Abstract
Although discourse related to the salience of community engagement in higher education has proliferated, little has focussed on the process of institutionalisation of community engagement, in South Africa. This paper presents findings from a national study, which focussed on how community engagement can be institutionalised within higher education institutions locally. A qualitative research approach was used to guide the study and in-depth interviews were conducted with members of executive management, members from the directorate and office of community engagement and academics from six universities nationally. Data revealed that there were eight key factors deserving of consideration, in order to institutionalise community engagement within teaching and research and through student involvement, transforming institutional infrastructure and through community partnerships.
Highlights
Kofi Annan, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, said that, “the university must become a primary tool for Africa’s development in the new century
It is within this context that higher education institutions in South Africa must respond to the needs of its local communities, become more socially responsive, but more importantly, join the global scholarly community that has increasingly nurtured community engagement (CE) within its teaching and research initiatives
In the transition towards inclusive democracy in 1994, South African universities endeavoured to undo the historical threads of social justice, by heeding the call made by the Department of Higher Education (DHET, 2014:10) that universities redress past inequalities and “transform the higher education system to serve a new social order,” in a way that redirected its purpose towards society and development
Summary
Kofi Annan, former Secretary-General of the United Nations, said that, “the university must become a primary tool for Africa’s development in the new century. Enhance the analysis of African problems; strengthen domestic institutions; serve as a role model for human rights, and enable African academics to play an active part in the global community of scholars” (Bloom, Canning & Chan, 2006: 2) It is within this context that higher education institutions in South Africa must respond to the needs of its local communities, become more socially responsive, but more importantly, join the global scholarly community that has increasingly nurtured community engagement (CE) within its teaching and research initiatives. Universities began transforming themselves into socially responsive civic institutions by engaging in service learning, community based participatory research, community oriented primary care and community service and outreach (Bhagwan, 2017) It is against this backdrop that the current study sought to understand how community engagement was being strengthened at universities that were flagged as best practice examples of CE and what was needed to further entrench CE within higher education institutions nationally
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