Faculty and staff members tour the Delaware History Museum.

Faculty and staff members visit Wilmington as part of the Discover Delaware Tour.

Faculty and staff members visit the Creative Vision Factory.

Faculty and staff members gather in the Community Services Building, which houses 73 nonprofit tenants.

Roger Hesketh of UD’s Center for Community Research and Service speaks with faculty, staff and community leaders at the Community Services Building.

Faculty and staff members gather in the Community Services Building to share thoughts, ideas and actionable items.

Faculty, staff 'Discover Delaware'

Article by Chris Kelley Photos by Kathy Murphy and courtesy of Community Engagement Initiative June 07, 2017

UD faculty and staff tour connects colleagues to communities and one another

Over 30 University of Delaware faculty and staff members traveled throughout the state as part of a new initiative called Discover Delaware.

Last week, UD’s Community Engagement Initiative offered the Discover Delaware Tour, a program to introduce faculty and staff to communities and colleagues around the state and encourage the development of engaged scholarship and service learning opportunities for students.

The tour, part of the Summer Faculty Institute, was designed to broaden horizons and inspire instructional development and curriculum design.

Jon Cox, assistant professor in the Department of Art and Design, and faculty fellows Julie McGee, associate professor in the Department of Black American Studies, and David Teague, professor in the Associate in Arts Program, served as guides for the daylong tour that consisted of visits to both Wilmington and Dover.

Participants met with professionals statewide, including those working at the Community Services Building, the Creative Vision Factory, the Delaware Historical Society and the Delaware Nature Society, as well as Dover Mayor Robin R. Christiansen.

The program included a tour of the Delaware History Museum, the DuPont Environmental Education Center and Legislative Hall in Dover.

Additionally, faculty and staff had lunch with Rick Deadwyler Jr., the vice president for community engagement at the Delaware Community Foundation.

Participant Kathy Murphy, associate director of the Institute for Public Administration, said, “The real highlight of the tour for me was having an opportunity to tour Delaware, learn about its history, and meet community leaders who are making positive impacts in the community and directly supporting citizens.”

“Because of the tour, several new relationships have begun between faculty, staff, and community partners,” said Lynnette Overby, deputy director of the Community Engagement Initiative and professor in the Department of Theatre.

Overby, who designed the inaugural outing, said she is optimistic this learning opportunity will continue in years to come. “We hope to make this an annual event.”

Discover Delaware is supported through a partnership between the Community Engagement Initiative and the Center for Teaching and Assessment of Learning (CTAL) at the University of Delaware.