Higher education institutions should ensure that community engagement in higher education promotes diversity, equity and inclusion.

Guidelines

Community engagement as a core misson

Community engagement should be considered as a process whereby higher education institutions engage with external community stakeholders to undertake joint activities that can be mutually beneficial. Like social dimension policies, community engagement should be embedded in the core missions of higher education. It should engage with teaching and learning, research, service and knowledge exchange, students and staff and management of higher education institutions. Such engagement provides a holistic basis on which universities can address a broad range of societal needs, including those of vulnerable, disadvantaged and underrepresented groups, while enriching their teaching, research and other core functions.

Community stakeholders

Community stakeholders (e.g. local authorities, cultural organisations, nongovernmental organisations, businesses, citizens) should be able to meaningfully engage with higher education actors through open dialogue. This will enable genuine university-community partnerships, which can effectively address social and democratic challenges.

Indicators

Top-level authorities provide financial support to higher education institutions in developing community engagement activities focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion

Public authorities should provide financial support, such as additional funding through funding agreements or additional earmarked funding, for the development of community engagement activities of higher education institutions that promote diversity, equity and
inclusion.

Existence of local, regional, or national networks that support development of community engagement activities in higher education, particularly those focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Public authorities should support higher education institutions in implementing community engagement activities by initiating and supporting local, regional, or national networks for exchanging good practices and facilitating peer learning and training for students and staff. Public authorities could support networks which provide recognition for community engagement activities in higher education that foster diversity, equity and inclusion.

Existence of a policy framework which enables that community engagement activities of staff employed at higher education institutions contribute to the advancement of their professional careers.

Public authorities should engage with higher education institutions to create a policy framework which will enable that community engagement activities of staff should be recognised as one of the criteria for career progression in higher education and as a part of the designated teaching and research workload.