Engaged Scholar Speaker Series Logo

You are invited to a public colloquium featuring the engaged scholars, Nancy and Timothy Franklin, recipients of the 2007 C. Peter Magrath/W. K. Kellogg Foundation Engagement Award for their work at Virginia Tech's Institute for Advanced Learning and Research.

Engagement Through a Regional Looking Glass

Friday, November 14, 2008
3:00 - 4:15 p.m. | MSU Center for Community and Economic Development
1615 E. Michigan Ave, Lansing, MI 48912

Speakers

  • Nancy Franklin picture
  • Nancy Franklin, Ed.D.
  • Director, Strategic Initiatives for Outreach and Cooperative Extension
  • The Pennsylvania State University

Dr. Franklin provides leadership for strategic outreach initiatives at Penn State, planning regional engagement strategies, developing program and funding opportunities, and integrating communication and program delivery across Outreach and Extension. Previously, she led a large-scale engagement initiative for Virginia Tech to improve the long-term economic and social environment of Virginia's south central Piedmont. She has a background in telecommunications and computing marketing and earned her Ed.D. in higher education management from The University of Pennsylvania.

  • Timothy V. Franklin picture
  • Timothy V. Franklin, Ph.D.
  • Director, Office of Economic and Workforce Development
  • The Pennsylvania State University

Dr. Franklin is responsible for developing Penn State's relationships with government agencies, economic development organizations, other educational institutions, and businesses and industries. He served for nearly seven years as director of University Outreach Programs for Virginia Tech and was founding director of a regional stewarding institution for the revitalization of Southside Virginia's economy. He also served for eight years as Associate Vice President for Government Relations and Planning at Indiana State University. He earned his doctoral degree in educational research and evaluation from Virginia Tech.

Abstract

Imagine if you will.

Life—and former university colleagues—offer you a higher education Peace Corps-like opportunity: Move with your family to an economically struggling region and serve as a university emissary to develop and implement a plan in partnership with local leaders to chart a path toward regional economic renewal and vitality. Your work will provide a basis for the university to reshape its land-grant mission in the context of the 21st century. You will find yourself agreeing to accept this interesting proposition knowing that much uncertainty lies ahead. After six and a half years in the region (and more than a few battle scars), you will better appreciate the depth of the challenge and be able to point to positive economic and social trends emanating from the work you've been involved in.

Nancy and Tim Franklin will share the story of their engagement immersion experience—how they learned to understand the issues, engage university expertise, and shape policy arguments to resource the effort. Now back in mainstream academia and on the back side of dissertation research about distributed regional engagement, the Franklins will offer their thoughts about how universities can take the next step toward effective engagement.

Presentation

Engagement Through a Regional Looking Glass (PDF - 13.2MB)

Video and Audio of the Presentation