This study investigates the potential of community-based organizations (CBOs) to enhance knowledge mobilization (KMb) through reciprocal and empowering collaborations with academic researchers. Using a constructivist qualitative methodology, the research explored how CBOs perceive and experience KMb relationships and identified challenges in…

Community-university partnerships are a critical vehicle for promoting sustainability, and the partnerships themselves can be sustained by ensuring that participants achieve mutual benefits in terms of their respective goals and missions. Although the literature emphasizes mutuality and reciprocity, fewer studies investigate community partners'…

Informal science learning centers (ISLCs) like zoos, aquariums and botanic gardens are trusted community assets and perceived as critical sites for learning outside the classroom for multigenerational learners. Moreover, their role in engaging the public in critical topics, such as climate change is widely recognized. As extreme weather events…

Positive youth development (PYD) is a strengths-based approach to youth programming which has been tested with success in largely higher income settings with mostly White youth. This study aims to identify the extent to which organizations who work in an urban context serving predominately African American youth incorporate PYD principles into…

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many districts sought digital learning solutions to recover from learning loss, improve equity, and prepare for future interruptions. With this paper, we aim to provide information to policymakers and legislators regarding the value of resources needed to successfully implement comprehensive digital learning…

Mental health challenges for youth continue to be a growing concern. Youth-serving organizations have the potential to play a significant role in recognizing the signs and symptoms of mental health challenges in youth. The Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) training course is widely used to equip adults working with youth with skills to support…

Service-learning (SL) activities provide multifarious benefits for students, faculty members, and community members. Although the literature includes considerable research on students' and faculty members' outcomes, it also reports a lack of attention to benefits for community members. This study sought to address this gap, giving voice to…

Fathers make important contributions to children's learning and development; however, schools and community organizations consistently report challenges to engaging fathers in their work. As part of a larger community-based participatory research project, a local fatherhood coalition created and distributed a survey to learn how various…

This study examined six diverse school districts in Maine that have successfully formed partnerships between their districts and community or regional organizations to expand supports to students and their families that go beyond academic support to include health, mental health, social services and other supports.

Communities are investigating new ways to expand access to high-quality early education. A new early care and education partnership initiative in a mid-Atlantic state offered publicly-funded preschool slots to eligible children in private early childhood programs and provided quality supports to participating private programs. This qualitative…

Drawing on our experience teaching a 2-week field-based geography course on urban environmental issues, we reinforce the value of field-based experiential education (EE) especially as it faces growing threats. We show how such experience can enable students to understand the diversity of urban environmental challenges in situ; grasp cities as…

What does it take to create a statewide ecosystem to support Black student success? Our 2021 case study explores the Black Student Success Initiative at the Oregon Community Foundation. The initiative uses a community-led and trust-based approach to attract funding partners, establish a grantee network, and serve as a driver for systemic change in…

This paper contributes to an understanding of the processes by which organisational actors learn how to affect positive and sustainable social change in their local region through action learning, action research and appreciative inquiry. The paper is based on a critically reflective account of key findings from an ongoing action research project,…

This study examined undergraduate international students' communication-related experiences during service-learning, focusing specifically on their goals and strategies and the role of communication. Participants included 28 English as a Second Language (ESL) students in two sections of a service-learning course in a university pathways program in…

We describe the development of a telephone-based program, Recreation, Education, and Socialization for Older Learning Veterans (RESOLV) that aims to connect Veterans with one another by phone and thereby reduce loneliness. The program was developed through a collaboration between VA and a community-based organization, Episcopal Senior Communities…