Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is participating in discussions for the purpose of being more collaborative and resourceful in the communities they serve.
The effort, Community Engagement and Scholarship Dialogue sessions, was originally devised by Dr. Aminata Cairo, assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology. Also helping organize the initiative is Dr. James Hanlon, assistant professor in the Department of Geography and director of the Institute for Urban Research.
The next dialogue session is scheduled for 10 a.m.-12 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 11 at the East St. Louis Higher Education Campus, Building D, room 1007.
“It’s important that we hear from the community and listen to what they need,” said Cairo. “SIUE faculty, staff, alumni and students are encouraged to join with other scholars in the region, and most importantly, community members for these discussions.”
The questions to be proposed at the East St. Louis meeting:
• How can we use our academic skills to work in collaborative and participatory ways to impact our neighboring communities?
• SIUE has a long presence and commitment to East St. Louis and the Metro East community. How can we make sure the commitment is fruitful, effective and sustainable? How can we include SIUE students in that commitment?
• What kind of new partnerships can and should we develop within the Metro East region?
Cairo said that she doesn’t want the University to be seen as having an “ivory tower” approach to
interacting and working with the community. The anthropology professor said she was encouraged that in the days following the police shooting death of Michael Brown, some parents of Edwardsville youth wanted to discuss the matter in an open forum.
“The fact that people called me right away shows that they see the University as a resource,” Cairo said. “I found a location and helped organize the (Aug. 27) discussion: ‘Exploring Ferguson: A Facilitated Youth Discussion About Race, Inequality, and Community.’ I immediately recruited some of my colleagues who were more than willing to help.
“Dr. Danice Brown from psychology, and Dr. Bryan Jack and Dr. Anthony Cheeseboro from history selfishly contributed their time and talent. The discussion wasn’t officially one of our Community Engagement ones, but its overall purpose was the same.” Cairo said. “We already have so many faculty members who are equally passionate about sharing their skills with the community, and who are doing wonderful things. Part of this initiative is not to start from scratch, but to hone what we already have and build a united force.”
Some other goals of the Community Engagement and Dialogue sessions include:
• Staying focused on uplifting communities
• Making people aware of community initiatives that SIUE already is involved in
• Making sure that the connections and contributions made are long lasting and sustainable
“There are many in the community who are experts, but we need to know who they are and come together. That’s why talking to one another is so important,” she said. “This initiative is based on the premise that we cannot just take our service, but also our scholarship into the community.”
The first two sessions were held Sept. 11 and Oct. 4 at SIUE.
After the Nov. 11 talk, the next scheduled dialogue will be from 1-3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6 at Newsong Fellowship Church, 201 St. Louis St., Edwardsville. The topic of discussion is how to discuss how community members, organizations and businesses can think of SIUE as potential partners for community development.
For more information about the discussions, contact Cairo at acairo@siue.edu or Hanlon at jhanlon@siue.edu.