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Community of Practice for Community-Academic Partnerships

COP

This Community of Practice* is focused on Community-Academic Partnerships. It was created to support stronger and more effective relationships between community partners and colleges, universities, and K-12 institutions to enable all of us to better leverage the resources and network of the RCE Greater Atlanta. The Community of Practice undertook a group concept mapping process in 2019 and identified five priority areas, listed below. These are in no way set in stone; as a community of practice, the priorities and goals of the group may shift as group membership and activity shifts. The most urgent group goal at this moment is that more community partners join us and add their priorities to this living list.

1) Building capacity of community partners
2) Being/learning to be a better partner
3) Identifying and sharing the resources in our networks
4) Strengthening our networks
5) Improving collaboration/coordination among Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)

* WHAT IS A COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE?

"What it is about: its joint enterprise as understood and continually renegotiated by its members; How it functions: the relationships of mutual engagement that bind members together into a social entity; What capability it has produced: the shared repertoire of communal resources (routines, sensibilities, artifacts, vocabulary, styles, etc.) that members have developed over time. Communities of practice also move through various stages of development characterized by different levels of interaction among the members and different kinds of activities. Communities of practice develop around things that matter to people. As a result, their practices reflect the members’ own understanding of what is important. Even when a community’s actions conform to an external mandate, it is the community — not the mandate — that produces the practice. In this sense, communities of practice are self-organizing systems.”

  • Excerpt from Etienne Wenger, https://thesystemsthinker.com/communities-of-practice-learning-as-a-social-system/

    • "What it is about: its joint enterprise as understood and continually renegotiated by its members; How it functions: the relationships of mutual engagement that bind members together into a social entity; What capability it has produced: the shared repertoire of communal resources (routines, sensibilities, artifacts, vocabulary, styles, etc.) that members have developed over time. Communities of practice also move through various stages of development characterized by different levels of interaction among the members and different kinds of activities. Communities of practice develop around things that matter to people. As a result, their practices reflect the members’ own understanding of what is important. Even when a community’s actions conform to an external mandate, it is the community — not the mandate — that produces the practice. In this sense, communities of practice are self-organizing systems.”

  • Excerpt from Etienne Wenger, https://thesystemsthinker.com/communities-of-practice-learning-as-a-social-system/

    • ONGOING PROJECTS

    RCE/DDG Partnership for Community-Based Organizations

    In order to gain the most out of RCE Greater Atlanta and its membership, this document has been created to serve as a "gateway" to greater engagement for CBOs new to the network.

    Document Downloadable Here!

    Leads:

    A Best Practices In Community Engagement / Academic- Community Partnerships Guide

    In order to share resources, the CoP will draw on the collective wisdom of its membership, as well as approaches and tools shared at the above symposium to create the RCE’s own guide to strong academic-community partnerships.

    Mobilizing STEM/STEAM

    Global goals focused on education in underserved communities. Setting up a new hub and lab dedicated to global goals: Indian Creek Elementary School Global Goals continuing Education Lab. Purpose: empower learners of all backgrounds to become globally conscious, problem-solving innovators in their homes and community, through programs, STEAM activities, and strategic partnerships reflecting the Global Goals.

    Leads

    Resource Inventory

    In order to identify and share resources, improve collaboration and strengthen our networks, the Community of Practice (CoP) is identifying and mapping assets and resources, and resources specific to K-12.

    Let's continue to build this list! If you have a resource you would like to share, please just fill out this quick form.

    If you have any questions or problems with the form or list, please contact Ruthie Yow.

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    Organization

    Access Resource

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    PAST PROJECTS

    Global Communities Internship Program

    In order to build the capacity of community partners and improve collaboration, members of the group sought and were awarded grants in two successive cycles for an internship program engaging students from five RCE member institutions to intern with three Clarkston-based refugee-facing community partners.

    This program, the Global Communities Internship Program, was funded by AGREC, the Atlanta Global Research and Education Collaborative.

    Leads:

    • Ruthie Yow (She / Her), Center for Serve-Learn-Sustain, Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia Tech, ruth.yow@gatech.edu
    • Johannes Kleiner

    K-12 Action Group

    The K-12 Action Group worked to advance K-12 education on the SDGs and their impact on the RCE Greater Atlanta community through an equity and justice lens by:

    1) identifying existing formal, non-formal, and informal education programs related to sustainability education and the SDGs
    2) sharing existing curricula and materials through a common platform
    3) developing additional curricula to fill gaps.

    Leads

    Mobilizing Science Education At Home

    STEM Kits, #100Kits100Lives Challenge (Ongoing Campaign). (May 15, 2020 - present), UNA Atlanta LEAD - Partnering with RCE Greater Atlanta. Phase 1 of STEM Kits Challenge: Distributing 23 STEM Kits and lunch boxes (donated by Doruk Beduk) to students at Indian Creek Elementary School (October 21, 2020).

    See this video created by Adam Nykamp (STEM Educator at Indian Creek Elementary School) to recognize our partnership for the STEM Kits. Looking forward to our continued conversations about STEM, SDGs, and partnering opportunities in the new year.

    Sustainable Coffee Talks Held

  • The Pandemic's Impact on K-12 Education: Challenges and Opportunities After COVID-19
  • International Youth Day: The Future We Want Video Campaign
  • International Affairs, Atlanta Global Studies Center
  • Advancing Climate Action and Social Equity
  • Women's Empowerment Roundtable and Summit
  • Women Leading Climate Equity and Resiliency

    • UNA Atlanta FREE STEM Quest LIVE Show with TWIN Science & RCE Greater Atlanta K-12 Action Group

    Watch It Here

    Held on November 21, 2020.
    UNA Atlanta LEAD.

    CONTACT US

    If you have questions about the RCE Community of Practice, feel free to reach out to the Leads:

  • Ruthie Yow: ruth.yow@gatech.edu
  • Erin Lebow-Skelley: erin.lebow-skelley@emory.edu