Forging a New Identity

8/10/2019 Forging a New Identity

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2 Forging a New Identity/December 2014

Executive Summary 3

1. Introduction and History 5

2. MUSG Process and Findings 9

3. MUSG Vision, Goals, and Recommendations 11

4. Tasks and Timeline to Carnegie Classification in 2020 16

Appendices

A. MU Steering Group Background and Charg 16

B. Presidential Search Statement 17

C. Selected USM Engagements and Partnerships 20

D. Selected Readings 22

Page 1 photos, rom lef: John Mitchell Center, Gorham Campus; New Wing, Lewiston-Auburn College; AbromsonCommunity Education Center, Portland Campus. Layout by Peter Weed o Hutchins Weed Communications.

Contents


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Forging a New Identity/December 2014

Higher education in the Unit-ed States is today in its time

of greatest change and challenge

in three generations, and theUniversity of Southern Maine isnot exempt from the resultingturmoil. Under a mandate fromabove and with widespread sup-port from major constituencies, USM is currently undergoingstrategic re-purposing and restructuring to become MainesMetropolitan University (MU).

Te Metropolitan University Steering Group (MUSG)spent summer 2014 exploring this prospect by a variety ofmeans, and concludes that the Metropolitan University ini-tiative is a worthy goal and viable strategy to pursue as thecentral focus of a larger growth strategy for USM. Indeed, wefind it to be a virtual necessity in the current setting of highereducation in Maine and nationally. We believe USM musteither become a university committed to engaged teaching,learning, scholarship, creation, and service through commu-nity partnerships of mutual benefit, or cease to be.

We further find that, given the non-strategic hollow-ing-out of university staff by previous administrations in re-sponse to successive budget shortfalls, this transition will notbe achieved without significant new investment to sharpenthe identity of USM, focus its organizational culture, and

return it to its historic roots as an extension of communityneeds and aspirations. Nothing less than this transformationwill suffice to achieve the vision we share as a group, andwhich we believe to be widely shared across our three cam-puses and various constituencies. It is a vision of USM firmlygrounded in the fundamental principles of academic excel-lence, engaged teaching and learning, and enduring partner-ships for student success.

In recent times USM has referred to itself variously asa combination of Orono/South and Cambridge/North,(a land-grant/research university) or Bowdoin on the cheap(a traditional liberal arts college). We believe this has de-

prived USM of a strong identity and unified culture; created

confusion in the minds of manyas to just what USM really ismade it all the more difficult in

lean budget times to make stra-tegic decisions based on a clearsense of mission and purposeand led USM to aspire to be allthings to all people, at times a

mile-wide and an inch deep.At the same time, Barbara Holland, internationally-known

scholar of metropolitan universities, has observed:USM is not really unusual in any way (this is meantto be happy news, not a dismissal of challengingconditions) in that it has similar challenges to all re-gional/metropolitan universities: it is not clearly a re-search-dominated university nor is it a teaching-dominated college. It is a hybrid of these two core academicroles. Yet, national academic culture seems to rewardand respect institutions that do one of these functionsas a dominant identity. With a hybrid identity and atraditional academic culture, conflict and confusionare inevitable activities for faculty who try to pushidentity one way or another.

Te Metropolitan University identity has emerged inthe last 30 years as a respected and valued identity for

public urban-located institutions that seek to do well inboth research and teaching, largely through a focus ontheir metropolitan region. Tis is a positive and excit-ing path forwardfor USM.1

oday the seeds are present to bring a new vision and

identity to USM. It is time now to focus on the cultureand to cultivate opportunities for growth. his transformation and growth will require visionary leadership thatpenetrates the entire institution, and behavioral changeat every level of each college and department. Along theway, we are cautioned by MU colleagues to remain ev-

er-vigilant that:Te lure and familiarity of traditional models of high-er education are powerful.... Te traditional universityhas been accepted for hundreds of years; the metropoli-tan university model is brand new by comparison. Evenour own faculty need constant reminding that wherethey work is not like where they were educated.... Alaser focus on the metropolitan mission is invaluable...(It) supplies the criteria for decisions regarding budgetacademic program emphasis, new faculty hiring, andthe universitys extracurricular offerings.2

1Dr. Barbara Holland, Senior Fellow at the Portland State University, isco-founder of the Coalition of Urban and Metropolitan Universities andeditor of the Metropolitan University Journal. Personal communicationdated September 22, 2014.

2 Nancy B Shulock and Kathi E. Ketchison, Assessing the MetropolitanUniversity Mission,Metropolitan Universities: An International Forum,Spring 2000, wherein the authors address the MU experience at theirrespective universities, California State University/Sacramento and Port-land State University

Executive Summary

Metropolitan universities are destined by

their mission to become the land-grant

institutions of the twenty-rst century.Jeanette Seaberry and Joe L. Davis, University

of Nebraska at Omaha


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4 Forging a New Identity/Dece mber 2014

o this end, the MUSG strongly embraces and rec-ommends the following vision statement for USM, to beachieved five years hence:

USM is an integral and indispensable partner to the com-munities it serves, and takes great pride in the energeticsupport of its many, engaged partners. Engaged teaching,learning, scholarship, creation, and service thrive in aseamless organizational structure, ensuring an integrated

and fully aligned student pathway from recruitment tograduation. We are an accessible and affordable sourceof transformative higher education for our students, abirthplace for first and new careers, an incubator for ap-plied research and economic development, and a trainingground for public service. We are Maines MetropolitanUniversity.

o realize this vision and become Maines Metropolitan

University, USM will need to: Re-invent itself as a community-based institution of

higher education, one that invites and welcomes thecommunity onto campus and extends its classrooms,scholarship, and related activities into the communi-ty through mutually beneficial and enduring partner-ships;

Achieve Carnegie Foundation Elective CommunityEngagement Classification in the year 20203; and

In the process, become known throughout the regionand the Northeast as a leader in merging academicexcellence and innovation with the opportunity totest ones learning against critical thinking and prob-lem-solving challenges outside the classroom.

In this report, the MUSG offers recommendations and atimeline for necessary administrative actions to be taken by theUSM President, Provost, a new MU senior leadership officer,Deans, and the steering group, itself. Budgetary recommen-dations address resource needs to achieve Carnegie Classifi-cation in 2020, as well as the MU-related needs of the newsenior leadership position, students, faculty, staff, and com-munity. Tese total some $125,000 in one-time expendituresand $925,000 in annual operating costs, the latter possibly tobe diminished by reallocation of savings realized through theUMSnewly-centralized administrative services.4

Annual operating costs will continue through CarnegieClassification in 2020, in advance of which time we expectthat USMs larger growth strategy will cover these throughincreased enrollments and revenues. Inasmuch as the UMS

Chancellor and Board of rustees have designated USM asMaines Metropolitan University, to be its distinctive iden-tity and role within the System, the MUSG recommendsthat they assume responsibility for ensuring that adequateresources for success are made available during this critical,five-year transition period.

The Fresno State MU

Historically a land-grant university engaged with its

agricultural community, Fresno State had become

viewed as an elitist institution, out of touch with the

lives of the citys people and issues affecting the good

of the community. It engaged with the Mayor andthe Citys Downtown and Community Revitalization

Department to tackle blight in the city, especially in

the adjacent Lowell neighborhood. Faculty developed

curricula for students through specific projects, intern-

ships, and service-learning that included the programs

in engineering, public administration, psychology,

art, theater, social work, construction management,

and real estate finance. Among others, collaborations

included:

Mentoring of elementary students as conflict

peer-mediators;

Construction management students assessed

building code violations and built wheelchair

ramps throughout the neighborhood;

MBA students conducted real estate analysis of ex-

isting homes and properties; and

A fieldwork class in anthropology spearheaded

inclusive methods of conducting effective neigh-

borhood meetings.

For Fresno state, re-engagement with the com-

munity was seen as a return to its roots. It meant the

universitys moving beyond traditional scholarly and

teaching activities, and adapting these in support of

the community while maintaining a disciplined envi-

ronment of learning for students and faculty, alike.

3

Te Carnegie Foundations formidable First-ime ClassificationDocumentation Framework defines community engagement ascollaboration between institutions of higher education and theircommunities local, regional, state, national, and global for themutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources in a context ofpartnership and reciprocity. See http://classifications.carnegiefoundation.org/downloads/community_eng/first-time_framework.pdf.

