State colleges and universities offer tremendous potential as regional stewards.  But embedding a regional orientation into daily campus life represents a significant challenge for even the most committed institution, especially when existing incentive structures and funding models place engagement and stewardship at the margins.  What?s more, the absence of a supportive public policy environment can hinder campus efforts to build a more systematic focus on regional stewardship.

ARS, the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) and the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS) have collaboratively launched a two-year initiative dedicated to advancing state colleges and universities as regional stewards. Called ?Making Place Matter,? the initiative is designed to provide tools and practical insights to regional and campus leaders as they seek to build and deepen their relationships to create more vital and viable places.  This collaboration builds on the framework established by ARS through its monograph series and leadership academies, the work done by AASCU?s task force on public engagement, and NCHEMS?s work in the realm of public policy assessments and audits.

Making Place Matter has published a monograph and workbook, Tools and Insights for Universities Called to Regional Stewardship, which thoughtfully articulates the external forces driving emerging stewardship imperatives for state colleges and universities, and identifies the expectations that lie ahead.  The monograph outlines seven economic and social forces that demand changing roles for colleges and universities and offers a 21^st Century reformulation of the time-honored teaching-research-service triad.

The workbook, meanwhile, includes a diagnostic audit for institutional, regional, and state stakeholders to identify key relationships, priorities and stumbling blocks.  The audit requires state colleges and universities and their stakeholders to paint a clear picture of what the region looks like, the status of key development and quality of life issues, and options for moving forward.  Case studies are provided for four institutions that pilot-tested the audit over a year-long series of stakeholder meetings: California State University, Fresno; Northern Kentucky University; the University of North Carolina at Pembroke; and the University of Northern Iowa.

This topic will be explored during a session at the ARS National Forum May 4-5 in Chicago .  To register or find out more information about the Forum, visit https://regionalstewardship.org/register4forum.html. 

While there is no single path to regional stewardship, the journey starts with understanding the terrain and plotting a course.  This monograph and workbook are intended to help state colleges and universities and their partners begin the journey.

A PDF of Tools and Insights for Universities Called to Regional Stewardship is available for download.