University Outreach and Engagement Information

December 2019

Definitions

Outreach refers to the delivery of programs, services, activities, or expertise to those outside the traditional university community. It typically involves a one-way relationship with Texas Tech faculty, staff, and/or students providing educational, consultancy or other services and the community being the recipient.

• Activities might include non-credit classes, distance education, performances, lectures, public programs and events, K-12 programs, and others.

Engagement involves Texas Tech faculty, staff, and/or students in mutually beneficial relationshipswith communities (individuals or organizations) outside of the university for the purpose of addressing a specific community need or larger societal challenges. The process leverages the academic expertise and resources of the university with the knowledge and experiences of the community partners.

• Activities might include experiential or service learning, applied research, community-based research, needs assessments, program evaluations, clinical services, performances, demonstration projects, and others.

Engaged Scholarship is a form of scholarship that involves collaborative and reciprocal partnerships between Texas Tech faculty, staff, and/or students and communities (individuals or organizations) outside of the university, for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources. It is scholarly work that relates teaching, research, or creative activity to advancing specific community interests or the public good. The process involves a two-way relationship between the university and the community with the goal to co-create and disseminate new knowledge that benefits both the community/public and the university/discipline.

• Resulting scholarship might include peer-reviewed publications, presentations, original plays or performances, films, exhibitions, and other scholarly products.

Areas in DigitalMeasures where Faculty can select Outreach and Engagement activity:

• Fellowships, Scholarships and Awards
• Non-Credit Instruction Taught
• Scheduled Teaching
• Artistic and Professional Performances and Exhibits
• Contracts, Grants, and Sponsored Research
• Intellectual Contributions
• Presentations
• Non-Sponsored Research

Will Have Dropdown Soon:

• Mentor Activities
• Professional Service
• Consulting (Pro Bono)

Key Information concerning the Raiders Engaged Survey and DigitalMeasures

• The reporting period has changed from Academic Year to Calendar Year, meaning that faculty and staff will be asked to report activities conducted between January 1 and December 31.
• Any outreach and engagement information entered in Raiders Engaged or DigitalMeasures by January 20, 2020 will be made available by OPA for CY2019 faculty annual reports.
• Faculty will be able to identify any applicable scholarly activities in the teaching, research, or service sections of DigitalMeasures via check-mark and drop-down menu as relating to "Outreach," "Engagement," or "Engaged Scholarship."
• They have the option now to provide additional information about these activities in a separate "Outreach and Engagement" section of DigitalMeasures instead of in Raiders Engaged. The fields in this section mirror those of Raiders Engaged.
• If faculty prefer to continue reporting their outreach and engagement activities in the Raiders Engaged Survey, they may do so. OPA will transfer any data reported in Raiders Engaged weekly into the "Outreach and Engagement" section of faculty DigitalMeasures accounts.
• Staff will continue to use Raiders Engaged for reporting their outreach and engagement activities.
  
  
  • Note that data will be shared between DigitalMeasures and Raiders Engaged.
  • Both instruments will remain open year-round for entries, except for a short time period between mid-May and early July.
  • Due to the switch in reporting period from academic year to calendar year, the current 2019/20 assessment cycle will encompass activities conducted between September 1, 2018 and December 31, 2019. In coming years, the calendar year reporting period will become fully effective.

If you have questions related to the assessment process, feel free to contact Sam Sumner (sam.sumner@ttu.edu) or Birgit Green (birgit.green@ttu.edu) at University Outreach and Engagement.

For DigitalMeasures questions, please contact Kenny Shatley (kenny.shatley@ttu.edu) at the Office of Planning and Assessment.