4 See footnote 27 below.


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This report represents the consensus of a working groupof faculty, staff, students, and community membersappointed by the President of USM. Its membership

was not necessarily intended to be representative of particulardepartments or academicunits, but rather of its fac-ulty members demonstrat-ed commitment to public,

civically engaged educationand community action.Te report is but the firststep in the overall strategictransformation of USM.As a consensus documentit does not necessarily reflect the individual opinions of everymember on every issue; a larger, more involved unfolding andparticipation of the entire USM community is now requiredin a methodical yet speedy response to the compelling need

for change and action.Higher education in the United States today faces its most

dramatic and fundamental changes in more than two gener-ations, since the decades when returning American soldiers

swelled student ranks un-der the G.I. Bill. For manyinstitutions like USMhowever, the pressure to

adapt comes today nofrom expansion but fromshrinkage, driven by thenations declining num-ber of traditional studentscompetition from new

private sources and teaching modalities like on-line and dis-tance education; and the burdensome cost of college educa-tion that has outstripped any measure of broader price shiftsover the past two decades.

For elite research universities and private liberal arts col-leges, these pressures have not been so great. Such institutionscan afford to innovate by giving away some of their value inso-called MOOCs,5and building recreation facilities worthyof four-star resorts to attract students and their parents. Formore hard-pressed institutions like USM, the survival equa-tion presents a different and unprecedented challenge, as welas the question of our very existence.

Te question is whether USM is any longer needed wheth-er what it provides may not, in fact, be gained more readilyfrom other, better-resourced and more resilient institutionsA close look at USMs history, however, provides a ready an-

Introduction and History

Unless education has some frame of reference

it is bound to be aimless, lacking a unied

objective. There exists in this country such a

unied frame. It is called democracy.

John Dewey, American Philosopher and Educator, 1937

Professor Lucy Benedict and a chemistry student testing new product for

Biovation, Inc.

5 MOOC stands for massive, open, online course of the varietypioneered a few years ago by the Harvard- MI edX program, and nowoffered to the world by many elite universities as well as private educationalcorporations. A recent analysis found that many educators believe that,using the metrics by which we judge traditional higher education(prestige, completion rates), MOOCs have failed to fulfill their originalpromise.... Te companies that rode to fame on the MOOC wave hadvisions (and still do) of offering unfettered elite education to the massesand driving down college tuition. But the sweet spot for MOOCs is farless inspirational and compelling. Te courses have become an importantsupplement to classroom learning and a tool for professional development.See Jeffrey J. Selingo, Demystifying the MOOC, Te New York imesEducation Life, Sunday, November 2, 2014.


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swer to the question. For decades, USM and its predecessorinstitutions have provided unsurpassed educational access fora predominantly first-generation and often place-bound col-lege population, until most recently at an affordable price; ago-to place for graduate and professional education that hascreated a large legacy of public, private, and nonprofit leaders;and an educational experience with committed and availablefaculty and staff that has often been compared to that of more

elite institutions. For many Mainers, these are attributes thatcannot readily be found together except at USM.

Answering the challenge of resilience and necessary changeis more difficult. In investigating what is needed to move USMtowards its charge as Maines Metropolitan University, we havelooked beyond the abiding requirements of being engagedwith our students and with our community partners in localeconomic, civic, and cultural life. Tese are part, but not all ofwhat it means to be an institution that will meet the challengesof this time. As the history of USM demonstrates, the engagedrole has long been part of its constitution;6but institutionalbarriers and disincentives, as well as precious few resources totransform the institution are also present today, and must beaddressed with energy and determination for success.

A stark example of the wrenching shift in thinking need-ed to address the multitude of challenges USM faces is thecontinuing conflict between production and innovation here.On the one hand, USMs fiscal failure is encapsulated in theneed to generate more paying-student credit-hours with adeclining student population. On the other hand, the singu-lar credit-hour focus incentivizes divisions between units atUSM that lead to internal competition for those credit hours strengthening rather than removing the silos that have long

been decried as barriers to collaboration, innovation, and ad-aptation. Further, academic work policies and practices (as,varying course loads across departments) often obstruct ratherthan facilitate cross-unit and community collaborations asmay be seen in the historic difficulties in co-teaching courses,especially across departments.

21st century life seldom if ever presents its challenges inpackages that align neatly with traditional academic dis-

ciplines. Credit hour-counting as the sole measure of val-ue which it has become will not allow our meeting civicchallenges that most often demand cross-disciplinary collab-oration. We must remind ourselves, especially in the currentstrategic setting, that what reallymatters is the total institu-tions growth in credit hours not who gets the credit internal-ly. Tis is but one example of the larger challenges addressed in

this report through the Steering Groups highly participatory,multi-interest effort to learn what is needed to grow USM to-wards success as an engaged university.

In recent times, presidents Robert Woodbury (1979-86) andPatricia Plante (1987-91) have been notable for their efforts toadvance the Metropolitan University idea at USM; these effortswere not made systematic across the university, however, and didnot persist through subsequent administrations.7A brief historyof the university is useful to understand its current challenge and,especially, to remind both the university and the communities itserves of their historic and enduring bonds.

The Wisconsin/Milwaukee M.U.

UW/Milwaukee was challenged by the nearby Bigen schools of Wisconsin (a mere 75 miles away),

Northwestern, and Michigan that attracted manyof the best students from southeastern Wisconsin.Te Milwaukee Idea, UW/Ms path-breaking plan of

engagement, was conceived in response to set its own ,distinctive path amid this strong competition. Recentprojects include:

Te Center on Age and Community in conjunctionwith Robert Wood Johnson Foundation conducteda study of walkable neighborhoods and their impacton the health of seniors in four neighborhoods;

Te Healthy Choices Initiative, in cooperation withthe Milwaukee Womens Center, explored the rela-tionship between substance abuse and HIV/AIDS,enrolling 375 women in its educational program-ming;

Te Department of Architectures Community De-sign Solutions has used a Quick Response eam toaddress community issues such as faade improve-ments, low-income housing development, and in-ner-city urban design; and

KnowledgeFest, wherein faculty and students annu-ally present their community-based work and itsbenefits to the larger community. A KnowledgeF-est Community Scholar in Residence is awarded asa fellowship to one who will bring related experi-ence and expertise to UW/M courses and projects.

Te Milwaukee Idea has allowed UW/M not onlyto compete for students, but to attract new, young,dynamic faculty, as well.

6 For example, records of the USM Office of Community Based Learning(CBL) and Lewiston-Auburn College indicate that of some 1348 USMgraduates in 2012, 520 had engaged in some form of CBL, or 38.5

percent. See Liz McCabe Park, USM Community Based Learning, USMOffice of Engaged Learning, March 2013; and M. Vazquez Jacobus, L.Philbrick, and . Bailey-Curry, USM Lewiston-Auburn College, AnnualReport of Community Engagement 2013-2014, USM LAC Druker Office ofCommunity Engagement, 2014.

7 USM recently re-joined the Coalition of Urban and MetropolitanUniversities (CUMU), the organization for universities and other anchorinstitutions that recognize that Place Does Matter.... ogether we committo being responsive to the needs of our communities by seeking new

ways of using our human and physical resources to provide leadershipin addressing metropolitan challenges through teaching, research, andservice. See the list of current CUMU members athttp://www.cumuonline.org.


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In 1978, on the occasion of the centennial celebration of theUniversity of Maine at Portland-Gorham (re-named the Univer-sity of Southern Maine later in the same year), the Maine Legisla-ture issued a joint resolution honoring the work of the university,founded in 1878 as the Western State Normal School in Gor-ham. It proclaimed: Trough the years its name has changedbut its purpose has endured, making it one of the States leadinginstitutions of higher learning;... Now, on the eve of this, thecentennial anniversary of its founding, the university possesseseven greater potential for providing increased service to the citi-zens of the region and the State.8

When the town of Gorham celebrated its 150th anniversary

in 1886, Maine Governor Frederick Robie, a Gorham nativerecalled: Te Normal School building was erected in 1878much to our credit, but much more to our educational advan-tage.9Robie was right to credit the townspeople, for whenthe Maine State Legislature in 1878 chartered the states thirdNormal School in Gorham to train the regions teachers, thetown of Gorham agreed to raise $15,000 for a new building.

