Call for Proposals

 

CALL FOR PROPOSALS IS CLOSED

 

Conference Theme

The 2014 meeting of the Engagement Scholarship Consortium will explore the theme "Engaging for Change: Changing for Engagement".

Sub-themes:

• Why engage?
• How do we engage?
• What impacts are we having?

​Our conference vision statement is available here.

Call for Proposals

Proposals are sought for presentations, posters, and other forms of communication that will inform or advance research on, and the practice of, Engaged Scholarship and Community-University Partnerships through means of research findings, innovative program design and partnership models, proven community/institutional impacts, effective curriculum or service-learning models, collaborative policy development and integration, or successful civic engagement practices. Presenters should indicate ways in which their proposal relates to the conference theme and one or more sub-themes. Proposal submission opens January 24, 2014. The deadline for submissions is March 17, 2014 at 11:59 p.m. Mountain Standard Time (MST).

Proposals are invited for presentations related to one or more of the following topics:

• Reasons for community university engagement
• Ways of engaging
• Building networks and partnerships
• Impacts or outcomes of community university engagement
• How to measure impacts or outcomes of community university engagement
• Critical reflections on engagement
• From theory to practice; from practice to theory
• Changes required to improve engagement
• Changes resulting from community university engagement
• Any other topic clearly related to the theme or one of the sub-themes

Who Should Submit a Proposal?

• University and college faculty and staff involved in the study or practice of engaged scholarship, the scholarship of engagement, the implementation of engagement programs, or service learning
• Community, government, and corporate partners working with colleges and universities
• Engagement professionals
• Undergraduate and graduate students studying the impacts of service learning and community engagement
• Higher education administrators, including student affairs professionals, who foster institutional support for community engagement
• Faculty and staff who engage with communities through scholarship and evidence-based practice.

Presentation Formats

Proposals may be submitted in any of the following formats:

Symposium. A symposium combines two or three presentations grouped around a common sub-theme or closely related topics. If presenters are aware of other presentations that logically fall within the same symposium, please inform the ESC program committee. Otherwise, the program committee will group individual presentations into symposia. Each presentation will be allotted 20 minutes, of which at least 5 minutes should involve active discussion with the audience.

Workshop. Workshops are designed for one or several presenters from the same institution or project team who plan to share information about a particular body of knowledge, evidence-based practice, engaged teaching techniques, assessment or research instrument, or methodology. Active discussion between audience and presenter(s) should take place throughout the session. Workshops will be scheduled for 60 minutes, comprised of 40 minutes of presentation and 20 minutes of questions and answers.

Poster. Posters are best suited for reporting specific results of a research study, or presenting translational, educational, service-learning, clinical, or other programs of engaged scholarship or evidence-based practice. Posters will be grouped according to specific themes and topics and will be displayed continuously during open viewing periods and a formal two-hour reception-style session during the conference. To encourage networking and discussion of the displayed work, at least one author is expected to be present at the poster during the formal session.

Poster Review and Awards: All accepted posters will be mounted on site at the time of the conference. However, if you would like your poster to be reviewed by our ESC panel of judges, and in the running for the top five ESC ’14 Poster Awards of Excellence, please send your digital material for review in advance. This will allow the Poster Award winners to be noted for the duration of the conference. Please create a digital pdf file or HD digital image of your poster and send it by September 25, 2014 to Thomas Barker at ttbarker@ualberta.ca.

Poster Symposium. A poster symposium consists of several poster presentations that are organized around a common theme. Poster symposia will be assembled in one of two ways: 1) A group of presenters from diverse centers/programs/institutions can propose a thematic poster symposium. One of the presenters should act as primary presenter, submit all poster abstracts in one proposal, and serve as session moderator. 2) The ESC program committee will select a moderator for the poster symposium. Poster symposia are scheduled for 60 minutes, comprised of 20 minutes for attendees to view posters and subsequent presentations and discussion of the posters with the audience.

Alternative Forms of Engagement and Knowledge Mobilization. Community university engagement calls forth a variety of ways of building networks, designing and developing projects, conducting research, communicating findings, and mobilizing knowledge. Let us know what works for your communities. Examples might include sharing circles, digital storytelling, cafes, humor, drama, poetry, art, dance, and music. We'll do our best to find a way to showcase your work.

Proposal Submission Requirements (all formats except videos for video showcase described below)

• Presentation title (10-word maximum)
• Presentation subtheme(s) or topics the proposal relates to
• Presentation format
• Abstract for conference program (50-word maximum)
• Presentation description (300 word maximum)
• Presentation technology needs
• Primary presenter contact information
• Contact information for up to five co-presenters

Criteria for Evaluation of Submissions

For the benefit of the committee that will review all submissions, please include in your presentation description (300 word maximum), as applicable:

• Evidence that your work represents or contributes to community-based scholarship/evidence-based practice
• Evidence of reciprocity and mutual benefit from the standpoint of all partners – the university (faculty, staff, or students) and the community partner(s)
• Inclusion of community partner "voices"/perspectives
• New learning, questions, models, practices illustrated by your work
• Evidence that your work has changed your partners/communities/institutions
• Measures used to demonstrate changes in individuals or organizations
• Evidence of strategies for program sustainability
• Implications or "take-away" message for people attending your presentation.

Deadline for proposal submissions was March 17, 2014. You will be notified as to acceptance of your proposal by May 12, 2014. For further information contact: walter.archer@ualberta.ca.