Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many institutions had to rapidly shift from in-person to online learning. The Fusion Course aims to provide critical training and support for faculty as they adapt to online teaching and offers instruction for how to integrate community engagement methodologies into existing curricula to improve the quality of course delivery and foster student engagement. Through this faculty development course, learn how to infuse community-based learning into online courses to give students hands-on, real-world experience that will strengthen learning, create connections to the larger community, and improve student retention rates. Three sessions will be offered this summer: July 13-24 July 28-31 (accelerated one-week session) August 3-14 Questions? Contact Sally at sally@mainecompact.org.

webDemocracy works best when all perspectives are included, but college students face unique barriers to participating in civic life. This panel will present how the James Madison Center for Civic Engagement and Dukes Vote are building the capacity of students as they lead 2020 Census and voter engagement initiatives. Presenters will discuss how students developed and implemented a campus civic engagement plan and what they’ve learned as best practices and strategies for achieving full participation even in a time of global crisis. Nonpartisan campus-wide student-led civic engagement initiatives are central components to lifelong participation in democratic self-governance. The presentation will consist of a panel of JMU students that have first-hand experience building and implementing a campus civic engagement action plan. Participants will be introduced to best practices for conducting census outreach (deadline for response extended to October 31, 2020), and voter education and mobilization, and developing and advocating contingencies during a time of global crisis that prevents in-person social interactions....