LEO T. MCCARTHY CENTER FOR PUBLIC SERVICE AND THE COMMON GOOD

Engaging Faculty & Community Partners

Community-Engaged Learning (CEL) connects students and faculty with community leaders, changemakers, and residents to learn about justice issues and support the work of social change.

What is Community Engagement?

Community engagement is the development of sustained and authentic partnerships between the university and its diverse city, state, national, and global communities for the reciprocal exchange of knowledge, skills, and resources. By addressing critical societal issues at home and abroad, students, faculty, and staff contribute to the common good and to changing the world.

Community-Engaged Learning

groupf of usf students standing in front of a victorian house in san francisco

Two people sit on a bench in front of a mural and talk

Faculty Develop CEL Courses

Faculty develop CEL courses by integrating curricular content and community-rooted experiences to foster students’ holistic development as leaders who will fashion a more humane and just world.

Faculty

SOM students volunteer on Habitat project

Community Partners Co-Educate

Community partners play a critical role as co-educators of students and collaborate with faculty to facilitate deep learning about social justice issues, community resilience, and civic participation.

Community Partners

Students Contribute to Positive Social Change

Students build relationships with peers and community members through CEL courses. Integrating community engagement into credit-bearing courses guides students to contribute to positive social change by working alongside community leaders on projects and activities that also connect with their academic course content.

Students

Celestino Ellington

Founding Executive Director, Urban Student Athlete Development Academy

Make an Impact

Having USF as a community partner has been a win-win. Our students are able to build relationships with current college students, while USF students are able to apply their class lessons within the community that have true impactful results."