MCW earns Community Engagement Classification from Carnegie Foundation

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For Immediate Release: January 9, 2015

MCW earns Community Engagement Classification from Carnegie Foundation

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, which works to develop networks of ideas and institutions to advance teaching and learning, has awarded Community Engagement Classification to the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) in recognition of MCW’s community engagement practices. The Carnegie Foundation Community Engagement Classification recognizes institutions which document alignment among campus mission, culture, leadership, resources and practices that support noteworthy community engagement.

Each institution participates by submitting materials describing the nature and extent of its engagement with the community to reviewers within the Foundation.

“The Carnegie Community Engagement Elective Classification designation for MCW is an honor and a monumental achievement, as it recognizes our innumerable exemplary campus-wide programs and initiatives that are focused on excellence in community engagement and on serving the needs of our communities,” said Syed M. Ahmed, Ph.D., senior associate dean for community engagement.

“Community engagement is one of MCW’s four primary missions as well as a significant aspect of our culture and our community. Receiving this classification is an important milestone as MCW continues the journey of engaging with our community partners. We will seek to build on these accomplishments to accomplish even more to improve the lives of all those we serve,” said John R. Raymond, Sr., M.D., president and CEO of MCW.

Examples of recent MCW community engagement initiatives include a project to improve eye health among Latinos in southeastern Wisconsin, a nationally-funded initiative to prevent childhood obesity in Milwaukee neighborhoods, and the Dryhootch of America – MCW partnership, which serves veterans in southeastern and south central Wisconsin through programs that offer peer support, reorientation for military veterans, and access to mental health services.

In 2015, 240 U.S. colleges and universities were selected for the classification. Among first-time recipients of the classification, 47 are public institutions and 36 are private. In terms of Carnegie’s Basic Classification, 29 are classified as research universities, 28 are master’s colleges and universities, 17 are baccalaureate colleges, three are community colleges, and five institutions have a specialized focus such as arts, medicine, and other health professions.

About the Medical College of Wisconsin

The Medical College of Wisconsin is the state’s only private medical school and health sciences graduate school. Founded in 1893, it is dedicated to leadership and excellence in education, patient care, research and community engagement. More than 1,200 students are enrolled in MCW’s medical school and graduate school programs in Milwaukee. New regional medical education campuses are scheduled to open in Green Bay in 2015, and in Central Wisconsin in 2016, with each recruiting initial classes of 20-25 students. A major national research center, MCW is the largest research institution in the Milwaukee metro area and second largest in Wisconsin. In FY 2013-14, faculty received approximately $154 million in external support for research, teaching, training and related purposes, of which approximately $138 million is for research. This total includes highly competitive research and training awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Annually, MCW faculty direct or collaborate on more than 2,000 research studies, including clinical trials. Additionally, more than 1,350 physicians provide care in virtually every specialty of medicine for more than 425,000 patients annually.

About the Carnegie Foundation

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching is committed to developing networks of ideas, individuals, and institutions to advance teaching and learning. We join together scholars, practitioners, and designers in new ways to solve problems of educational practice. Toward this end, we work to integrate the discipline of improvement science into education with the goal of building the field’s capacity to improve.

About the New England Resource Center for Higher Education

The New England Resource Center for Higher Education is committed to collaborative change processes in higher education to address social justice in a diverse democracy.

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