Connecting People and Communities

Northwest Crescent Center, a community partnership led by Furman University, has been a catalyst for growth and change.

Three student public service programs supported by The Duke Endowment are fostering collaboration between institutions of higher learning and their surrounding neighborhoods. The programs work to strengthen communities and make a difference in the lives of residents and students.

Insights

The Duke Endowment's founder James B. Duke believed in harnessing the power of higher education to help make societies better. By supporting community engagement, the Endowment honors his vision. We invite others to use these findings as a starting point for their own efforts.

• By engaging students in service learning, colleges and universities provide opportunities to deepen the educational experience. The efforts also help instill in students a passion for making a difference in the world.
• Students often are interested in applying their classroom knowledge to real world problems. Educational institutions can tap into this interest by integrating curricular and cocurricular experiences.
• Strengthening relationships between educational institutions and nearby neighborhoods is a key focus for community engagement programs. Colleges and their towns can be viewed as one extended community, with many employees, as well as some students, living near campus.
• Strong, sustainable programs require building collaborative partnerships with community groups, nonprofits, governmental agencies, faith-based organizations, local schools, students, faculty and residents.
• Faculty members are a significant asset to service learning programs. As experts in their fields, they can provide leadership and advice and help guide students involved in the programs.

Impact

At the institutions supported by the Endowment, learning through service has long been a critical part of education. By combining research, learning and service, the civic engagement projects funded by the Endowment have resulted in fruitful partnerships between colleges and communities.

Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership

Working with others in the community, the program has fostered programs that respond to priorities set by residents-educational enrichment, affordable housing and neighborhood revitalization, accessible health care, and safety and security. Among the results: more than 3,500 Duke students have volunteered as tutors and mentors; more than 2,500 young people have improved their chances for high school graduation and pursuit of postsecondary educational opportunities; 264 houses have been built or rehabilitated with more 200 of those sold to low-income, first-time homeowners and lower-income residents; more than 9,500 are receiving affordable health care at two neighborhood clinics; and more than 2,700 children receive health services in two school clinics.

DukeEngage

In just its second year, the program has engaged more than 400 students in service learning opportunities in Durham, across the United States and around the world. By 2012, Duke University hopes to have at least a quarter of the undergraduate student body participate in DukeEngage.

Northwest Crescent Center

This program, a collaboration among Furman University in Greenville, S.C., and three other community partners, has been a catalyst for growth in an underserved neighborhood. It has focused on opportunities for early education, health, adult education and community involvement, and has turned an old elementary school into a neighborhood asset. Since opening in 1999, the center has served more than 2,000 community residents. Furman students and faculty volunteer at the center each year. Education majors and professors have worked with preschool and kindergarten students to support childhood development; Spanish majors have taught English and served as interpreters for members of the Hispanic community.

Contact Us

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Associate Director, Higher Education
704.969.2101