Criterion 1: Mission
Core Component 1.C reads, “The institution provides opportunities for civic engagement in a diverse,
multicultural society and globally connected world, as appropriate within its mission
and for the constituencies it serves.”
As part of this criterion, institutions must provide evidence showing criteria for
accreditation are being met (https://download.hlcommission.org/ProvidingEvidence2020_INF.pdf).
Civic Engagement Definitions/Examples:
Civic Engagement in this context is defined as activities where our students, faculty,
or staff are providing a service to the non-campus community or Vincennes University
(VU) is sponsoring civic engagement activities for either the campus community or
the non-campus community. There are several types, which are loosely described by
the following three (3) categories:
- Academic Requirement: These are principally placements in off-campus environments such as internships with
a businesses or industry, student teaching, clinical placements, etc. These formal
academic experiences are typically evaluated, and the evaluations regarding the impact
on the community can be obtained.
- Co-curricular Experiences: These are generally University organized and sanctioned events that involved students
working within the community. These might be organized by programs, such as Housing
or Multi-Cultural Affairs, or organized by students, such as student clubs. Examples
might be the Pet Port Food Drive, a community clean-up, or a blood drive. These may
or may not be assessed.
- Other Civic Engagement Experiences: These are University sponsored experiences that engage University personnel, and
possibly students, with either the campus or non-campus community such as University
diversity and inclusion activities, a speaker series open to the community, or Meals
on Wheels, Sandy's Pantry, or Toys for Tots. These are generally not assessed.