In the following year, the former Gorham Female Semi-nary transferred its old Academy building, dormitory, andland to the State for the new Normal School; and the citizensof Gorham again raised more than $27,000 via a special taxand a subscription campaign for a handsome new buildingerected in 1878 and now known as Corthell Hall, home to

USMs noted School of Music.10

Te first term of the West-ern State Normal School commenced on January 29, 1879with eighty-five students enrolled; since that auspicious datethousands of men and women from Maine and beyond havereceived a high quality, affordable education.

Te diagram above illustrates how USM evolved over thecourse of one hundred years from the Western State NormaSchool to the current institution, and illustrates the parallel de-velopment of the universitys two initial campuses at Gorhamand Portland. Te Lewiston-Auburn College (LAC) campuswas established some years later, in 1988, at the behest of it

8 Excerpts from the Joint Resolution in Honor of the University ofMaine at Portland-Gorham on the Occasion of its Centennial Year, TeUniversity of Southern Maine Centennial Catalog, 1978-1979, preface.9 Governor Robie, Address of Welcome, Celebration of the One Hundredand Fiftieth Anniversary of Gorham, Maine, May 26, 1886(Portland: RTurston and Co., 1886), 53.

10 Edward Winslow Hall, A History of Higher Education in Maine,(Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1903), 193.

11 Graphic Representation of USM History, Department of SpecialCollections, Glickman Library, University of Southern Maine.http://usm.maine.edu/library/specialcollections/graphic-representation-usm history. (Retrieved 7/27/2014.)

University of Southern Maine11

(1978)

University of Maine, Portland Gorham

(1970-1978)

University of Maine, Portland(1960-1970, UMS School of Law reconsituted)

Portland University(1945-1960) (1921-1925)

UM College of Law, Bangor(1905-1920)

School of Law, Bangor(1898-1905)

Lewiston-Auburn College(1988)

Gorham State College of the University of Maine(1968-1969)

Gorham State College(1965-1968)

Gorham Normal School(1879-1945)

Gorham State Teachers College(1945-1965)

Western State Normal School(1878-1879)

Gorham Academy(1805-1878)

University of Maine, Portland(1957-1970)

Portland Junior College(1933-1957) (Closed 1943-1946 for WWII)


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own, local community. As USMs centennial course catalogreminds us, the Portland campus began as Portland JuniorCollege, a community college developed by local businessmenduring the Great Depression of the 1930s, when higher edu-cation had to be within commuting distance.12

Te land involved was originally part of the Deering Estate,home to one of Portlands most prominent families when thecity enjoyed its heyday as a shipping port. It then became

the University of Maine-Portland, while the Gorham NormalSchool became the Gorham State eachers College, then Gor-ham State College, and finally, the Gorham State College ofthe University of Maine. In 1970, the University of MaineSystem merged the two campuses into the University of Maineat Portland-Gorham, to become known informally as Po-Go. Following the initially controversial and difficult merger,the Board of rustees in 1978 renamed the new institution theUniversity of Southern Maine.

When we examine the original charters and histories of ourfounding schools and colleges, then, we find various institu-tions, each intimately connected to the community of which

it was part Gorham, Portland, and Lewiston-Auburn con-nections we must once again foster and strengthen. At thesame time, the complex origins and evolution of USM haveyielded a veritable crisis of identity that has bedeviled the in-stitution for four decades, through times of national recessionand budget shortfall and, now, in a time of restructuring andchronic budget crisis. Te question today is: What will USMbecome, better to meet and serve the needs of its students and

Maine people going forward?Behind the founding of each school, college, and campus

that now comprise USM was ambition to create a place ofhigher learning that would address the needs of a growingcommunity, whether it be in training the regions educators,businessmen and women, community leaders, nurses, andlawyers, or, more recently, the regions artists, scientists, mu-sicians, actors, social scientists, social workers, and liberal artsstudents. Te predecessors of this fine institution, in every in-stance, were created at the request of and in partnership withcommunity leaders, to serve the growing needs of SouthernMaine. It is to these founding principles and partnerships towhich we must now return to advance the prosperity of the regionand the success of the university in the 21st century.12 Te University of Southern Maine Centennial Catalog, 1978-1979, 3


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In fall 2013, amid a perfect storm of changing demograph-ics, diminished state appropriations, and unprecedentedcompetition in the marketplace for higher education, USM

undertook a facilitated Direction Package process to assessits future identity, needs, and resource allocations. From thisprocess emerged a widespread consensus, internal and exter-nal, that USM would best build its future upon its historicstrengths and assets, by joining the national movement ofmetropolitan universities endeavoring to strengthen andtransform their communities through engaged teaching andlearning and mutually beneficial partnerships.

o this end, the Metropolitan University Steering Group(MUSG) was established in June 2014 to advance the met-ropolitan university idea at USM, charged by then-PresidentTeo Kalikow and Chancellor James Page to recommend a

strategy and implementation plan that would make the Met-ropolitan University concept the strategic focus of USM goingforward.13During the months of June, July, and August 2014,members of the MUSG conducted a series of Outreach Fo-rums across the university, one with each of its four colleges,on each of its three campuses, and with its Board of Visitors.Te purpose of these forums was to share ideas, hopes, andconcerns about how USM will distinguish itself as MainesMetropolitan University; and to elicit suggested performancemeasures and benchmarks to assess its success five years hence.Te meetings were attended by in excess of 250 faculty, staff,students, and community stakeholders.

At the same time, members of the MUSG conducted re-search by telephone, Polycom, and in several instances fol-low-up site visits to assess best practices at ten nationalleaders in the MU movement: Northern Kentucky University,Rutgers University at Camden, Purdue University at India-napolis, Portland State University, Syracuse University, UMa-ss/Boston and Lowell, University of Michigan at Dearborn,University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, and Utah Valley Uni-versity. Leaders at each institution have been most graciousand forthcoming in sharing the strengths and weaknesses, thesuccesses and failures of their MU efforts, so we might learnfrom their experience.14

From this best-practice research we have learned that: Tere exists a variety of successful models for the engaged

university, each adapted over time in its own, particular

way to its unique capabilities and circumstance; USM, as it seeks to become Maines Metropolitan Uni

versity, is at the very beginning of an organizationalearning process for which there is no fixed formula, thais experimental and iterative in nature, where setbacks aswell as successes are to be expected; and

If we preach and expect transformational learning andintellectual risk-taking from our students, we must eachexpect it of ourselves and model this behavior for them.

A careful reading of the literature on metropolitan univer

sities15shows them to share a systematic and abiding commit-ment to engagedteaching, learning, scholarship, creation, andservice that is characterized by:

MUSG Process and Findings

The Northern Kentucky M.U.

N

KU, located across the Ohio River from Cincinnat-

ti, serves a region with an aging population, a lowpercentage of college-educated residents, a low highschoolgraduation rate, and a local dependence on agriculture.Since 1998 it has developed an extensive communityengagement network covering a diverse range of topicsacross traditional academic disciplines in programs gearedto strengthen college preparation and non-profit manage-ment; and in its:

Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship that facili-tates business incubation and provides student teamsto address business development issues;

Center for Environmental Restoration that partnerswith the Army Corps of Engineers in its largest proj-ect, the Northern Kentucky Stream and WetlandRestoration Program; and manages 3300 acres ofpermanently conserved land, 61 miles of streams,and 15 acres of wetlands;

Center for Public History that focuses on support-ing the efforts of museums, municipalities, and theMammoth Cave National Park, with services thatinclude artifact preservation, exhibit construction,and documentaries;

Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement that

focuses on issues related to citizenship and publicstewardship, and hosts events related to democracy,citizenship, and current events; and

Alternative Dispute Resolution Center that providesservices and trainings in effective conflict resolutiontechniques as an alternative to traditional methods.

13 See Background and Charge to the MUSG, Appendix A.

14We are especially grateful to Dr. Barbara Holland for her kindintroduction of the MUSG members to these universities and their MUleaders.

15 See Appendix E, Selected Readings.


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Conviction that, as anchor institutions, they have theskills and the human, intellectual, technological, and so-cial resources to engage in the critical challenges facingtheir communities, and to build community capacity;

Teir critical alignment of mission, leadership, brandingand marketing, budgetary support, infrastructure devel-opment, faculty and staff development, recognitions andrewards, and strategic plans that are foundation indica-

tors of the MUs commitment to community engagement; Engagement that is not simply transactional, based on

considerations of exchange or one-sided benefits, butis purposefully organized toward the goals of buildinglong-term relationships of mutual respect, trust, andbenefit with its partners, and of its being transformativefor allparties involved; and

New understanding, new skills, and a new way of under-standing both the university and the community that al-lows authentic and mutually beneficial university-com-munity partnerships to develop and flourish.

