Engagement

Engagement

Archaeology provides unique opportunities for community engagement, particularly in relationship to community heritage. Having received education at Kalamazoo College, which considers Social Responsibility to be one of its five dimensions of a K education, and receiving multiple degrees from Michigan State University, a Land Grant institution founded on the principle of community outreach, I consider engagement to be a critical responsibility and obligation of institutions of higher education. I hope to incorporate work with communities through all elements of my research and teaching.

This fall, I received funding from the Office of Outreach and Engagement at MSU to attend the Emergent Engagement Scholars Workshop at the National Outreach Scholarship Conference in Athens, Georgia. This workshop introduced me to the scholarship of engagement, and has helped to challenge the paradigms that have been typical of University outreach and community engagement. I was also able to see where archaeology fits into this larger discussion.

Additionally, I am working towards a graduate certificate in Community Engagement from the Office of Outreach and Engagement at Michigan State University. For this certificate, I am attending a series of workshops, participating in an engagement project, and also compiling an Engagement Portfolio. My project will be through the MSU Campus Archaeology Program, and I will be partnering with the MSU Physical Plant, conducting interviews with the members of their community to aid in the identification of archaeological sites on campus. Reflections for this entire process will be under the category Engagement Certificate, and the Engagement Portfolio will be made available at this site when it is completed.

One element of engagement that I have been instrumental in starting is engagement through digital social media, particularly with archaeological research. I have found that using Facebook, Twitter, Wikis, and WordPress has allowed for a more transparent research methodology, better engagement with the community in multiple levels, and a better avenue to teach about the ways in which archaeology is done, from site identification to excavation to analysis and interpretation.

Outside of my work in archaeology, I also work in Gender Violence Prevention. This began at Kalamazoo College, where I was president of the Men Against Gender Violence Student Organization. Also, I interned at the YWCA Domestic Assault Shelter. At Michigan State University, I have worked in theDepartment of Student Life as a Graduate Professional for the Sexual Assault and Relationship Violence Prevention Program. This work has given me the opportunity to mentor undergraduates, particularly men, on the way our definitions of gender lead to violence and oppression, and how to empower them to take action. This work, I hope, will enable them to become better members of their communities.

Engagement Projects:

Graduate Certificate in Community Engagement Portfolio, under construction.

Digital Social Media and Engagement:

Positions:

  • 2008-present Graduate Administrative Professional, Department of Student Life, Sexual Assault and Relationship Violence Prevention Program
  • 2002-2004 President, Men Against Gender Violence Student Organization, Kalamazoo College
  • 2003 Intern, YWCA Domestic Assault Shelter

Papers, Posters, and Presentations:

Connecting Campus to Archaeology: Using Digital Social Media for Community Outreach and Engagement

View more documents from Terry Brock.