At the heart of community engagement at the University of Iowa are the partnerships between instructors, students, researchers, and communities large and small across Iowa. At the end of every semester, partnerships with local nonprofits, municipalities, and advocates form to support community enhancements, from public awareness campaigns and public art installations to engineering projects that impact the lives of those who call your community home.
Partnership Outcomes
University of Iowa students help Wisconsin-based mental health tech startup reach children and families struggling with obsessive-compulsive disorder
During the Spring 2022 semester, social media marketing students in the school of Journalism and Mass Communications partnered with OCDfeat. The partnership aimed to develop a social media marketing strategy to help reach communities critical to the app's initial launch, which aims to help children and families manage and overcome the challenges of living with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
"I was curious to see what the students would come up with," said Jason Niosi, founder of OCDfeat. "Especially from those not a part of the OCD community."
Student's developed three different plans, which provided direction about post type, frequency, and foundational principles to help the startup establish a social media presence.
Jackson County Economic Alliance improves lives and spurs economic growth through community engagement initiatives
To enhance the value of Jackson County and attract new investment opportunities, the JCEA enlisted students from the University of Iowa to work on various community engagement projects.
One of those projects was developed in partnership with the Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities (IISC), which involved working with student groups on a 53-acre parcel of farm ground that the city of Bellevue had acquired for future growth.
“One group looked at drainage in the area to make sure that we were aware of any potential issues as we looked at future development,” Heiar said. “The other group was helping the city council get a better feel for how you take 53 acres of farm ground –stuff that looks like corn- and make that into housing.”
Strategic communications writing students help Houses into Homes in Coralville
Salina McCarty is the co-founder of Houses into Homes (H2H), a Coralville-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide beds, furniture, and other household goods to those experiencing homelessness, domestic violence, and other crises situations.
In the Fall 2021 semester, McCarty worked with a strategic communication writing course led by Frank Durham to identify ways H2H could tell its story within the community while soliciting volunteers and attracting new sources of fundraising support.
UI senior Zoey Jenkins was motivated to continue volunteering with H2H after spending the day as part of Durham's class and seeing critical service learning in action.