Minnesota Campus Compact is a coalition of college and university presidents committed to the civic mission of higher education. Learn more about our members below and contact Jane Turk for more information about joining.
Member Institutions
President Kent Hanson
Anoka-Ramsey Community College is an open-door, comprehensive higher education institution committed to excellence in teaching and learning. Anoka-Ramsey is committed to responding to the educational needs of its changing communities and to providing opportunities for enhancing knowledge, skills, and values in a supportive learning environment.
President Kent Hanson
Anoka Technical College, with a campus in Anoka, MN, has been a leading provider of higher education and training in the North Metro since 1967 offering more than 70+ career programs accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association. A member of the Minnesota State system, the college serves more than 2,800 learners of all ages as they pursue certificates, diplomas and Associate in Applied Science degrees designed to lead immediately to rewarding, in-demand careers.
President Paul Pribbenow
As a new kind of urban, student-centered university, we are educating Auggies as stewards of an inclusive democracy, engaged in their communities and uniquely equipped to navigate the complex issues of our time.
President Faith Hensrud
Bemidji State University (BSU) is beginning an initiative to formalize community and civic engagement. Community and civic engagement currently takes place on campus in a variety of ways and locations (e.g., internships, practicums, individual faculty courses, student organizations, etc.). Yet no systematic organizational structure exists with regard to a unified office/area or infrastructure that centrally identifies, supports, coordinates, or collaborates such efforts. Thus, the goal of this action plan is to create a process by which we can identify what is taking place and establish a unified infrastructure for BSU (to include students, faculty, staff, and administration) and the greater community. At BSU structural change needs to take place prior to creating organized opportunities for cultural and policy change.
BSU has four shared fundamental values for student learning that will guide this action plan:
- Civic engagement and leadership
- International and multicultural understanding
- Belief in the power of the liberal arts
- Environmental stewardship
President Gene Pfeifer
Bethany Lutheran College is a Christian liberal arts college owned and operated by the Evangelical Lutheran Synod and committed to the teachings of the Bible as expressed in the statements of faith known as the Lutheran Confessions.
Bethany Lutheran College provides Christian higher education in a challenging academic environment where personal mentoring guides students to pursue knowledge, truth, and discernment for productive and fulfilling lives.
President Ross Allen
Commitment: Partnership Advisory Committee (PAC)
Residents of the FSU neighborhood, FSU organizational leaders, and members of the Bethel University community have joined hands in a unique partnership of learning. The Partnership Advisory Committee (PAC) serves as a community/agency/university body. The PAC fosters longstanding and intentional relationships with the FSU communities through a partnership based on trust, accountability, and reciprocity. This unique partnership, acting as a bridge between campus and community, is building unity within a diverse society.
The mission of the partnership between stakeholders in the Frogtown and Summit-U Neighborhoods and Bethel University is to build and nurture an intentional, mutually beneficial, long-term relationship with stakeholders in the FSU neighborhoods and Bethel.
President Steve Poskanzer
The College’s aspiration is to prepare students to lead lives of learning that are broadly rewarding, professionally satisfying, and of service to humanity. The Center for Community and Civic Engagement connects the Carleton community to its broader public purpose and contributes to students’ preparation for life after Carleton as civic-minded graduates. We are a hub for:
- Real-world learning that contributes to a more just, thriving, and sustainable community;
- Reciprocal community-campus partnerships that advance shared goals; and
- Civic agency and collaboration in the public sphere that is attentive to equity, power, and positionality.
Interim President Laurie Hamen
Experience & Professional Development empowers students to connect their aspirations with opportunities and translate their liberal arts education to achieve meaningful personal and professional lives. We coach students to explore, do, reflect, and connect.
Interim President Laurie Hamen
Experience & Professional Development empowers students to connect their aspirations with opportunities and translate their liberal arts education to achieve meaningful personal and professional lives. We coach students to explore, do, reflect, and connect.
President Barbara McDonald
The College of St. Scholastica’s commitment to Civic Engagement is expressed in its strategic plan and focuses on: increasing student engagement in Service Learning, Volunteerism, and Experiential Learning Opportunities. In addition, the College will serve as a catalyst for social, economic, and educational advancement in our community and region.
President William Craft
Concordia has been educating students to influence the affairs of the world and since 2004, the theme of our core curriculum, becoming responsibly engaged in the world (BREW), has ensured that a Concordia education imparts upon students the importance of meaningful engagement with local and global communities. This engagement takes the form of service-learning, community-based research and internships, volunteering (individually and with student organizations, athletic teams, music ensembles, and the like), and leadership in social justice efforts on campus and beyond. During these community-based projects our students communicate with and work side-by-side people, groups and organizations within our community to meet social and community needs. Because of these efforts, students experience enhanced learning and development, are better prepared for careers and professional experiences, and are well equipped to be future leaders in their personal, professional, and civic lives. Working collaboratively with partners in our local and global community, we ensure benefits are realized for both our students and the communities they serve.
