to address community health issues is discussed and illustrated in the collaborative activities of North Texas University and its Fort Worth health sciences center, including a community clinic and a master's program in public…

The three undergraduate schools of Columbia University work together to plan and finance free excursions with students, hosted by faculty and administrators, in and around New York City. An evaluation indicates that, although the program does not generate substantial student-faculty interaction, it is well received by students and faculty, for…

Health professions schools can contribute significantly to the mission of metropolitan universities and have substantial impact on their communities. In addition to the direct impact of their graduates and affiliate health care facilities, they can make a major contribution serving the community's health care needs, as illustrated by activities at…

Virginia Commonwealth University confronted shrinking resources for its urban mission by creating a Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree program. The program addressed a number of challenges and was built using existing resources in the university and professional communities. Despite early financial concerns, the program now combines needed…

This article argues that metropolitan universities are well suited to respond to workforce development and maintenance needs, and ways in which institutions can gather the information needed to target their response are examined. A Northern Illinois University study is offered as an example of such an effort. The role of metropolitan universities…

The Trenton (New Jersey) Office of Policy Studies was established in conjunction with Thomas Edison State College to analyze emerging issues in urban public policy. The program is active in the internal life of the city's government while maintaining an independent academic orientation that shields it from political and practical pressures.…

North Texas Institute for Educators on the Visual Arts, a consortium of six school districts, five museums, two arts councils, two state agencies, and the University of North Texas, has strived to improve education in the visual arts for K-6 children and to develop better educated audiences for area museums. (JB)

Two topics are emphasized in this first newsletter of the Urban College and University Network of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. The first concerns the establishment of the network: its purpose in promoting communication among urban institutions; its composition; a look at the students of the institutions; promising…

Colleges and Schools of Fine Arts at urban universities must be responsible for preparing teachers for K-12 education, altering models of preservice programs, supporting inservice programs, and supplementing diminishing art education in schools. Programs at Wayne State University (Michigan), University of Montana, and University of Illinois at…

Various education outreach programs of urban colleges and universities are examined. In one article, Mary McKinnick looks at cooperative models for urban outreach. Suggested are ways in which colleges and universities can respond more effectively to the needs of prospective students--especially those who have not been well served by the…