What is the CEL Grant?
The Community-Engaged Learning (CEL) Grant is a signature initiative of the Go Beyond the Classroom Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). It is an internal grant for faculty/instructors/staff
that is designed to fund one-time costs associated with a curricular or co-curricular
community-engaged student experience. View the guidelines and application criteria
for the Community-Engaged Learning grant here.
Eligible Projects
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CEL-Designated Course
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Community-Engaged Research Project
A collaborative inquiry between undergraduate students, faculty, and community members to identify, research, and address community-identified needs.
2026-2027 Funding Cycle Deadlines
- Applications will open on Monday December 1, 2025
- The deadline for applications is Friday February 13, 2025
Current Projects
2025 - 2026
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Community Engagement in Latin America - a Unique Study Abroad Experience over Spring Break
This Study Abroad course offers students a cultural immersion experience in Salvador, Brazil, home to the world’s largest African Diasporic population, to study Afro Latino history, culture, and identity. Through community engagement, service projects, and direct interaction with Afro Latino communities, students will explore topics such as race, class, gender, religion, music, and culinary traditions. The course emphasizes respectful cross-cultural interaction and critical reflection, encouraging students to compare Afro Latino experiences in Brazil with those in the U.S., particularly East Tennessee. -
All Aboard: A Collaborative Effort to Enhance Accessibility at the Johnson City Railroad Experience
The "All Aboard" collaboration between Johnson City Railroad Experience and Dr. Zhang’s research team seeks to make the museum more accessible to visitors of all abilities through comprehensive assessments, staff training, and inclusive design strategies. By involving museum staff, researchers, community members, and disability advocates, the partnership emphasizes shared decision-making and real-world impact. The project aims to improve the visitor experience, foster a culture of accessibility, and serve as a model for other museums seeking inclusive and sustainable change. -
Brand Campaign for Local Journalists
This brand campaign project turns the lens on local journalists, sharing their personal stories to rebuild public trust and humanize the profession in an era of widespread media skepticism. Through community-engaged research, ETSU students and faculty collaborate with local media and residents to produce short documentaries and social content that highlight journalists' motivations and the realities of their work. By making journalists visible and accessible, the project fosters media literacy, strengthens community connection, and challenges the disconnect between newsrooms and the public. -
Social Work Community Engaged Assessment and Intervention Projects
This CEL project, embedded in Social Work 4330, engages senior social work students in conducting community needs assessments and developing intervention plans in partnership with their field placement agencies. Through this hands-on experience, students identify local policy and systems gaps, collaborate with agencies to design actionable solutions, and give back to the communities that support their learning. CEL grant funds will support student participation in a national conference on community-engaged scholarship and help seed real-world intervention projects, strengthening both academic and community impact. -
Rural Case Oriented Learning
This course explores the social, historical, and cultural contexts that shape rural populations, with a focus on Appalachian communities and the unique challenges faced by psychologists working in these areas. Through case-oriented learning and engagement with rural counties in Tennessee and Virginia, students examine how factors like systemic trauma, rurality, and cultural identity impact behavioral health and service delivery. By the end of the course, students gain experiential and conceptual tools to better understand and serve rural communities in clinical, research, and program development settings.
Previous Projects
2024 - 2025
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Community Based Symposium on Autism Spectrum Disorders
The graduate students in the Speech Language Pathology course on Challenges in Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) will be designing and implementing a community-based symposium. Prior to the symposium, several community SLPs and educators with expertise in ASD will be invited to present to the class on topics relevant to their specialties. Through collaboration with these professionals, the students will identify topics that are most relevant to the needs of the community. The students will then develop a two-hour interactive workshop that will be open to community members, providing hands-on activities and resources that support providers, educators, and families in their work with individuals on the autism spectrum. This symposium will offer practical strategies and foster engagement with local stakeholders, creating a valuable resource for both the students and the broader community. -
Senior Center Health Fair
This project offers undergraduate nursing students a valuable opportunity to engage with community-dwelling older adults, focusing on preventative health habits rather than the inpatient care they're accustomed to. Students will present relevant health topics through trifold presentations at the Johnson City Senior Center, helping them gain a new perspective on independent older adults and enhance their understanding of this population. This interaction aims to broaden students' experiences and improve their approach to elderly care. -
Establishing a Hands On! Approach: Living and Learning in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) Education
This community-engaged learning project connects first- and second-year students residing in Governors Hall with the Hands On! Discovery Center (HODC) in Gray, TN. Participants will develop relationships with peers, community members, and HODC leaders while exploring their interests through HODC's educational opportunities. The project focuses on personal growth, critical thinking, and practical problem-solving, with students also providing feedback to enhance STEAM education initiatives. -
Baked-In Options: Mathematics Education Students at Tipton-Haynes
The BIOMES at Tipton-Haynes project involves ETSU elementary education majors working with Tipton-Haynes State Historic Site to integrate Native American pottery-making into math lessons. Students will learn pottery skills, help build a new “pit-fired kiln,” and create interdisciplinary math lessons. The project aims to enhance community engagement, foster appreciation for historical arts, and develop practical teaching resources. -
Adapted Physical Education Outreach
This project involves physical education teacher candidates providing 8-10 sessions at Jeremiah School in Johnson City, focusing on delivering quality physical education to a diverse student body, including those with neurodiverse needs. The goal is for candidates to apply their classroom learning in real-world settings and develop skills in planning inclusive activities and modifications. Due to the school's limited equipment, the project includes bringing and later removing necessary tools, while seeking to establish on-site tools for sustained use. The project also offers opportunities for continued student involvement through volunteering and collaboration with Jeremiah School teachers. -
Interdisciplinary Learning Experiences in the PK-3rd Grade Early Childhood Classrooms: A Community Partnership Project
This project pairs Early Childhood Education (ECE) teacher candidates with elementary mentor teachers for a year-long residency. It aims to integrate early childhood practices into elementary settings, enhance collaboration between candidates and mentors, and improve language and literacy skills in PK-3 classrooms. The project includes co-teaching, curriculum development, and a final showcase at ETSU's Gilbreath Literacy Council's winter symposium, Have a Heart for Literacy on Saturday, February 1, 2025.
2023 - 2024
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7-ETCH VR Production
This grant will allow students in ETSU’s Digital Media and Computer Science programs to work with the East Tennessee Children’s Hospital in Knoxville to create fully customizable simulations to train nurses and other medical professionals to perform medical procedures. -
Community connection through Speedway Charities
This project will be a team-based approach within the ETSU Sport and Recreation Management (SARM) program, in collaboration with the director of Bristol Motor Speedway’s Speedway Children’s Charities, to create a new elective course focused on “cause marketing” strategies in non-profit sport and sport corporate social responsibility. -
Garden in a Box
The Garden in a Box initiative aims to promote community engagement by teaching gardening and nutrition at elementary and middle schools, fostering healthy attitudes and habits around nutritious foods, teaching food origins and increasing physical activity. -
SPARK: Student Participation in Community-Engaged Service, Research and Internships
The History SPARK program is a collaborative cohort experience designed to increase the number of history majors participating in community-engaged service, research and internships relevant to the practice of history. -
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA)
ETSU Accounting students will use their knowledge learned in income tax and business courses to engage with community taxpayers and prepare their tax returns. Students will develop critical thinking and technology skills using real-life tax problems to prepare returns.
For additional information or assistance, contact:
Dr. Susan McCracken
Vice-Provost for Community Engagement and Director of the Quality Enhancement Plan
(423)-439-6191
mccrackensd@etsu.edu