American University of Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan)

While supporting the integration of experiential and community-based learning methods across AUCA’s academic departments and facilitating students and faculty in designing and implementing civic engagement projects and research in and outside of the university, the AUCA Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) aims at instilling in AUCA community members an ethic of civic engagement and social responsibility. It also strived for enhancing the capacity of AUCA students, faculty, and staff to be positive members of and leaders in the local, national, and international communities they belong to.

The CEC builds on a robust history of civic engagement at AUCA. The Student Initiative Development Program (SIDP), for example, has been active for more than 3 years, funding 19 student projects that operate in every region of the Kyrgyz Republic – with a positive impact on upwards of 2,000 citizens. Beyond SIDP, AUCA professors Seth Fearey and Emil Nasritdinov took it upon themselves to launch the Darya Park Project, building a riverfront park in Bishkek in collaboration with students, local residents, and government leaders. They improved the neighborhood’s social capital and satisfied more than 96% of residents. The CCE builds from projects such as these – and the more than 30 additional civic engagement initiatives ongoing on campus – to advance civic engagement as a model for learning, teaching, and living at AUCA and beyond.