Center for Civic & Community Engagement

In support of the SMSU Mission, the Center for Civic & Community Engagement connects academic programs with community needs to use scholarship and action for the mutual benefit of the University, its communities, and its diverse peoples. The Center serves as the intersection between student learning, faculty research, and community engagement. It is committed to illuminating the variety of ways in which SMSU strives to make civic and community engagement integral to learning experiences campus-wide. 

SMSU Mission

“Southwest Minnesota State University prepares students to meet the complex challenges of this century as engaged citizens in their local and global communities….”

 What does “engaged citizen” mean?

            “Civic engagement means working to make a difference in the civic life of our communities and developing the combination of knowledge, skills, values and motivation to make that difference. It means promoting the quality of life in a community, through both political and non-political processes”. - Preface, page vi

             A morally and civically responsible individual recognizes himself or herself as a member of a larger social fabric and therefore considers social problems to be at least partly his or her own; such an individual is willing to see the moral and civic dimensions of issues, to make and justify informed moral and civic judgments, and to take action when appropriate. - Introduction, page xxvi

(Source: Civic Responsibility and Higher Education, edited by Thomas Ehrlich, published by Oryx Press, 2000.) 

Facebook Icon Follow Us On Facebook
Twitter Icon Follow Us on Twitter