Tusculum College has received a $5,000 grant to help integrate community-based research into course curricula.

Implementing and strengthening community-based research on the Tusculum campus is the purpose of the grant from the Corella and Bertram F. Bonner Foundation and the Corporation for National Service Learn & Serve America. The college's Service-Learning Center applied for the grant, which was provided through Just Connections, an organization dedicated to invigorating grass roots democracy among residents of Central Appalachia.

"This grant will be primarily used to allow faculty members to develop the skills and expertise necessary to implement community-based research into the courses they teach," explained Robin Fife, director of the Service-Learning Center. "Five faculty members will be awarded stipends for projects to integrate community-based research into their courses and involve students in that research. Developing partnerships with community groups such as Rural Resources here in Greene County and Big Creek People in Action in Caretta, W.Va., is one of the keys to success with projects of this nature."

A library of books and articles relating to community-based research will be added to the Service-Learning Center through the grant. These resources will be accessible to the community as well as to campus.

Community-based research differs from what is traditionally thought of as academic research in that its focal point is community-expressed need, said Joyce Doughty, community service coordinator for the Service-Learning Center. It has been most commonly used to solve a social problem, create social change or meet a community need.

Rather than college faculty deciding what they want to study, the focus of the research is what the community sees as a need to be addressed, Doughty said. The community has a strong voice in the process as participants with the college faculty and students, she added.

In addition, the grant will be used to further develop the partnership the college has with Big Creek People in Action. The mission of that organization is to help develop a sustainable community through education and the development of small business to fill the void left by the decline of the coal mining industry in that region of West Virginia.

During the 2001-02 academic year, Fife took students in two Service-Learning Immersion classes to Caretta. The Tusculum students spoke in schools there encouraging the younger students to attend college. They also helped prepare for renovations, including the addition of a community library/research center, to the community center operated by Big Creek People in Action. The work of that organization is directed by community-based research engaging several Appalachia-based colleges and communities.

In March, Tusculum welcomed a group of eighth graders from Caretta to campus to introduce the young people to college life and encourage them to further their education after high school.