Vice Chancellor's Distinguished
Community Engagement Award
PREAMBLE
As the third pillar of Rhodes University along with teaching/learning and research, it is appropriate that community engagement receives significant institutional support and recognition that will encourage an ethos of community engagement amongst academic and support staff at the University. Student community involvement activity has an established recognition and reward structure in the annual Student Volunteer Programme Awards.
Senate accepted the proposal that a Vice Chancellor’s Distinguished Community Engagement Award be established alongside the similar awards for teaching and research. This provides a clear institutional signal to the staff of the University that community engagement is acknowledged as an important institutional activity.
PURPOSE
To stimulate community engagement activities characterised by a spirit of reciprocity and by vibrant interaction between institution and community, leading to their mutual enrichment.
ELIGIBILITY
All academic and support staff members who have initiated a community engagement project.
NOMINATIONS
Staff members may nominate candidate individuals or groups. Such nominations should be confidential if possible. In addition, staff members may apply to be considered.
Nominations and applications must be accompanied by:
•a detailed outline of the history, aims, scope and outcomes of the community engagement initiative, its methodology and the nature of its community partnership;
• a letter of commendation/reference from the community partner organisation;
• the names of two community referees AND the names of two university referees
CONSIDERATION OF NOMINATIONS
THE COMMITTEE WILL:
• regard community engagement in the broader sense to mean all scholarly applications of teaching, learning and research resources to meet the needs of the community/communities
• invite referees to comment on, inter alia, whether the initiative is exceptional and worthy of being considered, whether the initiative is recognised as being one of the most outstanding at the university, the developmental and reciprocal nature of the initiative, the nature of the community partnership involved, the benefit to both parties involved: the university staff/students and the specific community involved; the way it enhances teaching/learning or research processes and the way in which the initiative began;
• for service learning programmes, comment will be invited on their structure according to sound educational principles in order to supplement and complement the theoretical components of the curriculum; demonstration of adequate supervision of participants; their thorough training/preparation for the project or programme and the regular and adequate assessment of the initiative.
• not be required to recommend an award if in its view the nominations and applications are not sufficiently outstanding to warrant an award.
