At which campus can I study this program?
Program Description
Administered by the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences in the College of the Liberal Arts, the Intercollege Minor in Civic and Community Engagement (CIVCM minor) is appropriate to undergraduate students seeking to apply domains of knowledge from their majors or General Education programs to issues of consequence beyond the classroom. In the minor students integrate democratic, professional, and creative development. In particular, the minor serves to encourage, recognize, and systematize student participation in public service or problem-based fieldwork and research that:
- is substantial, sustained, and includes structured opportunities for student reflection and critical assessment; and
- is integrated with and supported by traditional, classroom-based coursework.
Specifically, the minor consists of one prescribed course, Foundations of Civic and Community Engagement (CAS 222N or CIVCM 211N or AYFCE 211N), a supervised fieldwork experience, and supporting coursework selected with the advice and consent of a faculty minor adviser. The minor culminates with an approved capstone project, which may be a significant paper, or annotated portfolio, or other demonstration of substantial assessment and integration of the minor experience and the broader issue of application of academic theory and practice in the civic community. Capstones may be composed and delivered for academic audiences or as public scholarship -- or as some combination of the two -- depending on a student's professional and civic goals.
The completion of the minor is reflected by a formal notation of the student's official record at the time of graduation. To enter the program, a student must submit an application at https://civcm.psu.edu/requirements-how-to-apply.
What is Civic and Community Engagement?
The Intercollege Minor in Civic and Community Engagement provides an opportunity for students to extend their education beyond the classroom through engagement in socially meaningful public scholarship in both pre-existing and newly developing community projects. This minor entails situated as well as experiential learning. Students apply, test, analyze and re-formulate academic material in the context of public problems and community settings. Engaging in "learning-by-doing" allows students to communicate across differences, deliberate public problems, fulfill civic responsibilities, gain insight into personal values and world-views, develop civic skills including observation and listening, and further develop career interests and professional goals.
Entrance to Minor
Applicants to the Intercollege Minor in Civic and Community Engagement:
- Must have a minimum overall GPA of 2.0.
- Must present a proposed plan of study during or soon after the application process via https://civcm.psu.edu/requirements-how-to-apply. The plan of study should include student's contact information and GPA and a brief statement of student's learning objectives in connection with the minor. If student has not already done so, student should consult with minor advisor to propose supporting courses, fieldwork courses, and a potential capstone project.
- May apply no more than 9 credits toward the minor that also count toward the major. Students with multiple majors may have some additional flexibility. Past fieldwork experiences and completed courses may be retroactively included in the plan of study but must be approved by the minor adviser.
Program Requirements
| Requirement | Credits |
|---|---|
| Requirements for the Minor | 18 |
Requirements for the Minor
A grade of C or better is required for all courses in the minor, as specified by Senate Policy 59-10. In addition, at least six credits of the minor must be unique from the prescribed courses required by a student's major(s).
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Prescribed Courses | ||
| Prescribed Courses: Require a grade of C or better | ||
| CIVCM 211N | Foundations: Civic and Community Engagement  | 3 |
| Supporting Courses and Related Areas 1 | ||
| Supporting Courses and Related Areas: Require a grade of C or better | ||
| Select 6-9 credits from Program List of public scholarship courses or equivalents chosen in consultation with minor adviser 2 | 6-9 | |
| Select 3-6 credits in related areas in consultation with minor adviser | 3-6 | |
| Select 3 credits of public scholarship capstone work at the 400 level in consultation with minor adviser | 3 | |
- 1
At least 6 credits must be taken at the 400 level.
- 2
At least 3 credits must involve supervised field experience and 3-6 credits must be public issues and democracy courses.
Academic Advising
The objectives of the university's academic advising program are to help advisees identify and achieve their academic goals, to promote their intellectual discovery, and to encourage students to take advantage of both in-and out-of class educational opportunities in order that they become self-directed learners and decision makers.
Both advisers and advisees share responsibility for making the advising relationship succeed. By encouraging their advisees to become engaged in their education, to meet their educational goals, and to develop the habit of learning, advisers assume a significant educational role. The advisee's unit of enrollment will provide each advisee with a primary academic adviser, the information needed to plan the chosen program of study, and referrals to other specialized resources.
READ SENATE POLICY 32-00: ADVISING POLICY
University Park
Liberal Arts Academic Advising
814-865-2545
Use the Liberal Arts Meet the Academic Advisers web page to see the contact information for the specific adviser(s) of this program
Abington
Gary Calore
Associate Professor of Philosophy
1600 Woodland Road
Abington, PA 19001
215-881-7591
gsc1@psu.edu
Beaver
Michelle Kurtyka
Assistant Teaching Professor, Kinesiology
100 University Drive
Monaca, PA 15061
724-773-3824
mck15@psu.edu
Berks
Jill Burk
Program Coordinator, Assistant Professor
Franco 148
Reading, PA 19610
610-396-6094
BKCivicCommEng@psu.edu
Brandywine
Lynn Hartle
Professor of Education
25 Yearsley Mill Road
Media, PA 19063
610-892-1492
lch1@psu.edu
Erie
David Kahl Jr., Ph.D.
Program Chair and Professor of Communication
44 Kochel Center
Erie, PA 16563
814-898-6207
dhk10@psu.edu
Greater Allegheny
Advising Office
Academic Affairs
101 Frable Building
4000 University Drive
McKeesport, PA 15132
412-675-9140
GA-Academics@lists.psu.edu
Mont Alto
Jacqueline Schwab
Associate Professor of Human Development and Family Studies
11 Bookstore Building
Mont Alto, PA 17237
717-749-6034
sen@psu.edu
Schuylkill
Stephen Roman
Social Science Division
200 University Drive
Schuylkill Haven, PA 17972
570-385-6000
spr19@psu.edu
Contact
University Park
DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION ARTS AND SCIENCES
234 Sparks Building
University Park, PA 16802
814-865-3461
rhosa@psu.edu
https://cas.la.psu.edu/undergraduate/minors/
https://civcm.psu.edu/faculty/
Abington
DIVISION OF ARTS AND HUMANITIES
1600 Woodland Road
Abington, PA 19001
215-881-7593
fbb10@psu.edu
Beaver
100 University Drive
Monaca, PA 15061
724-773-3824
mck15@psu.edu
https://beaver.psu.edu/academics
Berks
DIVISION OF HUMANITIES, ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
Franco Building
Reading, PA 19610
610-396-6094
BKCivicCommEng@psu.edu
Brandywine
ACADEMIC AFFAIRS
25 Yearsley Mill Road
Media, PA 19063
610-892-1492
lch1@psu.edu
https://www.brandywine.psu.edu/academics/minors/civic-and-community-engagement
Erie
SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
170 Irvin Kochel Center
4951 College Drive
Erie, PA 16563
814-898-6108
HSSOffice@psu.edu
https://behrend.psu.edu/school-of-humanities-social-sciences
Greater Allegheny
101 Frable Building
4000 University Drive
McKeesport, PA 15132
412-675-9140
GA-Academics@lists.psu.edu
Mont Alto
11 Bookstore Building
Mont Alto, PA 17237
717-749-6034
sen@psu.edu
https://montalto.psu.edu/directory/civic-and-community-engagement
Schuylkill
ACADEMIC AFFAIRS
200 University Drive
Schuylkill Haven, PA 17972
570-385-6000
spr19@psu.edu