Center for Community and Civic Engagement

Reciprocity is at the heart of the work in the CCCE, and being engaged in the community is an amazing way to learn about real-world issues, develop skills and interests, and build relationships with community partners. Below are the goals that the CCCE has outlined for students, along with thoughts from carleton alumni about how their engagement work has affected their path post-Carleton. The time and energy that you spend being involved has both the power to affect change in the community and the potential to play an important role in your personal journey.

Learning objectives of the CCCE

• Understanding issues in their real world complexity
• Recognizing and honoring different forms of knowledge that may reside in/with community partners
• Awareness of your positionality, or who you are as you seek to do civic engagement efforts (such as gender, race, and/or socioeconomic background)
• Doing — how can you take your course content and do something with it beyond the classroom while learning in the process
• Developing leadership skills
• Nurturing a commitment to life-long civic engagement

How have Alums used CCCE Experience?

Borr Vang '12 worked as a Student Coordinator for Tutoring (now called "Fellow").

As a Student Coordinator for Tutoring, I had the opportunity to work with and coordinate tutors for the TORCH (Tackling Obstacles Raising College Hopes) program at Northfield High School. This experience confirmed my passion for college access and success. In my current job as a financial aid counselor, I continue to help students tackle educational obstacles such as understanding financial aid, so that they can succeed in college.

Katie Newell '03 was an ACT Student Coordinator (now called "Fellow"), and then went to work for the Fund for Public Interest Research. After finishing law school, she went on to work at Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid where she represents low-income clients.

"My participation with the Center taught me a lot about organizing at the grassroots level, and helped sustain my commitment to social justice while I was at Carleton. The Center is at the heart of Carleton's commitment to community outreach and deserves its full measure of support."

Patrick Burke '14 served as the Fellow for Political Engagement and One Time Events Coordinator and as a Program Director for Uplift. Now he works as a political organizer with the Saint Paul Federation of Teachers, Local 28.

Working for the CCCE allowed me to take what I was learning and apply it in the community in Northfield; it made the academic research I was doing in the classroom real and meaningful. I continue to draw on the skills I learned through the CCCE around organizing, event planning, and issue advocacy on a daily basis in my work.