Civic Engagement
and Leadership

West Chester University


 
 



Message from the Provost

"West Chester University provides a number of venues that support civic engagement and leadership development among its students, faculty, and staff. Get involved through the Office of Service Learning; participate in the activities to honor Constitution Day; and learn about the University's involvement in the American Democracy Project. Become an engaged citizen. We need you." --- Dr. Linda Lamwers, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost

Quick Links


"Our ways of handling power differences and diverse points of view and cultures should be models of the civic life we wish to engender in our communities. Encouraging the articulation of differences, and then finding areas for collaboration, should be the norm rather than the exception."
– Gamson, Z.F., Civic Responsibility and Higher Education, 2000

As a member of American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), West Chester University is actively committed to promoting and integrating civic engagement and student leadership across the campus community. West Chester University seeks to impart knowledge, skills, and values that make a direct and purposeful contribution to the preparation of student for active civic participation. Civic engagement is designed to develop learning that contributes to student preparation for community or public involvement in a diverse, democratic society.

West Chester University has developed a set of initiatives to support civic engagement including:

  • Creating an understanding of contemporary issues and events
  • Providing opportunities to learn and experience core processes of civic engagement
  • Developing a commitment to act and to become involved in the life of the community
  • Linking activities to academic disciplines and include specific learning outcomes

These initiatives have found their home in a number of key campus programs, organizations, and activities including: Constitution Day, Service Learning and Volunteering, Student Leadership, Certificate in Civic Engagement and Leadership, and various efforts to integrate civic engagement into teaching and learning. For further information on these efforts at West Chester University, please review the connections on the left. For additional information about national initiatives focused on civic engagement, please click on the "Quick Links" sites, especially the American Democracy Project and the Campus Compact, of which West Chester is actively engaged. For campus information, please contact Dr. Peter Loedel, Chair, Department of Political Science at ploedel@wcupa.edu.