President Brian Friedrich
The mission of Concordia University, St. Paul, a university of The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod, is to prepare students for thoughtful and informed living, for dedicated service to God and humanity, for enlightened care of God’s creation, all within the context of the Christian Gospel.
President Rebecca Bergman
Gustavus equips students to lead purposeful lives and to act on the great challenges of our time through an innovative liberal arts education of recognized excellence.
- Every action at Gustavus moves students toward discovery of self-their beliefs, values, and relation to the world. We build capacity through experience. Students graduate equipped for life and career.
- Our students discern their vocation, think deeply and critically, and ignite their passions through knowledge and discover. Our students then live on purpose and with purpose. They care.
- Our students are doers. They are aware of and engage with real-world concerns. They seek to understand complex society issues, and they act on them with hope for positive change.
- Students learn boldly, stretching their minds in the classroom and beyond. Through active collaboration with faculty, alumni, and business leaders, their liberal arts education comes alive.
- We set the bar high in everything we do. And the world will notice.
President Fayneese Miller
To connect the pursuit of the common good with growth of the whole person, through compassionate action and courageous reflection,” suggests, service and social justice are equally important to the center. The Wesley Center’s programs are positioned to directly address several of the core values in its mission statement.
President Merrill Irving
To provide excellence in career and technical education for employment and advancement in an ever-changing global environment.
President Michael Berndt
Voter education and engagement must be a yearlong effort at Inver Hills Community College. The IHCC Strategic Plan, vision and values provide guidance through which initiatives may be created. Strategic goal 1.1 is to “Strengthen commitment to high-quality and innovative learning experiences that prepare students for transfer, employment, and lifelong learning.” The leadership team of the Civic Engagement Action Plan and the Student Senate believe that becoming an engaged community member and voter is one of the most beneficial and critical lessons that students can learn while in college. The team will actively seek out additional partnerships to increase this learning both inside and outside of the classroom.
President Suzanne Rivera
Macalester is committed to being a preeminent liberal arts college with an educational program known for its high standards for scholarship and its special emphasis on internationalism, multiculturalism, and service to society.
We believe that civic engagement enhances students’ understanding of issues of public concern, as well as their academic and civic development for a life of public contribution. Service to society is integral to the mission of Macalester College and thus is an institutional priority to educate thoughtful and contributing global citizens.
President Ginny Arthur
Metropolitan State University, a member of the Minnesota State College and University System, will be the premier urban, public, comprehensive system university in the Twin Cities metropolitan area and will provide high-quality, affordable educational programs and services in a student-centered environment.
The faculty, staff and students of Metropolitan State will reflect the area’s rich diversity, build a culturally competent and anti-racist learning community and demonstrate an unwavering commitment to civic engagement.
President Carrie Brimhall
Minnesota State Community and Technical College specializes in affordable and exceptional education, service, and workforce training. We welcome all students and engage them in shaping their futures and their communities.
President Richard Davenport
Minnesota State University, Mankato promotes learning through effective undergraduate and graduate teaching, scholarship, and research in service to the state, the region and the global community.
President Anne Blackhurst
Minnesota State University Moorhead is a caring community promising all students the opportunity to discover their passions, the rigor to develop intellectually and the versatility to shape a changing world.
President Joyce Ester
We have 4 Core Learning Outcomes. One of these is to Demonstrate Local and Global Civic Responsibility. Civic responsibility is the process of becoming informed about social, political, economic, and environmental issues within their historical and contemporary context, then responding to those issues with considered ethical, compassionate, and productive actions. Responsible citizens seek ways to improve conditions for the planet and its people, beyond their own immediate needs.
President Rolando Garcia
The goal of community partnerships is to become a trusted and valued partner in the region and state, integrated into the fabric of the community and regarded as a respected community asset.
President Faith Hensrud
Northwest Technical College engages, supports and prepares students for rewarding careers through innovative programs and hands-on learning.
President Deborah Bushway
Northwestern Health Sciences University prepares the next generation of healthcare professionals to deliver and advance health care.
President James Burns
Enriched by the Lasallian Catholic heritage, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota awakens, nurtures, and empowers learners to ethical lives of service and leadership.
President Annette Parker
According to our Mission Statement, South Central College provides an accessible and inclusive learning environment that cultivates student success and advances regional economic development. Our Values include Learning, Integrity, Equity, Communication, Collaboration, and Innovation and our Strategic priorities include Just 1 More, Regional and Cultural Partnerships and Innovation, Curricular Pathways, and Institutional Effectiveness. Included in our Institutional Core Competencies, which are campus-wide competencies taught, supported, practiced, and assessed through curricular and co-curricular programs, include Communication, Critical and Creative Thinking, Civic Engagement and Social Responsibility, and Cultural Competence.
President Kumara Jayasuriya
Southwest Minnesota State University prepares students to meet the complex challenges of this century as engaged citizens in their local and global communities. Our comprehensive degree programs, taught in the liberal arts tradition, are dedicated to connecting students’ academic and practical professional development experiences in southwestern Minnesota to the wider world.
