Pre-Conferences

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Emerging Engagement Scholars Workshop (EESW)

Schedule:

Monday, October 6, 2025 | 1:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Tuesday, October 7, 2025 | 7:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Cost: $200

Application deadline extended: June 30, 2025

This intensive professional development program provides advanced doctoral students and early career faculty with background literature, facilitated discussion, mentoring, and presentations designed to increase their knowledge and enhance their practice of community-engaged scholarship. Participation in the Emerging Engagement Scholars Workshop (EESW) is limited, and interested applicants must apply and be accepted to participate in the workshop.

Learn more at the 2025 EESW webpage

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Engagement Academy for University Leaders

Leading Through the Unraveling: Engagement Leadership in an Era of Disruption

Schedule:

Monday, October 6, 2025
8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. | Seminar
4:45 – 6:00 p.m. | Reception

Cost: $240

Across the nation, higher education institutions are experiencing the effects of political and structural upheaval. The defunding of cornerstone agencies, erosion of public trust, cuts in federal research funding, shifts in judicial and legislative norms, and regulatory volatility are complicating and undermining the credibility of our partnerships with communities.

What does this uncertainty mean for university engagement leaders in 2025?

Join us for a one-day seminar specifically designed for higher education leaders who manage community engagement functions as you navigate this turbulent landscape. Together, we’ll explore scenarios shaping our field and examine research-informed leadership practices that offer clarity, resilience, and hope.

This is more than just a seminar; it’s a safe space for learning, dialogue, reflection, and shared strategies. Come ready to think deeply, learn collaboratively, and leave better equipped to lead boldly.

Learn more at the 2025 EA webpage

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Outreach and Engagement Practitioners Network (OEPN)

Back to Basics: Discovering Our Why — cultivating values, strengthening civic engagement, and inspiring action as boundary spanners

Schedule:

Monday, October 6, 2025 | 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. | Optional networking evening event  
Tuesday, October 7, 2025 | 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.  |  Pre-conference workshop

Cost: $125 - Participation fee includes programming materials and meals, including networking event

Join us for the 2025 Outreach and Engagement Professionals Network (OEPN) Pre-Conference, hosted by the Engaged Scholarship Consortium (ESC), and take a journey Back to Basics: Discovering Our Why — cultivating values, strengthening civic engagement, and inspiring action as boundary spanners.

In a time marked by rapid change, widening divides, and shifting trust in public institutions, the role of boundary spanners — those who build bridges across differences and sectors—is more vital than ever. As engagement professionals, scholars, and practitioners, we are called not only to build partnerships and design programs but to root our work in the foundational values of civic learning.

This year’s preconference is an invitation to pause, reflect, and realign your professional practice with the deeper “why” behind community-engaged scholarship and outreach. Together, we’ll explore how reconnecting with core values can strengthen our ability to navigate complexity, foster civic responsibility, and inspire meaningful action for the public good.

Whether you’re a seasoned leader or just beginning your engagement journey, you’ll leave with fresh insights and practical tools to cultivate a values-based approach to your work while connecting with a network of dedicated professionals and scholars.

Now more than ever, as boundary spanners, we must equip ourselves to guide conversations that bridge divides and foster collective action.

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Learn more at the 2025 OEPN webpage

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Information on additional preconference sessions coming soon.