Private and Public htstitutional Views of Civic Engagement and the Urban Mission

Abstract

Traditionally, consideration of the urban or metropolitan university mission has focused almost completely on the experiences and characteristics of public universities. The multi-year Implementing Urban Missions program, directed by the Council of Independent Colleges, explored how urban private colleges and universities articulate their sense of an urban mission with a focus on the core element of civic engagement. The program evaluation revealed that private institutions have greater and more natural campus consensus than most publics on their civic responsibilities, but capacity and resources are often a constraint on partnership and program opportunities.