President Becky Roloff
The Center for Community Work and Learning facilitates meaningful community engagement through course-based work, scholarship, and student employment. Through these, we provide students with opportunities to practice critical and creative thinking, living out St. Kate’s values of social justice and leadership.
Each year we connect more than 100 Twin Cities organizations with students and faculty across departments, disciplines, and degree levels. These mutually beneficial partnerships foster the learning goals of our students, faculty, and staff, in collaboration with the expressed priorities of our community partners.
President Robbyn Wacker
At St. Cloud State University, we recognize that our future success depends upon our ability to engage with our communities in meaningful ways, building an environment of synergistic successes and achievements for community and university. We strive to achieve this goal through the integration of our Strategic Plan, Our Husky Compact, and our Civic Action Plan.
SCSU’s Strategic Plan identifies and expounds upon “Engaged Communities” as one of our three Strategic Priorities. For us, engaged communities must be Place-related; Interactive; Mutually beneficial; Integrated, and sustainable.
Our Husky Compact is a commitment we make to our students and students make to their education that will set them apart and prepare them to be global citizens of the 21st century. When students graduate with an SCSU education, they will: Think Creatively and Critically; Seek and Apply Knowledge; Communicate Effectively; Integrate Existing and Evolving Technologies; Engage as a Member of a Diverse and Multicultural World and Act with Personal Integrity and Civic Responsibility.
Our Civic Action Plan involves building sustained, rich partnerships that are relevant and responsive to community needs. By extending our learning environment through a global network of strategic partners and institutions, we provide our students with local, regional, and international learning experiences and bring the world into the classrooms. Students benefit most from community engagement when they have access to active and applied learning experiences critical to their education—developing their own paths toward becoming engaged, active citizens throughout their lives.
President David Anderson
St. Olaf College challenges students to excel in the liberal arts, examine faith and values, and explore meaningful vocation in an inclusive, globally engaged community nourished by Lutheran tradition.
President Mary Holz-Clause
The University of Minnesota Crookston delivers educational programs that build upon a broad academic foundation and combine theory, practice, and experimentation in a technologically rich environment. We prepare students for career success, advanced study, and engaged citizenship in a diverse world. We integrate teaching and learning, research and scholarly work, and outreach and engagement to serve the public good.
President Michelle Behr
The University of Minnesota, Morris provides a rigorous undergraduate liberal arts education, preparing its students to be global citizens who value and pursue intellectual growth, civic engagement, intercultural competence, and environmental stewardship.
As a public land-grant institution, the University of Minnesota, Morris is a center for education, culture, and research for the region, nation, and world. University of Minnesota, Morris is committed to outstanding teaching, dynamic learning, innovative faculty and student scholarship and creative activity, and public outreach. Our residential academic setting fosters collaboration, diversity, and a deep sense of community.
President Lori Carrell
The University of Minnesota Rochester is the newest campus in the Minnesota system, with an emphasis on innovative education in the health sciences. Information on the University of Minnesota Rochester’s committment to civic engagement can be found in the Vision, Values and Strategic Framework.
The strategic approach of the civic action plan focuses on three goals:
Deepening and expanding our platform partnership with the Mayo Clinic.
Leveraging the expertise of faculty in the scholarship of teaching and learning to deepen and expand service-learning and community-based research opportunities for students.
Developing systems and processes to increase awareness of how our campus is engaged in the community, and assess the impact of that engagement.
President Joan Gabel
The University of Minnesota’s system-wide Office for Public Engagement (OPE) was established in 2006 to further the integration of public engagement into the University’s research and teaching functions. As an academic support unit, OPE works to secure the University’s status as a leading engaged public university of the 21st century.
President Alan Cureton
University of Northwestern – St. Paul exists to provide Christ-centered higher education, equipping students to grow intellectually and spiritually, to serve effectively in their professions, and to give God-honoring leadership in the home, church, community, and world.
President Julie Sullivan
The Center for the Common Good promotes collaborative curricular, co-curricular, and research initiatives that address civic and community challenges. We encourage and support students, staff, and faculty to be transformational partners who work tirelessly for social justice in our local, national and global communities.
We strive to:
- Respect and listen to our partners, collaborators, and communities recognizing that partners bring talent and knowledge that enrich the relationship
- Foster equality and respect differences by living in solidarity and practicing subsidiarity in decision-making
- Act with integrity and transparency in planning and implementation of common good activities
- Do no harm by enacting processes that support and protect vulnerable populations
- Construct sustainable, long-term and mutually beneficial relationships
- Commit to learning and reflection that promotes social action, systematic change, social equity and justice
President Scott Olson
The mission of Winona State University is to enhance the intellectual, social, cultural and economic vitality of the people and communities we serve. We offer undergraduate programs based on the traditions and values of the arts and sciences and an array of graduate and professional programs that are especially responsive to the needs of the Upper Midwest. We prepare our graduates to serve generously, lead responsibly and respond imaginatively and creatively to the challenges of their work, their lives and their communities. A community of learners improving our world