Carnegie Foundation recognizes Berry for community engagement

♦ The college is one of 119 in the country to get the classification.

The Carnegie Foundation designated Berry College as one of the 119 U.S. colleges and universities to receive the Carnegie Community Engagement Classification.

The elective designation indicates an institutional commitment to community engagement.

“Making a positive difference in our community has been central to the Berry College mission since our founding,” said Berry College Provost Mary Boyd. “We see this national recognition by the Carnegie Foundation as a celebration of the breadth and depth of community engagement at Berry and a springboard for continuing this important work with our community partners for years to come.”

The classification is awarded following a process of self-study by each institution, which is then assessed by a national review committee led by the Swearer Center for Public Engagement at Brown University, the administrative and research home for the Carnegie Community Engagement Classification.

“These newly-classified and reclassified institutions are doing exceptional work to forward their public purpose in and through community engagement that enriches teaching and research while also benefiting the broader community,” noted Mathew Johnson, executive director of the Swearer Center.

Berry was reclassified as a Community Engaged institution. It was first granted the classification in 2010. The Carnegie Community Engagement Classification has been the leading framework for institutional assessment and recognition of community engagement in U.S. higher education for the past 14 years.