UCCPS becomes its own college

The University College of Citizenship and Public Service (University College) is beginning a major push to expand its role in the Tufts Community.

Four new staff members will be hired, and the school is in the process of launching several new projects to increase involvement both on the Medford Campus and in the graduate schools.

"The goal from the beginning was not only to emphasize education for active citizenship for undergraduates but to also involve graduate programs and students," Dean of the University College Rob Hollister said.

Though most of this year's activities took place on the Medford Campus, Hollister says they are entering a stage of expansion. They will be extending their support to other Tufts' campuses.

To reflect this, the University College will now report directly to the Provost, making it Tufts' eighth college. The school previously reported to the Dean of Arts & Sciences, Susan Ernst.

Molly Stuzman, Executive Assistant to the Provost, said "the University College's mission is really university-wide, it's not solely in the school of Arts and Sciences. So it makes sense for the college to report to an official who is responsible for all eight schools."

Lincoln-Filene Professor Molly Mead, who has been involved in the University College for several years agreed, "I think its make sense. If we want to be University-wide, we have to report to the provost."

Mead, who was formerly Director of the Omidyar Scholars Program, will now serve as liaison to the faculty in all schools. She will supervise the faculty fellows program, which gives grant money for staff to do research in the areas of active citizenship.

Other projects which Mead will be working on include the creation of a new certificate program in the Psychology Department on Ethics, Law, and Society.

She will also help the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department create a "threaded curriculum," where students take several required courses at a facility in a local town.

"The department has said if we teach these courses in a single community-based setting, we think we can improve the conditions in the community and have the students make new connections," she said.

The new projects have been under development since the change in the University College's status was made in the early in the summer during meetings with administration officials. Hollister will now have a place on the Provost's Council, a body where the head of each school gathers several times a year.

The school will also be guided by a newly created Board of Overseers, which will be lead by Trustee Alan Solomont. Hollister said the new board, which will have approximately thirty members, will include academics, alumni and faculty leaders in civic engagement from around the country.

The Board of Overseers replaces the National Advisory Committee, which Hollister praised as having provided "invaluable support to the college and key external advice about program developments." The Board will continue these responsibilities, but will also be responsible for an annual review and evaluation of the college.

The Board of Overseers will also assist the college in linking with the outside community. Hollister said the new board members, along with new outreach activities will help to create a "network of alumni" for current students to have at their disposal.

The college will be hiring a "Community Engagement Specialist" and an "Alumni Coordinator" to expand its network of off-campus contacts. In addition, the Omidyar Scholars program has helped enforce these partnerships by increasingly having its students complete their community projects at places where the school has made a long-term commitment, including Chinatown and Somerville.

The school will now be referred to in shorthand as the University College. The old abbreviation UCCPS, was changed, as Hollister said, because "we have found a lot of people that find the initials are not informative and confusing."

The University College has been criticized in the past for having too broad of a mission and a limited role on campus.

To counter this image, the college is sponsoring or co-sponsoring several high profile events this semester. A partnership with the political science department has brought former governor of New Hampshire Jeanne Shaheen to co-teach a class entitled "Governing in a Partisan Environment," with Professor Ken Portney.

The school is responsible for the Ex-College class, "Producing TV Programs for Social Change," taught by documnetary filmmaker Roberta Oster Sachs. Registration for the course exceeded available slots, and Sachs will teach the course again in the spring.

In addition, the University College arranged for the Leonard Carmichael Society (LCS) to move downstairs from its headquarters in the Lincoln-Filene Center. The college provides program support to LCS for retreats and training, and Hollister said the partnership between the two organizations is "very important" to the college.

Ultimately, Hollister said he measures success by how the University College contributes to the academic life at the school. The President will convene the second Student Forum on Volunteer Service in the Host Community in February. The main discussion at the first forum was on the dual challenges and rewards of community service at an academic institution. Hollister sees the University College as the embodiment of that goal at Tufts.

"I think there's exciting momentum on the President's part and with faculty and students to elevate both parts of the equation at Tufts. We can raise both the quality and impact of volunteerism and its educational outcome on this campus."