What Is Civic Engagement?

Civic engagement is an umbrella term used to describe the activities which promote the bridging of communities with socially conscious thought and action.  “Civic engagement means working to make a difference in the civic life of our communities and developing the combination of knowledge, skills, values and motivation to make that difference. It means promoting the quality of life in a community, through both political and non-political processes.” Thomas Ehrlich, goes onto to say that “amorally and civically responsible individual recognizes himself or herself as a member of a larger social fabric and therefore considers social problems to be at least partly his or her own; such an individual is willing to see the moral and civic dimensions of issues, to make and justify informed moral and civic judgments, and to take action when appropriate.”

The underlying aim of civic engagement is to produce meaningful service and experience to all involved participants. The relationship between all involved parties is ideally reciprocal; the community partners explain their needs, the students and faculty work with the community partners to find a sustainable way to address their need and the experience serves as a common ground for students to enhance their scholarship, raise questions and explore alternative solutions with new social consciousness, not only in the classroom but as they move into the world as professionals. This experience also allows faculty to reignite student’s passion and tie current or future research endeavors to their courses.

Excerpts from "Civic Responsibility and Higher Education," edited by Thomas Ehrlich, published by Oryx Press, 2000.