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Campus Compact empowers colleges and universities to advance their academic and civic missions by partnering with communities to address complex social issues and further equity, justice, and prosperity for all.
Campus Compact is a national nonprofit organization. We are the largest and oldest higher education association dedicated to higher education civic and community engagement. Our college and university members make up a force of thousands of presidents, faculty, researchers, students, and civic and community engagement experts at colleges and universities.
Our vision What we do
Campus Compact envisions a world in which all of higher education commits to advancing an equitable, accessible, and just democracy—where colleges and universities serve as responsive and transformative agents of change, with students, faculty, staff, and administrators joining as true partners with communities in contributing to our collective flourishing.
Mission
Campus Compact supports, engages, and challenges higher education to realize its public purpose. Mobilizing students, staff, faculty, and administrators, Campus Compact empowers colleges and universities to advance their academic and civic missions by partnering with communities to address complex social issues and further equity, justice, and prosperity for all.
As a leader and connector in higher education, Campus Compact offers professional development and convenings, advances research and best practices, nurtures connections and networks, builds capacity for people, campuses, and communities, and advocates for resources that enable this collective work.
Our values
These values guide us in our work with members and provide a framework for our work together as a national coalition.
Equity
We prioritize full participation and diversity of thought, experience, and background. We center equity in our actions, processes, and practices to uplift diverse voices and perspectives.
Growth mindset
We consistently push ourselves and each other to do and be better. We are motivated by growth—embracing new ideas, prioritizing continuous learning, and meeting challenges head-on.
Accountability
We recognize that long-term change requires individual and shared ownership of personal and organizational actions. We own our mistakes, give each other grace, collaborate openly, and hold ourselves to high standards of integrity.
Responsiveness
We ensure our offerings, resources, and approaches are flexible, grounded in feedback, and responsive to the challenges of our time.
Transparency
We are direct and authentic within our team, with our members, and with our partners. We know that building trust starts with consistent, honest, and transparent communication.
Our history
The evolution of our coalition
Campus Compact was founded in 1985 by the presidents of Brown, Georgetown, and Stanford Universities, along with the president of the Education Commission of the States. These higher education leaders shared a concern about the ongoing health and strength of democracy in the United States. They believed that higher education could contribute more effectively to sustaining our democracy by building robust support structures for civic and community engagement.
Since our founding, the field of higher education civic and community engagement has grown and matured. What was emerging in the mid-80s has evolved into a well-established field, with many colleges and universities equipped with robust infrastructures and missions to support civic education, community-based teaching and learning, engaged scholarship and research, anchor strategies, and deep campus-community partnerships. As the work on our campuses has evolved, so has Campus Compact. Today, we work directly with campuses across the country to support them in their established community engagement work, convene and connect community-engaged scholars and practitioners, and continue to move the field of higher education civic and community engagement forward.
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What we do
We offer comprehensive programming, tools, and opportunities that serve the whole campus—senior leaders, faculty, staff, and students—in building the knowledge, skills, abilities, and connections they need for effective civic and community engagement.
The Campus Compact Team
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Board of Directors
Our Board of Directors includes of higher education leaders and experts from the public and private sector.
Our members
South Central College
South Mountain Community College
Southeastern Louisiana University
Southeastern Oklahoma State University
Southern Connecticut State University
Southern Maine Community College
Southern New Hampshire University
Where to find us More about our staff
We have a geographically distributed staff, but you can find our headquarters in Boston, MA.
89 South Street, Suite 603
Boston, MA 02111