Campus Connection

UW-La Crosse is one of 20 schools nationwide participating in a two-year study to measure "civic health" on campus and in the wider La Crosse community. UW-L applied to be part of the national study geared at measuring and improving civic health through the American Association of State Colleges and Universities under Interim-Provost Betsy Morgan and is the only Wisconsin school to participate. Civic health is another way of saying civic engagement, which can be measured by activities such as voting, volunteering in the community or even eating dinner with neighbors, says Jo Arney, a UW-L political science professor who is leading the AASCU study in La Crosse. “I believe that we are a very civically engaged campus,” says Arney. “We hear about how 20 year olds are apathetic, but I don’t think our students are apathetic. I think this is an opportunity to put UW-L in the spotlight.” The first year of the study is devoted to understanding civic health on campus. The second year will open the study to the wider La Crosse community. First, campuses will devise measures and metrics for assessing civic health on campus and in the community. After conducting the assessment, the hope is that campuses will identify a measure of civic health for improvement and devise a program to respond, according to the AASCU website. Arney says the first-year evaluation of UW-L campus civic engagement will ultimately be available in a report — likely by the end of the academic year. So far 65 UW-L faculty have agreed to be interviewed for the project. Arney, other faculty in the Political Science and Public Administration Department and UW-L student researchers plan to approach all 200 UW-L student organizations as well as many campus departments. Seniors in the political science and public administration major are assisting with the research as part of a capstone project. To measure La Crosse community civic engagement, Arney has recruited various community partners, including area legislators, representatives from local media, city government employees and others. The end goal is to provide insights into and strategies for measuring civic health both on campus and off campus. Schools participating in the AASCU study: Buffalo State College (SUNY) California State University, Chico California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Monterey Bay Central Michigan University College at Brockport (SUNY) Dalton State College Indiana University Northwest Macon State College Metropolitan State College of Denver Middle Tennessee State University Missouri Southern State University Missouri State University Northeastern Illinois University Texas A&M University - Commerce University of Alaska Anchorage University of Arkansas - Fort Smith University of Central Oklahoma University of Missouri - St. Louis University of North Carolina at Greensboro University of Wisconsin - La Crosse Western Kentucky University Westfield State University Winona State University Lone Star College - Kingwood