Frank A. Boyd, Ph.D.
Frank Boyd is Vice President of the Higher Education Practice at McAllister & Quinn. Frank brings 26 years of experience in higher education as a faculty member and academic administrator.
In early January, a large group of college and university presidents will be gathering in San Antonio for the Council of Independent College’s (CIC) President’s Institute. One of the topics to which presidents return every year in their annual meeting is the management of town-gown relations. As part of that discussion, they’ll cover what might be called the compulsory aspects of the topic: students in rental housing, the expanding (or contracting) footprint of campus, and the construction projects that might affect the surrounding community. But town-gown relations have expanded far beyond these longstanding areas of shared concern. Never has the relationship between campus constituencies and local communities been as complicated and as essential as it is now.
How do successful presidents and other leaders effectively manage these relationships? It can be tricky. In his study of presidential leadership, Francis Lawrence (former president of Rutgers University), quotes Sue Coleman, former president of the University of Iowa and University of Michigan thusly:
We don’t always agree because sometimes we have differing needs and differing expectations… The university is dependent on having a nice city. The town is dependent on us to draw people here.
Town-gown relationships are always multifaceted and can be complicated, given that campus leaders must contend with very complex set of connections with their surrounding communities. In recent years, highly visible town-gown issues have emerged during periods of significant social and political tumult, such as the Black Lives Matter protests and more recent clashes related to the conflict in the Middle East. However, these have more to do with crisis management than ongoing relations between campus and community.
What about the more prosaic, day-to-day relationships that require more attention from college and university presidents? I briefly discuss one of them – experiential education – as an example of how broad changes in higher education can affect how schools are connected to their local community. Almost all schools now emphasize “high impact practices” as a key part of their students’ experience, and engagement has become more important with community partners through internships, research, and experiential learning. As a result, presidents have yet another dimension in town-gown relations to manage.
Bridging Campus and Community: The Power of Experiential Learning
Experiential learning is ubiquitous in higher education. Even liberal arts institutions tout how their students are “engaged learners” who participate in “applied research,” or similar activities that convey connection between classroom and community.
Prospective students and their parents have an ever-increasing demand for these programs, and institutions from community colleges to very highly selective universities are responding. These opportunities can be wide-ranging, but usually they include co-op work placements, internships, job shadowing, volunteering, service learning, etc. A large percentage of these opportunities are in the town, city, or village surrounding campus.
On campus, curricula have been revised to integrate these activities as part of the students’ major or minor. In 2024, 60% of college graduates participated in an internship at some time during their college career. At elite colleges the percentages are even higher; for example, at the University of Pennsylvania, 90% percent of students take advantage of opportunities that lie outside the classroom, lab, or studio. Offices of “experiential” or “integrative” learning manage the complex task of connecting student interests with willing community partners. All of this activity proceeds relatively smoothly as long as the president and other institutional leaders are attentive to the overall relationship between school and town.
Small communities – especially those in the non-profit community – can feel overwhelmed by compulsory engagement of students in the community. At worst, these programs are designed to achieve outcomes for students with little regard for the needs of or impact on the community. However, with appropriate institutional support and sustained engagement by the president and other institutional leaders, communities and institutions of higher education can both benefit.
An oft-cited example is the experience of Wagner University, who under the leadership of Richard Guarasci implemented in 1998 the Wagner Plan for the Practical Liberal Arts. As chronicled in his book, Neighborhood Democracy: Building Anchor Partnerships Between Colleges and Their Communities, the Wagner Plan requires that all students complete a senior written project and presentation that integrates their coursework with the “practice of the discipline as a profession.” Later, as president of Wagner University, Guarasci expanded the curricular program to a broader collaborative relationship with the Staten Island community of Port Richmond, where Wagner is located. The Port Richmond Project was launched in 2009 as a collaborative effort to address town-gown issues that affected the entire community, including Wagner’s students, faculty, and staff.
Another marquee program was unveiled in 2017 at Agnes Scott College under the leadership of President Elizabeth Kiss. At Agnes Scott, all sophomores have a week-long experience with a wide variety of businesses and non-profit organizations. The Sophomore Class Atlanta Leadership Experience (SCALE) provides an intensive week-long internship that aligns with the students’ plans for careers and post-graduate study. SCALE is just one component of the sweeping revision of the student experience at Agnes Scott, the SUMMIT program. Students can replicate these intensive experiences as Applied Career Experiences (ACE) during their junior and senior years. Maintaining these programs places a premium on building and maintaining relationships with private and non-profit firms across the Atlanta metro area. After Elizabeth Kiss’ departure, President Leocadia Zak has further strengthened Agnes Scott’s connection to Atlanta for the mutual benefit of the college and community partners.
How to strengthen town-gown relations?
Put simply, the notion of campuses as separate from the communities around them seems profoundly outdated, especially when cast against the many ways that today’s institutions of higher education must partner with local government officials. There is a growing body of qualitative research on presidential leadership in town-gown relations. For instance, The New American College Town (2019) chronicles the experiences of a small number of schools and the emergent issues faced by today’s presidents. There is now even an association, the International Town & Gown Association, that formed in 2008 to bring together community leaders and college/university officials to work on issues of common concern.
For many schools, strengthening town-gown relations can remain a goal without an actionable plan, not due to a lack of vision or because presidents don’t recognize its importance, but instead due to a lack of resources. The town-gown relations that undergird the Wagner Plan were built over a 20-year period by President Guarasci; whereas, President Kiss built the SUMMIT program more quickly after convincing the Agnes Scott Board of Trustees to invest $20m from the school’s endowment. For many schools, neither of these paths are a viable option, unfortunately.
Many of the schools who work with McAllister & Quinn have secured federal or foundation grant awards that underwrite community partnerships and expand the institution’s web of connectivity. For instance, the Department of Justice Campus Grant supports the development of a coordinated approach between campuses and local law enforcement and victim’s service organizations. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) GLS Campus Suicide Program provides resources for campuses to engage community partners in an effort to enhance suicide prevention and mental health programs for students. These are just two programs of many that strengthen connections between campus and community that can contribute to broader town-gown relations.
About McAllister & Quinn
McAllister & Quinn is a premier federal grant consulting and government relations firm. Based in Washington, DC, McAllister & Quinn’s unique approach has helped college and university clients secure over $1 billion in federal and foundation grant funding. For more information about how McAllister & Quinn partners with institutions, please Contact Frank Boyd to schedule a conversation.