Of transformation and toilets: Reflections on an informal listening project on UK higher education community engagement

This essay is a reflection on a listening project conducted by Professor Randy Stoecker of Wisconsin University over a five-day period with representatives of four universities and seven community organisations in Northern Ireland and Southwest England in September 2010.

The focus of the project was on exploring community outcomes from student-community engagement in particular and involved informal discussions with four community engagement coordination staff from three universities, five students from two universities, eight academics from four universities, and ten people representing community groups in Northern Ireland and Southwest England. 

Whilst the project does not constitute a formal research project and does not attempt to produce any generalisable findings, it attempts to provide some useful insights in similarities and differences between higher education community engagement practices in the UK and the US, in particular exploring institutional cultures, terminology and pertinent challenges associated with the practice of community engagement.

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