Folks:

The posting below is a review by Brian Fahnestock of the book, Beyond the Campus: How Colleges and Universities Form Partnerships with Their Communities, by David J. Maurrasse, Routledge; (April 1, 2001). ISBN: 041592622X. The review originally appeared in Planning for Higher Education. 31(1): 55-57. Copyright ? 1998-2003 by Society for College and University Planning (www.scup.org). Reprinted with permission. Planning for Higher Education book reviews appear at: (www.scup.org/phe).

Regards,

Rick Reis
reis@stanford.edu

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Tomorrow's Academia

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BEYOND THE CAMPUS: HOW COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES FORM PARTNERSHIPS WITH THEIR COMMUNITIES

Reviewed by Brian Fahnestock

In an era that has seen the term "win-win" go from novel to tired, David J. Maurrasse presents a study that demonstrates that colleges and universities and the communities that surround them can actually achieve that goal. Beyond the Campus is an easy-to-read research text intended to provide a quick summary of the motivations behind and difficulties expected in linking the neighboring community with a college or university. Maurrasse, an assistant professor in the Department of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University, presents his findings on school and community partnerships from the study of four institutions, each with a different mission and historical setting. The Rockefeller Foundation funded the research for the publication.

Included in the publication are the University of Pennsylvania, San Francisco State University, Xavier University, and Hostos Community College. The schools span the spectrum of higher education in terms of size, prestige, purpose, funding, and culture. The book is well researched and contains a wide-ranging dialogue between these institutions and their communities' leaders.

The University of Pennsylvania is familiar at least in reputation to many. Benjamin Franklin first established this top-tier research university. A large organization, the university is significant to the city of Philadelphia in terms of history and raw economic might. The largest employer in the city, it draws students and faculty from around the world and, considering its global reach in terms of research and learning, relates in large measure to the greater community of the modern world. Nevertheless, the university forges partnerships with the immediate neighborhoods and community of Philadelphia largely out of necessity.

San Francisco State University, on the other hand, is a public school with a sense and long history of (local) social responsibility. The author quotes the president of the university, saying "community partnerships are a fundamental part of how the faculty view their mission" (p. 68). The history, social setting, and purpose of an institution dictate the public's reaction to partnership efforts. "When they [public schools] reach out it is not news, it's what they are supposed to do. In contrast, private research universities that have forged community partnerships capture the headlines" (p. 70).

Because of SFSU's enduring connections with city leaders, it has served as a broker between local government and the community around the school. The campus has both contributed and responded to the gentrification of the surrounding neighborhoods and has forged a number of business ties to reach out to the community. The links of the university with the community are rooted far below the efforts of individual faculty members or current institutional leadership.

While both Penn and SFSU are large schools with significant economic influence on their surroundings, Xavier University is relatively small (3,700 students) and has limited resources. Historically black and Catholic, the institution is located in New Orleans, which itself has fewer resources than Philadelphia or San Francisco. The opportunities for Xavier to form business or social partnerships with a community that lacks organizational cohesion because of economics presents a different set of challenges, though the need for this close interaction remains.

Finally, Hostos Community College is located in the South Bronx, in what at one time was the poorest congressional district in the country. Part of The City University of New York and yet very dependent upon its neighborhood for survival, Hostos draws its students and identity from the local community. Predominately Hispanic women, the students remain in the community after graduation and continue their association with the college. Although the school confers two-year degrees, students typically attend for six or more years. Many build lifetime relations with the college.

Each of these four institutions has determined that close ties to the surrounding community is not only good public relations, it is also essential to the institution's ultimate success and survival. Each has approached the endeavor from a different perspective and each, using its unique set of strengths and circumstances, has achieved some measure of success. Maurrasse reveals the common struggles of these institutions and summarizes his study with lessons and opportunities that may be available to others.

All of these institutions are located in poor, minority neighborhoods. Whereas most other major employers moved out and relocated to the suburbs, the physical investment of these universities anchors them in mid-town, where they play an increasingly important role in the economic health of the inner cities.

The response to their changing and degraded environment has taken a common track. Previously, universities walled themselves in and hired police forces to protect them from their neighbors. Alienating rather than embracing their neighbors, they tended to take a punitive approach, followed by what Maurrasse calls the paternalistic and lab approach. Residents were studied but rarely helped by the nearby institution. Eventually, however, the partnership approach emerged as the favored method of interacting and conducting business with the local community.

Why did this transformation occur? Maurrasse argues that it was self-interest and new enlightened university leadership. With colleges and universities becoming increasingly corporate in nature, their well-being was examined with a more dispassionate eye. Partnerships "should not be seen as charitable activities; they are more like strategic alliances that advance institutional goals" (p. 52).

Maurrasse found strong leadership and a clearly defined mission behind the more successful efforts. "Mission and social responsibility converge ... it is logical and right" (p. 194). Regarding Penn, for example, the author notes that "these various examples of community partnerships are not marginal to the mission of Penn in all of its dimensions. In fact, they complete the higher educational mission" (p. 53).

Incorporated into the mission of some institutions is one avenue for partnership success: service and service learning. Maurrasse states, "the more teaching and research intersect with service, the more likely partnerships will survive" (p. 26). He quotes Ronald Mason, Jr., president of Jackson State University, who states the following:

Let's say higher education is a stool and the stool has three legs: research, teaching and service. There's a reason it has three legs. The service is there because it keeps the teaching and the research honest. It keeps them connected to everyday problems. (p. 22)

The obstacles to effective partnership building are many. College or university leadership interest is important, but often not enough. Some formalized internal structure that not only promotes, but also rewards these endeavors is essential for continued success. Consistency over time is also fundamental. Partnerships are often based on individuals' efforts that do not transcend employment at the school.

Maurrasse also notes that, in other instances, funding may be short and cultural differences may be profound. Power dynamics, though possibly unrecognized by the institution's personnel, cannot be underestimated. Undeniably, the bad history between the institutions and their neighbors may make forming new partnerships and building trust problematic.

Maurrasse concludes his text with policy recommendations that offer the opportunity for other institutions and their neighbors to achieve win-win relationships. The author adds that he is creating the Center for Innovation in Social Responsibility, which will continue the study of effective partnerships. In higher education, we will all benefit from these efforts.