Message from the Vice Provost
Kwesi Brookins, Vice Provost for University Outreach and Engagement
A Season of New Beginnings
As we settle into a new academic year, we’re feeling energized at University Outreach and Engagement (UOE) as we welcome a new leader, participate in a new experience, and mark a new milestone for our community-engaged learning efforts.
We congratulate Kevin Leonard, Ph.D., who became director of MSU’s Native American Institute (NAI), a unit with UOE, on August 1. Named interim director in October 2022, Kevin was tasked with revitalizing NAI and rebuilding relationships with Michigan’s 12 federally recognized Tribes along with Native communities within MSU and throughout the state. Kevin traveled the state for listening sessions with Tribal leaders facilitated by Grassroots Solutions. The priorities and needs that emerged from these conversations are summarized in the newly released Tribal Outreach Project report, which will help guide NAI’s engagement efforts in the years ahead.
I’m also excited about joining the inaugural Spartan Bus Tour! This month, MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz, Ph.D., and a group of MSU faculty and administrators will visit locations throughout the western Lower Peninsula of Michigan. The goal of the tour is to highlight MSU's contributions throughout the state, build community connections, and identify further opportunities for collaboration. I am looking forward to conversations with faculty, academic staff, and past and potential community partners as we travel from Mt. Pleasant to Glen Arbor to Hickory Corners and points between. Whether or not you are joining the tour, please know that we at UOE are always happy to support you in your engagement journey.
And let's not forget our students! The bus tour comes on the heels of a major milestone for MSU’s efforts around community-engaged learning. MSU was named No. 1 in service-learning among public institutions in the 2024 U.S. News and World Report Best College rankings. This is a credit to MSU's Center for Community Engaged Learning, which year after year connects students with community partners for life-changing experiences. In 2023-24 alone, 24,395 students registered for community-engaged learning activities. Additionally, CCEL and the MSU Office of the President honored a record 130 students who logged at least 100 hours of community service during the academic year.
In this issue of the Engaged Scholar E-Newsletter, we feature MSU faculty whose community-engaged scholarship has an impact in their classrooms and labs, the state of Michigan, Africa, and beyond! We hope you enjoy the stories.
Kwesi Brookins,
Vice Provost for University Outreach and Engagement