But were already doing this is a recurring theme we heardat the Outreach Forums. One after another, current examplesof successful community-based learning and public scholarshipwere cited, frequently followed by, Were just not doing a goodenough job of telling our story. Clearly, one of USMs existingresources is the core group of faculty and staff who have discov-ered the educational value of MU best practices and are con-sistently engaged in them, even though they most often do sowithout significant, if any institutional support or recognition.16

From our best-practices research we have learned that, forgreatest effect, the MU idea must be systematically integrated

and aligned throughout the institution; that USM must: Adopt policies to make engaged teaching and learningopportunities available throughout the university;

Remove institutional barriers and impediments to these; Provide robust incentives and support, and recognize and

reward excellence; and Regularly and consistently measure performance and

progress toward the vision.

In particular, we have learned that systematiccommunityengagement calls for each of the following:

Senior leadership for the effort with university-widereach;

Faculty and staff capacity-building for engaged teachingand research;

Alignment of tenure and promotion standards; Curricular reform and re-development; Related student co-curricular opportunities; Resources and structures for regionally-relevant research; Resources and structures for effective and productive

outreach; A development strategy (with staffing) that addresses

the regional economy; College access and pipeline programs; Platform partnerships to support the focus areas of en-

gagement; and Consistent messaging of the centrality of engagement

and delivery on its promise.18

But we already do this!

The common comment we hear that we alreadydo this is misguided. We dont need to just tell

our story better, we need a better story. We needto evolve to be outward-facing, deeply reorientedtoward developing student knowledge, skills, and

full human potential through active and reflectivelearning; serving the community; and thinking ofthat community as genuine partners in teaching,research, and service, not as recipient-objects. Tiswould bring about a re-vision of the structure,function, role, and expectations of the university.Tis deep reorganization of our idea of the universi-ty is not going to happen overnight; indeed, it maynever be fully realized! But wouldnt it be interestingand helpful to keep this idea in mind as our guidinglight, to hold our current notions lightly, so thatwe dont let our traditional assumptions dictate the

limits of our imaginations now?17

Teo Kalikow, former USM President

16 See Appendix C, Selected Engagements and Partnerships.17 Personal communication, November 20, 2014.

18We are grateful to Wendell Pritchett, former Chancellor of Rutgers/

Camden and Andrew Seligsohn, former Vice Chancellor and nowPresident of the Campus Compact, for sharing this important insight

with us.


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Forging a New Identity/December 2014 1

As a result of this outreach and research effort, the MUSGstrongly embraces and here recommends the followingvision for USM, to be achieved five years hence:

USM is an integral and indispensable partner to thecommunities it serves, and takes pride in the energeticsupport of its many, engaged partners. Engaged teaching,learning, scholarship, creation, and service thrive in aseamless organizational structure that ensures an inte-grated and fully aligned student pathway from recruit-ment to graduation. We are an accessible and affordablesource of transformative higher education for our students, abirthplace for first and new careers, an incubator for appliedresearch and economic development, and a training groundfor public service. We are Maines Metropolitan University.

o realize this vision, we recommend that the immediategoals of Maines Metropolitan University effort be for USM to:

Re-invent itself as a community-based institution, onethat invites and welcomes the community onto campusand extends its classrooms, scholarship, and related ac-tivities into the community through mutually beneficialpartnerships;

Achieve Elective Carnegie Classification as an EngagedUniversity in the year 2020; and

In the process, become known throughout the regionand the Northeast as a leader in merging educationalexcellence and innovation with the opportunity to testones learning against critical thinking and problem-solv-ing challenges outside the classroom.

In the present strategic setting, we believe these goals maybe advanced only under two conditions, namely that:

Tey be framed as part of a broad growth strategy foUSM, rather than as a zero-sum proposition; and

Tey be embraced as part of a larger cultural shift withinUSM to a systematic approach to the universitys futuredevelopment, as outlined above.

MUSG Vision, Goals, and Recommendations

The MU Elevator Speech

M

aines Metropolitan University seeks to devel-

op student knowledge, skills, and potential,and, at the same time, to build the future of theregion economically, socially, ecologically, andcivically through mutually beneficial relationshipswith community partners.

The School of Music engages Maine youth in instrumental ensembles.


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o these ends, we offer the following recommendations:

Administrative Recommendations:

1. Tat the President understand his/her important rolein encouraging engagement in the world around us bypromoting and encouraging faculty to pursue communi-ty-engaged teaching, learning, scholarship, creation, andservice; and, in particular, will:

Establish an effective and sustainable growth model forthe university, with the understanding that the metro-politan university initiative is the most significant, if butone part of this strategy;

Recruit the MU senior leadership officer on a prioritybasis, with responsibility for both MU implementationand USM strategic planning;19, 20

Lead the overall MU effort with internal and externalconstituencies and interests, and hold the Provost, seniorMU leadership officer, and Deans responsible for its de-velopment and successful implementation; 21

Determine and publicize the initial focus areas and plat-form partnerships for USM as Maines MetropolitanUniversity (e.g., community and economic develop-ment, education, public health, and environmental sus-tainability);

Initiate a USM-wide strategic planning process withcommunity engagement as its focus, and charge a draft-ing committee to reformulate USMs mission statementto incorporate the MU engagement focus; and

Ensure that the MU mission is addressed effectivelythrough energetic collaboration among faculty, staff, andstudents.

2. Tat the Provost recognize that s/he, as much as anyUSM administrator, will set the tone for where community

engagement fits as an institutional priority for faculty andhow it will be rewarded; and, in particular, will:

Engage the faculty and all the universitys scholarly life inthe MU mission;

Oversee the integration of engagement opportunities forall USM students into the curriculum;

Facilitate the review and revision of all MU-related ac-ademic policies, including issuing guidelines for the

inclusion of community engagement in tenure andpromotion standards as core faculty work and one im-portant way to contribute to the universitys mission andscholarship in a field; 22

Replace the current, exclusively credit-hour based evalu-ation of programs and departments with a portfolio ap-proach that will give expression to engaged teaching andlearning; and transform USM to a more student-cen-tered, interdisciplinary, and fiscally sustainable metro-politan university 23;

ask a faculty leadership group to develop (1) needed

The UMass/Boston MU

UM/Boston was founded fifty years ago to serve theBoston areas demand for access to public higher ed-

ucation that was not being met by the flagship campusin Amherst. oday it has grown into a major urban uni-versity; and is a Carnegie-classified Engaged Universitythat enjoys almost a thousand partnership programs inthe broad topical areas of environmental sustainability(11%), public health (17%), education (23%), andcommunity and economic development (49%). Fullythree-fifths of its academic departments today collabo-rate with a community partner to develop teaching andscholarly product with community benefits. Includedamong these many engagements are:

Te Small Business Development Center that, in2013, facilitated nine new business starts and thir-teen transactions involving $2.7 million in work-ing capital, as well as advisory services to 470 cli-ents;

Multi-disciplinary research into Working Condi-tions of Brazilian Housecleaners in Massachu-setts that resulted in the Massachusetts DomesticWorkers Bill of Rights; and

Te Archeology departments alliance with theEastern Pequot tribe to establish a field school thatdocuments artifacts from the 330-year history ofthe reservation.

In the past year, more than 80% of UM/Bostons12,500 students took part in 780 community-engagedclasses, and fully three-fifths of all grant revenues toUM/Boston was connected to community-engaged

programs and initiatives.

19 Tis combination of responsibilities proved especially important tothe launch of the successful metropolitan university initiative at RutgersUniversity-Camden.

20Note: MUSG Member Sanford disagrees with the recommendation thata senior MU leadership position be created, taking instead the positionthat the MU approach should be inculcated throughout and incorporated

within the existing leadership structure; and that implementationfacilitators be appointed at a lower level, in support of the faculty for each

of the three USM campuses.21 See Appendix C, Presidential Search Statement prepared by the MUSGin accordance with its charge.

22 Te Portland State University and University of North Carolina/Greensboro are regarded as models for their treatment of scholarshipof engagement in their guidelines. Prof. KerryAnne OMeara of theUniversity of Maryland is a scholar who studies the issue; see her Teenure System Is Broken: Heres How o Fix It, Slate, January 16, 2014(from Inside Higher Ed, January 13, 2014).

