DCU has in place a Civic Engagement Strategy (CES) as part of its Leadership Through Foresight Strategy, its main objectives including, ‘sharing knowledge’, ‘sustainable social, economic and environmental development’ and ‘cultural and civic development’.

Overview and objectives

• Recognising that higher education participation rates are particularly low throughout certain parts of the Dublin city region, the DRHEA partners will establish a Higher Learning Network (HLN), modelled on similar European projects.  The objective of the network is to improve access to and progression through higher education, initially for the above target groups.

Outcomes

The key outcomes are:

• flexible part-time and work- or community-based provision, supported where appropriate by blended learning to meet the needs of these target groups
• enhanced and simplified provision of information on learning opportunities in higher education
• more agile response mechanisms to meeting skills gaps identified by employers – in both the public and private sectors – within the region
• improved supports and opportunities to address newcomer disadvantage.

The DCU projects within this overall framework will develop dialectically the Community engagement of the University and enable community-based learning as a recognised element in the core business of the University as well as tackling decisively the needs of the new communities in higher education. 

Convenors

Institute of Technology Blanchardstown

Trinity College Dublin