Date
Wednesday, March 13
12:30pm-4:00pm
Presenter(s)
Heidi Lasley Barajas & Kari Smalkoski
University of Minnesota
Heidi Lasley Barajas is an associate professor and Chair of the Department of Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development in the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota. Until recently, she also served as the Executive Director of the Robert J. Jones Urban Research and Outreach-Engagement Center (UROC). Dr. Barajas has also served as an associate dean, and as the founding chair of the Department of Postsecondary Teaching and Learning. A sociologist by training, Dr. Barajas joined the University of Minnesota faculty in 2000. Her research, teaching and public service focus on issues related to access and equity, and leadership in higher education. She has been honored by La Raza Student organization, received the University Women of Color Tapestry award, and the Josie R Johnson Human Rights and Social Justice Award for her support and work on behalf of diversity and equity. In 2018, the University of Minnesota Department of Sociology selected Dr. Barajas for the Public Sociology Award. She is widely sought as a speaker focused on community engagement, leadership, and equity and inclusion. A native of California, Dr. Barajas received a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Minnesota as a National Science Foundation Fellow; she also holds a B.A. in Spanish and education and a Masters degree in sociology from the University of Utah. She lives in Minneapolis and has four spectacular children and ten amazing grandchildren.
Dr. Kari Smalkoski’s research and teaching focuses on masculinity, gender and identity, education and political economy, critical youth studies, and refugee studies. She writes about Asian American youths’ experiences in and out of schools; her research findings are included in a 2014-16 AAPI Bullying Prevention Task force Report, a White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Her current book project, American Dream Disrupted: Rewriting Narratives on Asian American Youth and Masculinity examines the impact of educational reform programs on Hmong youth in the Twin Cities. Dr. Smalkoski is co-founder and co-leader of a new initiative, in partnership with urban public schools in the Twin Cities, called Minnesota Youth Story Squad (MYSS). She is Principal Investigator on a longitudinal research study that examines the short and long term impact of MYSS on thousands of youth who have participated in its programming. She has been interviewed most recently by Minnesota Public Radio and The Atlantic. You can read more about her work with MYSS in Inside Higher Ed.
Description
In this session we will discuss the reason for investment by Higher Education in community engagement, how engagement is defined and the role community engagement plays. Through lively case studies, stories and activities, we will explore the significance of partnerships and the value added in working through a critical community engagement approach that takes into account power dynamics, pitfalls, and how to deepen mutual benefit for all partners.
Purpose
Participants will explore the many definitions of community engagement, learn the University of Minnesota definition and relation to the Carnegie designation. We will also explore partnerships, working with difficult people within partnerships, and understanding the value of mutual benefit.