This autoethnographic essay represents the authors’ critical reflection on their experiences partnering with Liz Lerman and Dance Exchange (a dance company) artists on a collaborative evaluation of “The Matter of Origins”, a contemporary art and science dance performance. They describe meaningful moments in their collaboration, and reexamine those moments in the broader context of scholarly community engagement. Based on this reflection, the authors identify themes including ethnographic approaches to collaboration, shared systems of meaning, and developmental evaluation to understand the complex experiences that took place at the engagement interface. The essay concludes with suggested reflective questions for scholars to consider in their own community engagement activities.

Doberneck, D. M., Miller, P. K., & Schweitzer, J. (2012). Sometimes there are no notes: An auto ethnographic essay of a collaboration at the engagement interface. Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, 16(3), 57-85. Full Text.