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HOME >> STEERING GROUPS APPLICATION

BE A PART
OF CHANGE

WE NEED YOU

Following on from the development of the Engage NJ strategic plan, developed by a group of stakeholders from across the state’s higher education, nonprofit, and government sectors, we are delighted to invite your campus community to help steer the kinds of conferences, events, professional development, awards, fellowships, and grants that we at Engage NJ will develop and deliver for you, the members. 

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We are entering year 2 and our 2nd round of steering groups that collectively provide advice and input on event and program design so as to meet campus priorities, and together will ensure the best chance of a successful achievement. 

The THREE Distinct Steering Groups are named as follows, with further details below:

  1. Presidential commitment to a culture of engagement 

    • ​Seeking Presidents and Higher Ed Executives

  2. Professional development series and Faculty Symposium Steering Group

    • Seeking Faculty, Graduate Students, and Staff

    • Includes seed grants (ERCC)

  3. THRIVE Success Series (TSS) Steering Group

    • Seeking Faculty, Staff, and Students

    • Includes awards

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STEERING GROUPS PRIORITY I: 

A small group of fewer than eight presidents and/or members of their executive team will use the next academic year to draft a presidential commitment that lays out actions and indicators of a deeply and pervasively community-engaged campus.

 

Engage NJ member presidents will be asked to sign this commitment, helping to demonstrate clearly to identified communities, students, faculty, and staff the integral role of civic and community engagement in higher education.

 
The steering group on a Presidential Commitment to a Culture of Engagement will lean heavily on the Carnegie indicators of a community-engaged campus and will reference previously developed commitments such as those successfully implemented by Campus Engage. 

 Presidential Commitment to a Culture of Engagement 
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Professional Development: A small group of fewer than 8 campus civic engagement and outreach staff will use the academic year ’25 to follow up on last year’s work and develop a series of tools and events that will be outlined in a Member Engagement Plan (MEP). The plan will be guided by and aligned with the Carnegie framework for the community-engaged campus. 
 

In consultation with the statewide membership, this group will develop a plan that will ensure staff from all higher ed sectors can learn from one another, replicate promising programs and practices, and stimulate an expanded scale and use of high-impact practices. Such tools and events will include:
-    Developing a cumulative civic engagement calendar of consortia and grass-roots organizations
-    Highlighting cost-effective programming that tackles social issues such as exclusion, systemic racism, homelessness, food insecurity and climate change 
-    Co-sponsoring campus events through mini-grants and grant funding
-    Delivering a Spring 2026 symposium on human trafficking at Montclair State University

STEERING GROUPS PRIORITY II:   

Professional Development Series and Faculty Symposium Steering Group 

Faculty Symposium: Service learning, or community-engaged learning, has been around for a long time and its role as a high-impact practice is well documented. How do we ensure community-engaged learning and scholarship (CES+L) are not just a presumed best practice but an adaptable and contemporary best practice that is responsive to a 21st-century student population and society’s contemporary urgencies?


In FY’25, A small group of fewer than 10 steering group members will have the opportunity to complete the planning process and deliver Engage NJ’s first and annual faculty symposium entitled, “Rooted in Purpose, Branching Out in Action: Empowering Communities through Civic Engagement towards a more Sustainable Future”. Among other things, this symposium will probe into the exciting role that multiple evolving disciplines play in meeting the desires of new students to hone their skills and careers in fighting climate change and its related injustices.

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STEERING GROUPS PRIORITY III:

A maximum of 20 steering group members will advise and direct the sequence of coordinated events, virtual meetings, conferences, and resource hubs, THRIVERS Database, Student Opportunities for Success (SOS) Database, and the Kesselman Fellowships. Collectively this series of events will help to build a statewide network of students capable of succeeding in 21st-century life and work. The initial major convening will be the annual student THRIVE conference, held annually in February.

 THRIVE Success Series

ENGAGE NJ WILL:

  • Fully administer the work of each steering group

  • Provide budget allocations to get the work going

  • Develop branding and marketing materials for the products of each plan

  • Recognize all steering group members in letters sent to your chancellor or president

HOW THE STEERING GROUPS WORK?

  • 6 meetings in a year (remote)

  • Design the Member Engagement Plan to guide Engage NJ’s work

  • The deadline is September 30th, 2025 to sign up for this academic year’s work

  • Your group work in steering these efforts ensures Engage NJ efforts will continue to align with campus priorities and help to recognize your campus’ exemplary practices 

  •  Market the product of your work – and attend events where feasible!

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