23 See Provost Joseph McDonnells letter of October 6, 2014, to the USMcommunity, pp. 3 and 9, and its Criteria attachment posted by the USMFaculty Senate to its Blackboard.


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institutional and departmental learning outcomes forstudent engagement with the community, and (2) aCitizenship and Community Engagement minor orother appropriate engagement vehicle for recording onstudent transcripts; 24

Aggressively facilitate collaboration across colleges anddepartments through joint appointments, curricular in-tegration, etc; and

As faculty vacancies occur, especially over the next fiveyears, re-deploy replacements to meet the strategic require-ments of the MU mission and platform partnerships.

3. Tat the MU senior leadership officer understand that s/he is responsible and accountable across USM to advancethe MU mission, implement its requirements, and achieveCarnegie Elective Classification as an Engaged Universityin 2020; and, in particular, will:

Enjoy a direct reporting line to the President and co-equal relationship with the Provost and line responsibil-ity for both the MU initiative and the USM strategicplan initiated by the President;

Work with the President and Provost to reconceive andintegrate necessary administrative functions in supportof the MU;

After appropriate consultation, recommend focus areasand platform partnerships for initial MU efforts, to bedetermined and promulgated by the President;

Work with USM Advancement and other revenue-pro-ducing offices, including the Office of Sponsored Pro-grams, to identify and secure resources to advance theMU mission;

In concert with the Provost, lead creation and oversightof a newly-established Center for Community Engage-ment and Career Development, a consolidated, one-stopshop for community engagement and career opportuni-ties for students, and related information and access forfaculty, staff, employers, and the external community;

Establish the following annual events at USM: (i) ameeting on best practices for community engagement,(ii) a grant program to stimulate and an awards program

to celebrate community-engaged scholarship, and (iii)professional development opportunities for faculty andsenior administrators to learn about innovative scholar-ship and community engagement;

Organize and lead a multi-stakeholder visioning, advisory, and support team for the purpose of transitioningto Maines Metropolitan University in 2020 (see MUSGbelow); and

Ensure that classified and professional staff are kept advised, informed, and engaged in the MU mission andprocess throughout; and promote greater understandingof the necessary role of professional and classified staff inadvancing the MU agenda.

4. Tat the College Deans understand that each bearsline-responsibility for MU implementation within his/hercollege; and, in particular, will

Work to foster cross-college collaboration; Work together to identify community partners and is

sues to focus on for a sustained period of time; Reconstitute their advisory boards with members who

reflect new and current community partnerships; mem-bership on advisory boards should be term-limited;

Work with USM Advancement and other revenue-generating offices, including the Office of Sponsored Pro-grams, to identify funding opportunities for MU initia-tives; and

Help set criteria for the hiring of new faculty, and support promotion and tenure standards that recognize andare consistent with the MU mission.

5. Tat the MUSG, going forward: Be reduced in size to some 10-12 members appointed bythe President, and continue in existence through 2020as a visioning, advisory, and support group to the MUsenior leadership officer; and

Be comprised of faculty with demonstrated commitment to engaged teaching and learning, members of thereconstituted college advisory boards, and appropriateadministrative and student representation.

Budgetary Recommendations:25

Inasmuch as the UMS Chancellor and Board of rusteeshave designated USM as Maines Metropolitan Universityto be its distinctive identity and role within the System,26theMUSG recommends that they assume responsibility for en-suring that adequate resources for success are made availableduring this critical, five-year transition period, as follows:

6. Create a senior leadership position with responsibilityfor the MU mission and USM strategic planning, withauthority, resources, and accountability to realize the MUmission and effect its implementation:

24 Note: the Maxwell School of Citizenship at Syracuse U. has developeda successful program of double-majors in Citizenship and CivicEngagement, available to all students throughout the university.

25 Note: Te budget figures shown represent best estimates of investmentsneeded, including benefits for personnel. ogether, they add to some$125,000 in one-time expenditures and $925,000 in annual operatingcosts through Carnegie Classification in 2020, in advance of which time

we expect the larger USM growth strategy to cover these through increasedenrollments and revenues. A survey of peer institution spending on MUactivities shows wide variation in per-student expenditures, ranging from$100 to $900 annually. Te annual investment recommended here is wellbelow the median, at approximately $150 per USM student

26 See Leadership Statement and an Invitation to Apply for the Presidencyof the University of Southern Maine, University of Southern Maine,November 14, 2014, p. 1.


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Estimate cost of $150,000 for this position, and recom-mend this be realized by reallocating savings from therecent centralization and assumption ofUSM adminis-trative services by the UMS office: 27

Economic development professional support staff person:recommend this be carried out by the new Director of theCenter for Economic and Business Research (CEBR);

Operating budget to support the engaged teaching and

learning partnership functions within a structure to bedetermined by the President: estimate $150,000/yr; and

A Faculty Liaison designated within each college: esti-mate$50,000/yr. for course releases.

7. In Support of Students: Develop a curriculum that has community-based learn-

ing broadly incorporated into it: estimate $100,000(one-time) for facilitator and faculty time to design andimplement needed changes;

Support for internship and volunteer activities for cred-it: estimate $250,000/yr. for student stipends that mayincorporate federal work study monies; and

Support USMs newly transformed and consolidatedAcademic Advising Centers (one on each campus), to becoordinated closely with the Center for Community En-

gagement and Career Development; recommend coststo be realized through administrative savings.

8. In Support of Faculty and Staff: Faculty development in engaged teaching and learning,

through conferences, networking, workshops, and mate-rials: estimate $100,000/yr; and

Competitive seed funding for MU Initiatives and

Awards, in recognition of both individual faculty anddepartmental MU initiatives: estimate $100,000/yr.

raining and resources made available for staff to besuccessful in carrying out the mission of the MUSG, itslogistics and implementation: estimate $40,000/yr; and

Rewards and recognition for MU initiatives by staff: es-timate $10,000/yr.

9. In Support of Community Investment in USM communications to stakeholders;

better information about what resources the universitymay provide, including a regular report to the region:estimate $50,000/yr; and

A purposeful effort by USM to help identify compellingcommunity needs: estimate $25,000 (one-time) for re-gional assessment.

10. Additional Administrative Functions: A signature web portal and a dedicated webmaster/de-

veloper; recommend cost to be assumed within the larg-er, current USM effort to strengthen its web presence;

rack and publish USM community engagement andoutcomes inventory: estimate $25,000/yr; and

Build the necessary data base to achieve Carnegie Foun-dation Elective Community Engagement Classificationin 2020: recommend that this be carried out by the Of-fice of Academic Assessment at nominal cost, possiblythrough use of Te Community Engagement Collabo-ratory 28recently developed by the University of NorthCarolina/ Greensboro and reetop Commons, LLC.

27 For example, the UMS Human Resources administrative strategy andstructure report of September 2014 anticipates a strategic USM/ HRleader reporting to the USM president. In the new System model, virtuallyall HR functions, even if located at USM, will report directly to theUniversity of Maine System Chief Human Resources Officer. Te USM/HR lead position will no longer have responsibility for directing mostHR functions, and might better be adapted to the MU senior leadership

position. Tis administrative change would reduce the MU annualoperating outlay to $775,000 and the per-capita student cost, to $130. Seehttp://thinkmissionexcellence.maine.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/HR-Admin-Review-Detailed-Pres-9-14-NEW.pdf, page 12.

28 Tis is a new, cloud-based software application for developing acomprehensive description of institutional community engagement andpublic service activities. Te system is now in beta-testing and will beavailable in Spring 2015.


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Tasks and Timeline to Carnegie Classifcation in 2020

TheMUSG

hascarefullyreviewedtheFram

eworkforElectiveCarnegieClassicationasanEngagedUniversityandfound

itsownrecommendationstoalignclose

lywiththeclassication

sta

ndards.ItwillrequireofUSMaconcerte

danddisciplinedefforttomeetthesestandardsbySpring2019,thenextyear

inwhichapplicationsforclassicationw

illbeaccepted.Toachieve

CarnegieClassicationin2020,thetimelinebelow

orsomesimilareffortwillbereq

uired.

