In early June, a trio of Gephardt Institute staff traveled to Detroit, Michigan to attend the national Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement Conference and present on the institute’s best practices.
The annual conference is hosted by NASPA: Student Affairs Adminisrators in Higher Education and the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. It convenes a diverse range of higher education professionals and college students who are committed to advancing democracy through student preparedness for engaged citizenship.
Through a series of interactive workshops, roundtable discussions, and presentations on civic work and strategy, the conference aims to strengthen community and campus integration of civic engagement.
Civic Engagement Manager Otto Brown, Community Engagement Manager Sarah Nash, and Manager of Civic Learning Initiatives Dewitt Campbell attended the June 5 to 7 conference as representatives of the Gephardt Institute.
“Sarah and I presented on the intersection of our work and how democracy is strengthened when students are engaged in community—and how student-community partnerships are better when students understand the context and landscape of the communities into which they are entering,” said Brown.
They spoke to three different programs at the intersection of this work, all of which foster dialogue opportunities and strengthen connections between students and the St. Louis community: WashU Votes, the St. Louis Fellows Program, and Civic Cafe.
“We shared our practices as an example of how mutually beneficial student partnerships have been meaningful for student civic learning and community benefit,” said Brown. “Our hope was that they reflected on how they could employ similar practices on their campuses and work with campus and community partners to bolster democracy in their community.”
The presentation stressed the value of WashU’s connection with the community, noting that the university works to be in St. Louis, for St. Louis, and with St. Louis. Nash, Campbell and Brown also shared Gephardt’s mission of fostering a thriving culture of civic engagement throughout Washington University by catalyzing student learning, civic participation, and impact in civic life.
“I think it was received well; we received good feedback in the post-presentation survey and in the conversations we had with folks,” said Brown. “Sarah and I have also been asked to publish a sidebar in an upcoming NASPA publication that builds on our presentation, which is really exciting.”
“Presenting at conferences like CLDE is a great way for us to share our practices with others around the country and receive feedback that can strengthen our work. With so much focus on voting in presidential election years, it’s also important to elevate programming that can help students build their understanding of community and democracy so that they can be more informed voters,” he said.