Building partnerships with college campuses: Community perspectives

Description

The information that forms the basis of this report was drawn from a summit of community organization representatives who have worked in partnerships with institutions of higher education. The brochure highlights three issues community partners believe must be fully addressed if community/campus partnerships are to be successful and mutually beneficial: 

1. The importance of follow-through for building sustainable partnerships
2. How community partners weigh the costs and benefits of partnering with an institution of higher education
3. The influence of parity on community members' attitudes toward their campus partners.

Community partners suggest that partnerships with colleges and universities provide a range of benefits to their organizations. One risk is a sense that the community partner is lending its credibility within a community to the campus. Other costs include the time required, the opportunity cost of not doing funded or billable work, loss of organizational identity, and the "irritation" factor in relationships. Some mediating factors are identified. Community partners have created a list of common organizational resources and limitations that need to be kept in mind by campus personnel when partnering with community organizations. The brochure includes recommendations and implications for practice and policy. A list of 16 annotated resources is provided. (SLD)