Year1

Year2

Year3

Year4

Year5

FillMU

seniorleadershippositionasa

priority

ApplyforE

lectiveCarnegieClassification

Re

constituteMUSGastransitionadvisory

committee

Reviewandrevisesolelycredithour-based

eva

luationofprogramsanddepartments

Cr

eateCenterforCommunityEngagement

andCareerDevelopment

Developnewinstitutionalanddepartmental

learningoutcomesforcurricularengagement

Establishengagementstudenttranscript

Be

ginstrategicplanningprocesswith

communityengagementasfocus

RevisetheUSMm

issionandvision

statementtoalignwithcommunity

eng

agement

Designsignaturewebportalandmarketing

materials

Identifysubstantivefocusareasandplatform

partnerships

Expandprojectsandengagementsbasedon

platformrelationships

Reportonprogresstointernalandexternal

stakeholders

Inventorycurrentcommunityengagement

activities

Institutedatabasefortrackingcommunity

engagementactivities

Assessandreportoncommunityengagement

activitiesandbenchmarkwithpeers

TrainstaffaroundMUidentity

Ap

pointFacultyLiaisonwithineachcollege

Reconstitutecollegeadvisoryboardsto

refl

ectplatformpartnerships

Offerfacultydevelopmentopportunitiesto

createengagementcourses

Identifycompellingcommunityneedsand

generatecommunityinputintoinstitutional

planning

Devisemethodforsystematicassessmentof

com

munityperceptionsofUSMe

ngagement

wit

hcommunity

Ass

esscommunityperceptionsofUSM

eng

agement

Reviewandrevisepromotion,tenureand

post-tenureguidelines

Institutenewpromotion,tenure,andpost-

tenureguidelines

Seekoutgrantandotherfundingsourcesto

supportcommunityengagementinitiatives

Institutegrantprogramtostimulate

communityengagedscholarship

Aw

ardgrantstoenhancecommunity

eng

agedscholarship

Createannualbestpracticescelebration


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Background: wenty years ago, convinced that the nationsstate and land-grant universities faced deep, even historic struc-tural changes in the coming years, the National Association ofState Universities and Land Grant Colleges sought support fromthe Kellogg Foundation to examine the future of public higher

education.In 1999, the Kellogg Commission of distinguished acade-

micians reported that the tried-and-true formula of teaching,research, and service no longer serves adequately as a statementof our mission and objectives. Te growing democratization ofhigher education, the greater capacity of todays students to shapeand guide their own learning, and the burgeoning demands ofthe modern world require us to think, instead, of learning, discov-ery, and engagement....

Our universities need to return to their roots in rural Americawith new energy for todays new problems.... We need a newemphasis on urban revitalization and community renewal

comparable in its own way to our rural development efforts inthe last century.... We need to redouble our efforts to improveand conserve our environment and natural resources....

Among the significant problems facing society today are chal-lenges of creating genuine learning communities, encouraginglifelong learning, finding effective ways to overcome barriersto change, and building greater social and human capital inour communities.... Close partnerships with the surroundingcommunity help demonstrate that higher education is aboutimportant values such as informed citizenship and a sense ofresponsibility. Te newer forms of public scholarship and com-munity-based learning help produce civic-minded graduateswho are as well-prepared to take up the complex problems ofour society as they are to succeed in their careers. 29

At much the same time, a new association of American col-leges and universities was founded by a group of university pres-idents 30who shared a vision of a distinct urban/metropolitanmission for their institutions, the Coalition of Urban and Metro-politan Universities, or CUMU. What these institutions nownumbering nearly one hundred share is a purposeful and sys-tematic commitment to the place in which each resides, an abid-ing engagement and mutually beneficial relationship with theircommunities and their needs.31

In Fall 2013, faced with a perfect storm of changing demo-graphics, diminished state appropriations, and unprecedentedcompetition in the marketplace for higher education, USM un-dertook a Direction Package process to assess its future identi-ty, needs, and resource allocations. From this process in Spring

2014 emerged a widespread consensus, internal and external ,that USM would best build upon its established strengths and as-sets by joining this movement of universities engaged to improvetheir communities through teaching, learning, and productive,mutually respectful and beneficial engagement.

Charge:o this end, the Metropolitan University SteeringGroup is established to advance the metropolitan university ideaat USM. Its goal is to recommend a strategy and implementa-tion plan that will make the Metropolitan University concept thestrategic focus of USM going forward, one that will maximizeits impact within USM and with its community partners andafford competitive advantage to position USM for growth andsuccess serving the metropolitan region and, by extension, theState. One benchmark of this success will be USMs qualifyingin 2020 for the Carnegie Foundations Community EngagementElective Classification.

In particular, the Steering Group will address the followingtasks, without limit:

1. Develop a definition and vision statement that is appro-priate to USM and will inform the job description for theforthcoming presidential search, and provide continuitythrough the presidential transition

2. Identify strategies to increase faculty and student engage-ment and to attract students to USM based on this newvision of community-based learning and engagement;

3. Define appropriate targets and benchmarks for years 1through 5; and assessment measures, including key indica-tors of desired outputs, impacts, and outcomes (ref. Carne-gie Classification for Engaged Campuses);

4. Recommend institutional policies that will advance this ef-fort and maximize its impact, including appropriate incen-tives, rewards, and recognitions for desired behavior andoutcomes;

5. Recommend the necessary and appropriate organization-al/coordinating infrastructure, internal and external, andincluding a standing planning, assessment, and oversightbody;

6. Identify potential foundation partnerships, priority topicareas for focus, and cohorts of faculty and student leaderswho may serve as mentors; and

7. Plan and organize a September USM roll-out convocation,

and an October visit by faculty and staff to the annualCUMU meeting at Syracuse U.

erm: Tis assignment commences effective this date and willcontinue through the Summer and Fall semesters 2014 with afull report due before the years end; interim reports will be regu-lar and timely, and all are to be posted to the USM website. Tistimeline may be extended to fulfill the presidential transition task1, above.

Teo Kalikow, PresidentJune 3, 2014

Appendix A. MU Steering Group Background and Charge

29 Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land-grantUniversities, Returning to Our Roots: Executive Summaries, 1999.

30Including USMs own at the time, President Patricia Plante.

31See Steven Diner,2010 Presidential Address, Metropolitan UniversitiesJournal, July 2010.


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Prepared by the Metropolitan University Steering Group as di-rected by Chancellor James Page and President Teo Kalikow intheir Charge of June 3, 2014; and delivered to the UMS Boardof rustees, UMS Chancellor James Page, and USM PresidentDavid Flanagan on August 15, 2014.

Wanted: A wise, energetic, and experienced person to leada multi-campus public university consolidating its identi-ty as the emergent Maines Metropolitan University.

1. Setting and Strategic Situation.Te University of Southern Maine (USM) is one of sev-

en universities that comprise the University of Maine Sys-tem (UMS), and has been designated by the UMS Board ofrustees as Maines Metropolitan University. It is a public,regional, comprehensive university with campuses in Port-land, Gorham, and Lewiston ME, and some 300 facultywho deliver high-quality, accessible, and affordable educa-tion to 6500 FE students. It is at once committed to theliberal arts, science and technology, professional education,and the practical application of knowledge to compelling is-sues of the day; it supports free and open intellectual inquiryand expression; it treats all individuals with dignity, respect,and fairness; it embraces difference and diversity; it honorsand supports sustainable development, environmental stew-ardship, and community involvement; and it is accessible toall who aspire to high academic standards.

As an anchor institution, USM has long been regarded anecessary, even indispensable partner in the growth and de-velopment of Maines most prosperous region and economicdriver. Its three campuses lie within a region of nationally-rec-ognized cultural, environmental, and economic assets thatdisplays numerous indicators of rapid growth and change. Atthe same time, alongside these outstanding assets lie a varietyof compelling social, economic, and environmental challeng-es that call for a public university determined to be an agentof change and to add value to the regions future.

With roots that trace to the post-Civil War era, the USMof today was effectively established in the late 1960s, a time

of war in the nation and tumult in American higher edu-cation. It came as part of a then-new University of MaineSystem created by the Maine Legislature, in the merger of ateachers college in Gorham and a junior college, a law school,

and an extended University of Maine presence in PortlandLewiston-Auburn College was added a decade later at thebehest of its community.

