Community-Based Research, Sustainable Partnerships & Advocacy Task Force
Charge
The Community-Based Research, Sustainable Partnerships and Advocacy Task Force will provide scholarly expertise and facilitate community-based research efforts to inform pressing policy issues affecting residents and business owners in the Westside. In collaboration with neighborhood residents and community leaders, UTSA faculty and organizational units such as UTSA’s Urban Education Institute, Policy Studies Center and Institute of Economic Development, the task force will develop a university-community partnership framework for engaging in research and incubating community partnerships that are relevant, reciprocal and sustainable. Another of the task force’s initial focus areas will be to increase understanding of the public policy issues most impacting Westside neighborhood integrity, including housing displacement, historical preservation, access to higher education and social service challenges.
Task Force Members
| Enrique Alemán, Jr., Chair Professor and Chair Educational Leadership & Policy Studies College of Education and Human Development |
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Vangie Aguilera |
Roger Enriquez |
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Lilliana P. Saldaña |
Antonio Petrov |
* Additional members to be determined
In addition to the UTSA members listed above, a number of community leaders and Westside residents will be invited to join the task force.
Possible Activities
- Develop a university-community partnership framework that engages university faculty and aligns with Westside residents to incubate community partnerships that are relevant, reciprocal and sustainable.
- Initiate a “listening tour” with the various community partners, organizations, resident associations and groups of youth and families so that a future direction for research, reciprocity and sustainability may be outlined in conjunction with Westside partners.
- Identify grant funding opportunities for UTSA to collaborate with Westside leaders to conduct community-based research regarding needs identified by residents, youth and organizations. Some initial areas for community-based research may include:
- Housing and housing-based experiences of vulnerable populations
- Historic preservation
- Youth and senior engagement
- Business development
- Arts/cultural heritage
- Other issues affecting the health and wellbeing of Westside residents
- Develop and pilot a community-based research grant program, which may include a seed grant that incentivizes community-based research and a community-based scholar-in-residence program.
