Who We Are

Launched in 2022, PCC’s VOICES program collaborates with local organizations to address community-identified needs through course-based projects. Our work strives to interweave campus and community assets through the equitable sharing of power, knowledge, and resources. 

“We must imagine new worlds that transition ideologies and norms...This is a time-travel exercise for the heart. This is collaborative ideation- what are the ideas that will liberate all of us? The more people that collaborate on that ideation, the more that people will be served by the resulting world.”
 — adrienne maree brown1

VOICES supports a spectrum of community-engaged learning activities, with an emphasis on community collaborations. These activities are rooted in authentic relationships and work to uplift community voices, knowledge, and perspectives. Within this context, we utilize the definition of community engagement provided by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching:

Community Engagement describes the collaboration between higher education institutions and their larger communities (local, national, global) for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources in a context of partnership and reciprocity.

Learning ABOUT Community

Foundational discipline topics and skills are connected to concrete applications in the community

Examples:

  • Debating local issues
  • Taking a tour
  • Inviting a guest speaker

Learning THROUGH Community

Activities have value beyond student success in the classroom

Examples:

  • Writing a Letter to the Editor
  • Creating a PSA
  • Organizing a campaign

Learning WITH Community

Authentic experiences that build social capital, community membership, and sense of belonging

Examples:

  • Community-based learning

In alignment with PCC’s enduring educational values, VOICES plays an essential role in creating conditions for empowerment, critical thinking, and informed civic engagement. 

By engaging directly with real-world issues in the local community, students authentically apply what they are learning while working towards positive social change.