Te effort to integrate the disparate campus cultures yielded a period of multi-faceted turmoil until the adoption in the

late-70s of the public, regional, comprehensive universityCarnegie classification, in all its vastness of possibility. Teunderlying conflict re-emerged from time to time, howeverespecially in the aftermath of national recessions and statebudget shortfalls in the 80s and 90s; and climaxed in thewake of the Great Recession of 2007-08, the pervasive fiscaeffects of which persist to this day. In July 2014 an interimpresident was installed to oversee needed re-purposing andrestructuring of the university, whose term will end upon thearrival of the new president. For USM to realize the full potential of this re-purposing, the next president will need tosustain its momentum and deliver stable and effective leader-ship over an extended period of years

2. New Direction.In Fall 2013, amid a perfect storm of challenging demo

graphics, declining enrollments, diminished state appropri-ations, and intense competition in the regional marketplacefor higher education, USM undertook a strategic planningprocess to reassess its identity, needs, and resource alloca-tions. From this process in Spring 2014 emerged a strongconsensus, internal and external, that USM would bestbuild its own future and that of regional communities on

its established strengths and assets, by joining the nationamovement of universities committed to transforming theirteaching, learning, and service through engagement and pro-ductive, mutually beneficial partnerships.

A Metropolitan University Steering Group was estab-lished to advance the metropolitan university idea at USMand to recommend a strategy and implementation plan tomake it the strategic focus of USM going forward; to max-imize its impact throughout USM and with its communitypartners; and afford competitive advantage that will positionUSM for growth and success, serving the region and, by ex-tension, the State. One benchmark of this success will be

USMs qualification in 2020 for the Carnegie FoundationsCommunity Engagement Elective Classification, a directcharge of the new president.

3. Priorities and Challenges. Culture of Engagement. Community engagement ha

been a continuing characteristic of USM since its originsin the 1870s, though not always as a matter of policyUSM now aims to honor this past by placing engagedlearning with community partners at the core of its ac-ademic identity; and to align and integrate this com-

Appendix B. USM Presidential Search Statement 32

32Note: In its content, the search statement reflects what the MUSGhas learned from its numerous outreach meetings locally and bestpractice site visits nationally, about what it will require of the newpresident systematically to integrate the metropolitan university (MU)idea into USM and the communities it serves. In form it follows thoseof two recent presidential searches, at Missouri State University, datedOct. 15, 2012, and at Cornell University, dated May 20, 2014.


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mitment fully and systematically across its teaching,learning, creation, research, clinical programs, and alltheir support systems. Consistent with its public mis-sion and stature as an academically distinguished insti-tution, USM will strengthen its engagement with itscampus and regional communities, as well as with itsstate, national and global communities. Tis will beachieved by creating an even stronger and systematic

culture of engagement in USMs living and learningenvironments, the aim of which is to transform itself,its students, its faculty, its staff, and its partnering com-munities; and by aggressively recruiting faculty andstaff who will enhance an academic culture of engagedteaching, learning, creation, and scholarship.

New Business Model. As at many public universities acrossthe nation today, declining enrollments, static state ap-propriations, and an intensely competitive marketplacefor higher education have led to continuing and painfulbudget shortfalls at USM. At the direction of the UMSBoard of rustees, the university is now undergoing de-liberate and significant organizational change reform-ing, restructuring, and re-purposing itself as MainesMetropolitan University to re-focus on student-friend-ly access to their educational and career aspirations, onregional community needs and priorities, and on rev-enue growth. Tis effort to renew purpose and createa supportive and sustainable financial model for USMis now underway, will be several years in the making,and will demand of the new president outstandingchange-leadership skills.

Academic Excellence. USMs commitment to academ-ic excellence abides. It is today the regions pre-eminentapplied research institution and aspires to be even betterand stronger, with undergraduate, graduate, and pro-fessional education programs of outstanding quality. oachieve this, USM must continually enhance its strengthin signature fields and departments that span the arts andhumanities, science and technology, and its professionalschools and programs. Success will depend on USMsability to recruit, retain, and nurture a talented, com-mitted, and diverse faculty, as they will be the drivingforce of the teaching, creation, and research missions; to

sustain its long-standing commitment to affordable edu-cation, so it may grow its exceptional and diverse studentbody; and to continue its commitment to attracting anddeveloping high-quality staff from diverse backgrounds,as these provide irreplaceable support to USMs educa-tional, creative, and research goals.

Innovation in eaching and Learning. ransformations inteaching and learning through new pedagogies and newuses of technology in and beyond the classroom todayreshape all of higher education. USM has participated inthis revolution through the creation and promotion of a

range of distance, online, hybrid, and student-centeredapproaches within the curriculum. Yet the pace of changeis so extraordinary that USM must develop a clear visionand effective strategies to realize the fullest potential ofthese groundbreaking methods. Successful pursuit ofthe promise of these new pedagogies will advance theoutcomes of teaching and learning for students, expandthe reach and visibility of the university, and create new

opportunities within the new USM business model.

4. Key Competencies.In all facets of the position, the president will embody

USMs public service mission and commitment to civic andcommunity engagement; demonstrate visionary change-lead-ership, ethical and cultural competence, and emotional intel-ligence; assure effective communication of USMs missionand vision to internal and external constituencies and part-ners; promote and cultivate private philanthropic and cor-porate support for USM and its mission; apply effective, da-ta-driven techniques to manage its finances in support of themission; and commit to achieving Carnegie Classification asan Engaged University in 2020. In particular, USM seeks:

Institutional Leadership. USMs next president must be avisionary and inspirational leader with the ability to sus-tain and enhance its position as a regional public univer-sity dedicated to creating and disseminating knowledge,and as an indispensable partner in the regions growthand development. He or she must be able to create andmaintain an atmosphere of open and civil discourse; tolisten, and capture the best thinking within and with-

out the university and set its priorities; to make timelyand effective decisions about USMs future; and to com-municate these priorities and decisions effectively to alarge and diverse community, gaining their buy-in andsupport. His or her approach to decision-making will bedata-driven and characterized by openness, fairness, andtransparency, wherever possible.

Academic Leadership.USMs president will have the ca-pacity to create an intellectually rich environment thatwill attract, engage, and inspire an outstanding and di-verse community of scholars, students and faculty, alike.He or she will have a broad interest in and understand-

ing of the academy and its values, including the impor-tance of the arts and humanities in developing effectiveand successful citizens; a knowledge of or affinity forscience and technology and their application through-out modern society; and strong support for innovationin undergraduate and graduate pedagogy, especially fortechnology-enabled innovations in teaching and schol-arship.

Managerial Ability. Te president will have managerialskills and ability to capitalize on the strengths, synergies,and separate identities within USMs distinct and com-


19/22


plex organizational structure, and its physical presencein Portland, Gorham, and Lewiston; on the administra-tive challenges and pedagogical opportunities that existand may be built within the UMS that aspires to greaterconcert and system-behavior among its seven memberuniversities; and on the opportunities for innovationand collaboration with the Maine Community CollegeSystem, a separate but nearby entity. He or she will have

exceptional communications skills; experience in man-aging change within a large, complex, multi-stakeholderorganization; understanding of the relationship betweenphysical space and the goals of the university; and thefinancial skills and acumen to manage USMs complexand emerging business model.

Resource Development. o further USMs mission andachieve its goals in the current strategic setting, thepresident must effectively represent the institution witha range of diverse audiences and constituencies, publicand private; be an effective developer and communica-tor of USMs vision; be a forceful advocate for the valueof USMs teaching, creation, research, and service mis-sions; be actively engaged in identifying and realizing

new sources of revenue, public and private; and workclosely with current and prospective donors to buildphilanthropic support for the university. He or she wilhave demonstrated success as a fundraiser, including theability to lead a capital campaign, expand private andpublic funding levels, and foster entrepreneurial endeav-ors that will generate new sources of revenue for USM.

Political Skill and Global Worldview. Te president mus

especially have the capacity to represent USMs abiding value to Maine society, and the important role USMplays in addressing many of the regions, the states, andthe nations great challenges. He or she will have the abil-ity to work in concert with the UMS and with localstate, and national leaders to advance USMs interestsin areas such as public policymaking, state and federafunding for higher education and research, communityengagement, and other matters related to USMs publicmission. Further, he or she will have a global worldviewand the ability to work with national and internationaleaders to identify and pursue opportunities to increasethe scope and impact of USMs signature programs inteaching, creation, and research.


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Reported here is a small sample of the many faculty/student/com-munity engagements and partnerships ongoing or recently com-pleted at USM. It will only be through enlargement of the num-ber of such reciprocal and mutually beneficial partnerships that

our vision for Maines Metropolitan University will be realized.

