MSU UOE | About the Office | History

History of Outreach and Engagement at MSU

MSU draws on a long-established history of connecting knowledge to serve society. MSU has shared its knowledge resources for the public good from its inception, linking campus and community through applied research, technical assistance, and instructional programs. This outreach work has always been central to the University's land-grant mission. No description of MSU would be complete without it.

The Land-Grant Institution and its Mission to Engage in Outreach

In 1863, MSU was designated the beneficiary of the Morrill Act endowment, making it one of the earliest land-grant institutions in the United States. The Morrill Act gave public land to colleges for the benefit of agriculture and mechanic arts. The Act grew out of a movement to bring the benefits of education to rural areas.

Given the increasing complexity and cultural diversity of society, over the years, the land-grant mission has evolved to other areas in addition to agriculture and mechanic arts. These areas include health, human relations, business, communication, education, and government, and also now extend to urban and international settings.

While these outreach activities at MSU have existed since its inception as a land-grant institution, the term “outreach” was coined relatively recently to describe work that links the university resources and the public, for the public good. In establishing the Office of the Vice Provost for University Outreach in 1991, the University affirmed its commitment to creating an intellectual foundation for outreach and strengthening MSU outreach work through university-wide leadership. Carrying out this commitment is the charge of the current Associate Provost for University Outreach and Engagement.

Evolution of the MSU Outreach and Engagement Model

A report generated by The Provost's Committee on University Outreach (1993) entitled University Outreach at Michigan State University: Extending Knowledge to Serve Society articulated an intellectual foundation for outreach and made recommendations for further strengthening outreach at MSU. The policy changes that the report recommended set the course for the future of outreach at MSU. The report defined outreach as a form of scholarship that cuts across teaching, research, and service, and which involves generating, transmitting, applying, and preserving knowledge for the direct benefit of external audiences.

As the definition of outreach evolved over the years, the word "engagement" was added to the unit title in 2003 to highlight the collaborative and reciprocal nature of outreach work. Outreach and engagement is now defined as occurring when scholarship is applied directly for the public good and when the relationship between partners is reciprocal and mutually beneficial.

Looking to the Future

As MSU recently celebrated its sesquicentennial,it is time to reflect on the University's 150 year history as a land-grant, research-intensive, engaged institution, which serves the people of Michigan and beyond. The sesquicentennial was a time to reflect on how the University can continue to advance knowledge to serve society. At University Outreach and Engagement (UOE), we will always be dedicated to understanding ways we can expand the outreach and engagement enterprise. To this end, with the recent development of the National Center for the Study of University Engagement, UOE is now assuming a national leadership role in this discussion.