Community-Engaged Research and Publications

Community-engaged research engages faculty expertise with the expertise of community stakeholders in order to co-create new knowledge that serves a public good extending beyond the academic purpose of the work. Through a coherent, purposeful sequence of activities, community-engaged scholarship yields artifacts of public and intellectual value, invites peer collaboration and review from a broad group of relevant experts, and is presented in a form that others can use, test, and build upon.

Community-engaged research is published both in disciplinary journals and in journals dedicated to community engagement.The CCE has long-term relationships with many community organizations who are looking for research partners. Moreover, the CCE has Faculty Conference Grants to send UR faculty/staff and their community partners to conferences to learn and share their research. 

For all community-engaged researchers, we encourage you to consult with the Institutional Review Board and complete their training.

For those applying to government grants (NSF, NEH), the Advanced Research Impact in Society provides resources for how to create the most compelling broader impacts programs.

If you have questions about community-engaged research, please email Derek Miller at dmiller4@richmond.edu.

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  • Community-Engaged Research & Creative Activity Grant

    Grant Description

    The Bonner Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) generated terms for community-engaged faculty activity in 2019, involving extensive faculty input. According to these definitions, "[w]hen faculty engage their scholarly and/or other creative expertise with the expertise of community stakeholders in order to co-create new knowledge that serves a public good extending beyond the academic purpose of the work, it is called community-engaged scholarship. Through a coherent, purposeful sequence of activities, community-engaged scholarship yields artifacts of public and intellectual value, invites peer collaboration and review from a broad group of relevant experts, and is presented in a form that others can use, test, and build upon."

    The collaborative methods that are central to community-engaged scholarship and other forms of creative activity, including participatory action research, frequently require time and resources beyond the normal scope of traditional academic research. Recognizing this, the CCE is pleased to offer a small grants program to support the development, production, and dissemination of community-engaged scholarship undertaken by UR faculty in conjunction with community collaborators in the Greater Richmond region. This grant can be used to support collaboration at all stages of a community-engaged research project.
    Potential uses include:

    • serving as a seed grant to solidify partnerships and/or research planning and to form the basis of future grant proposals;
    • augmenting partnership and engagement activities within a current research program, including by compensating community collaborators, funding space or material rental, etc.;
    • supporting the production of scholarly and creative artifacts emerging from the collaboration; these may take a variety of forms depending on the nature and purpose of the project;
    • and supporting the public dissemination of scholarly and creative products in a variety of venues, again depending on the nature and purpose of the project. NOTE: funds for community partner participation in conference presentations is available via the CCE’s Faculty Conference Grants.

    Regardless of the stage of work this grant is supporting, the proposed grant must reflect the definition of community-engaged scholarship above, and must specifically reflect engagement with the expertise of community collaborators. The CCE encourages the use of this grant as supplement to existing funding sources, either internal or external; however, if that is the case, it must be used for a portion of the work not explicitly otherwise funded. Funds must be used within one calendar year of accepting the award. Please email Derek Miller at dmiller4@richmond.edu with any questions.

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