College of Science, Technology

& Health (CTH)

Community EngagementsMaine Engineers Weekis an annual event shared between

the Department of Engineering at USM and the College ofEngineering at the University of Maine. Tis year, underthe leadership of USMs David Early and Carlos Luck, over1500 school-age children and their parents participated.

Te Department of Environmental Sciences also held the

annual Maine Regional High School Science Bowl, run byRob Sanford and Bob Kutech. Tis event attracts twentyhighschool teams to attend as part of a national competition.

Community Partnerships

Te School of Nursing is involved in many ongoing part-nerships that are highly beneficial for both USM and thecommunity. For example, the Bayside Neighborhood Part-nership promotes wellness for working poor and homelessindividuals through health screenings, holiday support activ-ities, youth mentoring, medication education, and a yearlyhealth fair.

Te University of Maines Advanced Manufacturing Cen-ter and USMs Manufacturing Application Center workclosely together with the Maine echnology Institute (MI),the Maine Center for Enterprise Development (MCED),and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) tosupport product development, process improvement, busi-ness planning, and technology transfers for individuals, com-panies, and agencies.

College of Management and Human

Service (CMHS)

Community EngagementsTe USM School of Business hosts a local chapter of En-

actus, an international non-profit that mobilizes students tomake a difference in their communities while developing theskills to becomes socially responsible business owners. In thepast two years, over 300 students have done 50 projects to-taling 4,244 service hours. In its eleven years of existence,the USM Enactus team has been a national Quarterfinalisteight times.

Te USM School of Social Work, through its Methodsof Practice course, focuses on the application of social work

intervention models towards organizational assessment,change, and community practice. Students connect with lo-cal and community agencies so that the students may gainvaluable community-building skills and help create positive

change in Greater Portland communities.

Community PartnershipsBased in the USM Muskie School, the Youth and Com-

munity Engagement Initiatives (YCE) helps youth, parents,administrators, families, and community members cometogether to support historically marginalized populations.Te program also provides guidance to the Maine Wabana-ki-State Child Welfare ruth and Reconciliation Commis-sion, which was formed to investigate the forced assimilationof Wabanaki Children.

Te School of Education and Human DevelopmentsMaines Urban eaching and Leadership Laboratory is a newinitiative that works with Portland Public Schools, LewistonPublic Schools, and the Westbrook School Department todevelop customized learning strands for teacher certificationand advanced school leadership preparation in urban schools.

College of Arts, Humanities, and Social

Sciences (CAHS)

Community EngagementsTe Model United Nations Program involves USM stu-

dents with high schools around the State of Maine and NewEngland to prepare and participate in a mock simulationof the United Nations. Tis annual Model United NationsProgram has transformed highschool curricula in Maine byinfusing international perspectives. Last year, over thirtyschools and 500 students were led by USM global educatorsassigned to local high schools for their conference participa-tion.

Te School of Music is highly active with Maine youththrough their choral and instrumental ensembles. Trough avariety of programs like the performing arts summer camp,hundreds of elementary, middle, and high school students

are involved; and the School has essentially transformed theperforming arts in Southern Maine.

Community PartnershipsTe college, in partnership with the Portland Public

Schools, annually organizes and presents the Portland Chil-drens Film Festival. Te event is designed to bring high qual-ity independent and international childrens films to Maine,as well as to provide opportunities for local children to devel-op their own filmmaking talents and interact with artists inthe filmmaking industry.

Appendix C. Selected USM Engagements and Partnerships


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Te Media Studies Program, under the direction of DennisGilbert, requires its graduating seniors to undertake a ServiceLearning Project with local non-profit organizations and toshowcase their projects. Service Learning partners this yearincluded Te Iris Network, Camp Susan Curtis, Winterkids,Casa Inc., Te Portland Childrens Film Festival, CultivatingCommunity, and the Portland High School EnvironmentalScience Club.

Lewiston Auburn College (LAC)

Community EngagementsOne of LACs signature courses is an Applied Social Policy

course in which work revolves around small group of stu-dents who work with a community organization to developa project for positive social change. Students are requiredto produce concrete outputs of benefit to the community, aswell as to summarize their project through a written and oralpresentation.

Bringing it Home is an interdisciplinary civil rights

workshop that involves high school and college students,faculty, and administrators, as well as community members.

Te final half-day event includes a panel discussion of racerelations and civil rights 50 years ago and today- and largeGroup Action Planning sessions to plan constructive actionto combat racism in schools.

Community Partnershipsree Street Youths is an afterschool and summer program

focused on providing a safe and lively place for children ages

5-18 to learn, play, and interact with their community. reeStreet Youth is located in the heart of downtown Lewiston,which is exceptional for its vibrancy and solidarity, as welas its poverty rate. Te program serves 100 to150 childrenevery day, most from African immigrant families.

Sandcastle Clinical and Education al Services (SCES) haslong served as an internship site for LAC students, and aa collaborative partner on innovative projects. For exampleBuilding Castles ogether is a multi-cultural, multi-disci-plinary program that integrates art, culture, and social re-lationships to foster resiliency in children and families, andto strengthen community ties through interactive events andculturally co-created art.


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Appendix D. Selected Readings

Derek Barker, Te Scholarship of Engagement: A ax-onomy of Five Emerging Practices,Journal of higherEducation Outreach and Engagement, 9(2)2004.

Ernest L. Boyer, Scholarship Reconsidered: Priorities of the

Professorate, A Report of the Carnegie Foundation forthe Advancement of eaching, Princeton UniversityPress, 1990.

M.J. Brukhardt, B. Holland et al., Calling the Question:Is Higher Education Ready to Commit to CommunityEngagement?, A Wingspread Statement, University ofWisconsin-Milwaukee, 2004, at www.milwaukeeidea.org

Henry R. Cunningham and Daniel Hall, ransformingand Sustaining Communities Trough Partnerships,Metropolitan Universities Journal25(2) September

2014.Amy Driscoll, Carnegies Community-Engagement

Classification: Intentions and Insights, Change, TeMagazine of Higher Learning40(1) 2008.

Diane M. Doberneck, Chris R. Glass, and John Sch-weitzer, A ypology of Publicly Engaged Scholarship,Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement,14(4) 2010.

Betsy O. Barefoot, Betsy Q. Griffin, and Andrew K. Koch,Enhancing Student Success Trough UndergraduateEducation: A National Survey, Te John N. Gardner

Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education,2012, at http://www.jngi.org/research-publications/NationalSurvey

Chris R. Glass, Diane M. Doberneck, and John H. Sch-weitzer, Unpacking Faculty Engagement: Te ypes ofActivities Faculty Members Report as Publicly EngagedScholarship during Promotion and enure,Journal ofHigher Education Outreach and Engagement, Volume15, Number 1, p. 7, (2011)

C. Jordan, ed., Community-Engaged Scholarship Review,Promotion & enure Package. Peer Review Workgroup,Community-Campus Partnerships for Health, Univer-sity of Washington, 2007, at http://depts.washington.

edu/ccph/healthcollab.htmlM. Ledoux, S. Wilhite, and P. Silver, Civic Engagement and

Service Learning in a Metropolitan University: MultipleApproaches and Perspectives, Nova Science Publishers,Inc., New York, 2011.

Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land-grant Universities, Returning to Our Roots: ExecutiveSummaries, 1999.

Michigan State University, Office of Outreach and En-gagement, Points of Distinction: A Guidebook for Plan-ning and Evaluating Quality Outreach, 2009, at http://

outreach.mus.eduJohn Saltmarsh, John Wooding, and Kat McLellan, Te

Challenges of Rewarding New Forms of Scholarship:Creating Academic Cultures that Support Community-En-gaged Scholarship, New England Resource Center forHigher Education, Boston, May 2014.

Jeannette Seaberry and Joe L. Davis, Te MetropolitanUniversity: History, Mission, and Defining Characteristics,Wiley Online Library, 1997(79) at onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ss.v1997 ; first published online,December 19, 2002.

Nancy B Shulock and Kathi E. Ketchison, Assessing theMetropolitan University Mission,Metropolitan Univer-sities: An International Forum, Spring 2000.

Jon F. Wergin and Jane M. Grassadonia, he MilwaukeeIdea: A Study of ransformative Change, University ofWisconsin-Milwaukee, U. S. Department of Housingand Urban Development, December 2002, at www.uop.org

Documents

Forging a New Identity