El Sistema Toy Violin Making
Community and Civic Engagement Highlights
Vision
Our goal is to represent MSU Denver in our application for the Carnegie Classification for Community Engagement. We extend the overall mission statement of the University: “to provide a high-quality, accessible, enriching education that prepares students for successful careers, post-graduate education, and lifelong learning in a multicultural, global, and technological society.”
The mission of the task force is to illuminate how this University Mission manifests itself in community engagement, including faculty, staff, administration, and most importantly, our students working with and interacting with diverse community partners. Along the journey, we intend to learn and grow with those community partners, while continuing to forge new relationships with other potential community partners.
-“The Process is the Prize.”
About the Classification
The Carnegie Classification is the leading framework for recognizing and describing institutional diversity in U.S. higher education. There are basic classifications along with different elective classifications. MSU Denver will be applying for the elective classification for community engagement.
This classification describes a collaboration between institutions of higher education and their larger communities for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources in a context of partnership and reciprocity. The community engagement classification shows exceptional strides towards this purpose.
Community being one of MSU Denver’s core set of values in the acronym CADRE, shows the commitment MSU has towards community engagement. Community is a part of MSU Denver’s mission, vision, and strategic plan as an urban university. Ensuring mutually beneficial relationships with the community and MSU Denver is a continued aspiration and day-to-day engagement process.
2026 Cycle Timeline
- Application questions are released: January 26, 2024
- Purchase/Initiate an application by: November 4, 2024
- Application Deadline: April 1, 2025
- Campus Notified: December 2026
- Public Announcement: January 2026
The elective community engagement classification’s cycle is every two years. The classification is retained for a six year period.
Carnegie Classification Application Task Force
In September 2023 MSU Denver celebrated our civic and community engagement with the 2023 Faculty Senate Civic and Community Engagement Excellence Awards. During this celebration the Civic and Community Engagement Task Force and it’s members were announced. The task force will be working towards gathering all of the information needed to submit the application.
In addition to the task force, MSU Denver is using the platform, Collaboratory, to help facilitate the collection of community and civic engagement projects faculty and staff have been working on. MSU Denver Roadrunners are always working on mutually beneficial activities with the community, and Collaboratory is the tool used to collect all of those happenings to compile data.
Follow along with mutually beneficial collaborations with MSU Denver and community organizations through the platform Collaboratory HERE.
Task Force Members
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Vincent Piturro Ph.D
Professor, English Department (Task Force Leader)
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Cecily Cullen
Director and curator, Center for Visual Arts
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Jason Eric Miller Ph.D.
Professor, English Department
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Toni Aho
Assistant director of equity and student-leadership programs, Center for Multicultural Engagement and Inclusion
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Tracy Sagalow
2D and Foundations Studio Manager, Art Department
Administrative Support
- Elizabeth Parmelee Ph.D, associate vice president of Undergraduate Studies (MSU Denver Leadership support)
- Shayla Bischoff Assistant to the Associate Vice President for Undergraduate Studies
- Cheyenne Calderon, Graduate Assistant
For any additional information or help needed regarding Collaboratory, please contact:
Cheyenne Calderon – [email protected]
Featured Work Towards the Application
