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This exhibit  explores the evolving relationship between JMU, Harrisonburg and the surrounding community, highlighting early interactions, changing landscapes, community engagement, and efforts to build lasting trust.

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This Tuscan town just 90 minutes from Florence continues to enchant both tourists and expats alike for its convivial charm and walkability, its illustrious history, and its bevy of local shops and restaurants led by friendly, English-speaking locals.

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Track 1: Crisis Communication and Community Engagement
{popup text="Abstract" class="btn" popwidth="500px" popheight="300px"}Track 1: Crisis Communication and Community Engagement
Community meetings are one of the most commonly used forms of engagement, but they have the potential to be contentious, uncomfortable, and unproductive for both the organizers and the attendees. Great community meetings, however, can build trust, provide clarity, and empower stakeholders in a powerful way. Having designed and facilitated hundreds of community meetings over the course of more than a decade, the presenters will share their guiding framework for developing effective group “high – touch” & “high – tech” engagement. Presenters: Michael Akin, President; Jevin D. Hodge, National Engagement Coordinator; Josh Lasky, Managing Director and Chief Strategist, LINK Strategic Partners.{/popup}
On the Front Lines: Designing and Facilitating Effective Community Meetings
Track 2: Off-Campus Life and Neighborhood Challenges
{popup text="Abstract" class="btn" popwidth="500px" popheight="300px"}Track 2: Off-Campus Life and Neighborhood Challenges
For many students, the residential experience makes up a significant portion of the first-year experience. In 2020, COVID-19 spread across the globe, and with it came uncertainty for many institutions on how to support students wherever they are. This session will present information on the Commuting Buff’s first-year peer mentoring program and the engagement strategies employed with the program. Presenter: Dr. Jeremy Moore, Assistant Director in Off-Campus Housing & Neighborhood Relations, University of Colorado Boulder.{/popup}
Couchella 2020: A case study of first-year commuter student support and preparing for post-COVID-19 student engagement (from the comfort of the couch).
Track 3: Innovation & Economic Vitality 
{popup text="Abstract" class="btn" popwidth="500px" popheight="300px"}Track 3: Innovation & Economic Vitality 
Marquette University & 4 anchors created Near West Side Partners to address safety, business, and housing challenges in 7 neighborhoods. What began as a response to employer safety concerns has evolved into a partnership to engage residents through NWSP’s ability to leverage university, law enforcement, and community resources to improve quality of life. Learn proven strategies to engage residents experiencing issues of safety, food insecurity, and entrepreneurship, and how anchors can respond to resident priorities identified through surveys and other innovative methods. Presenters: Moderator Rana Altenburg, Vice President for Public Affairs; Co-presenters: Jesica A. Ballenger, Milwaukee County Assistant District Attorney; Patrick Kennelly, Executive Director, Marquette University's Center for Peacemaking, Principal Investigator for the Near West Side Partners' signature grant program known as PARC; Kelsey Otero, Associate Director of Social Innovation at Marquette University's Office of Research and Innovation and Co-Chair of Near West Side Partners' Commercial Corridor Working Team.{/popup}
Hello Neighbor! Proven Approaches to Resident Engagement by Anchor Institutions
Track 4: Campus and Community Challenges
{popup text="Abstract" class="btn" popwidth="500px" popheight="300px"}Track 4: Campus and Community Challenges
As educators seeking to help students be better citizens, neighbors and representatives of our institutions, much of our work focuses on prevention and complaint response.  UConn’s Off-Campus and Commuter Student Services partnered with their IT Department to develop software which allows them to track annual prevention efforts, complaints and property specific issues related to landlord/property managers. This session will explore the process of developing this software, how it is being used for assessment and future possibilities. Presenter: John Armstrong, Director of Off-Campus and Commuter Student Services, University of Connecticut in Storrs, CT.{/popup}
Mapping the Off-Campus Landscape: Developing and Implementing an Off-Campus Software System