Reaching out to Neighborhoods - Communities and Universities Working Together - Arizona State University, Community Outreach Partnership Center: Final Report, March 1998

This report presents a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Outreach Partnership Center (COPC) grant that enabled Arizona State University (ASU) to form a partnership where ASU applied university research and expertise to some of Phoenix's most difficult urban problems. COPC activities were designed to address needs identified by the community in the areas of economic development, community organizing and planning, and education and work-force development. The text outlines the origins and purpose of COPC, how the COPC team was assembled, and how the foundation for COPC work was laid. It shares details on project implementation, describing the use of expanded community outreach, the application of research, and the publication of research reports and findings. The lessons learned, collaboration and partnership building, and disseminating results are also provided. On balance, the ASU COPC community feedback was positive and affirming. It is suggested that if outreach and applied scholarship are to become integrally woven into the fabric of university practice, institutional endorsement must be explicit. Five appendices provide information on ASU COPC, feedback from community partners, and information on student community service.