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Experiential learning, deep reflection and practical skills create change agents for life.
Everyone has the right to be actively involved in determining the conditions that shape their lives.
Our team, committed to justice, impacting on climate, gentrification, worker and immigrant rights....and our students!
Students win policy change in their state capitals, in city halls and on campus: celebrating divestment from fossil fuels at DeAnza College!

Our Network

Cupertino – San Jose

The 18-unit Certificate of Achievement in Leadership and Social Change prepares students to be community leaders, agents of change, and responsible participants in civic life in general. Participants gain in-depth understanding of the social structures that define their worlds, and develop the skills and practical knowledge required to transform those structures and make the world a more equitable place. Read More

Los Angeles

The Community Planning and Economic Development (ComPlan) Program develops leaders and change agents directly from the communities we serve. Emphasizing education, health, leadership, and entrepreneurship, the Institute’s inside-out strategy aspires to create sustainable positive change by investing in the capacity of the people who are most affected. Read More

Minneapolis – St. Paul

The Minneapolis/St. Paul program is a two-year Associate’s Degree in Community Development from Minneapolis Community and Technical CollegeThe community development curriculum at , which was developed through a partnership between Minneapolis College and the Native American Community Development Institute, emphasizes the Native American experience as well as the study of all culture groups. Read More

Mississippi

The Mississippi program is housed at Hinds Community College-Utica Campus, which is a Historically Black College. It provides a broad-based understanding of the history and theories of community development while fostering awareness of and responsibility for community and environmental sustainability. Students in the Community Development program will graduate with a well-rounded general education degree that is highly transferable to 4-year institutions. Read More

New York

The New York Community Learning Partnership is a local initiative that prepares low-income women, first generation college students, young men of color and others in need of opportunity, for jobs and leadership in organizing, advocacy, community development and allied fields. The program establishes partnerships among community-based organizations and colleges in CUNY (City University of New York) that serve neighborhoods most impacted by inequality. Read More

Philadelphia – WCU

The Philadelphia region is hosted by the Rustin Urban Community Change Axis (RUCCAS), a collective impact organization formed by and for West Chester University and regional urban community-based organizations, government and school partners. RUCCAS currently houses the Youth Empowerment and Urban Studies (YES) Program, founded in 2012, which is an 18-credit, interdisciplinary, community-engaged, place-based, urban social-change focused academic minor. The mission of YES is to amplify through study and action a critical understanding of the role youth can play in social change in Philadelphia. Read More

Salt Lake City

The Salt Lake region is hosted at Salt Lake Community College, and offers participants the opportunity to enroll in the Civically Engaged Scholars (CES) program at the Thayne Center. CES Students explore social justice issues through designated service-learning courses and sustained community engagement. Scholars put their education to work by serving their communities, establishing a lifelong commitment to community engagement. Read More

Southeast Michigan

The Community Learning Partnership of Southeast Michigan is a regional program offered in collaboration with Henry Ford College, Macomb College, and University of Michigan-Dearborn. The program is a partnership dedicated to linking student learning experiences to real-world opportunities for community change work through mentoring and hands-on internships provided by our community partners. Read More

A ‘Year of Wins’ for Silicon Valley Youth Climate Action
Silicon Valley Youth Climate Action is a group of young people organizing to combat climate change in their local communities through aggressive public policy initiatives.The group, co-founded by Cynthia Kaufman — who coordinates the Community Learning Partnership program at Vasconcellos Institute for Democracy in Action at De Anza College — released this video that includes some of […]
Dawn Wilson-Clark on Making Kids Smile — As a Clown and Community Leader
Dawn Wilson-Clark, who is 47 years old, was clowning around one day (quite literally — she works as a professional clown) in Detroit’s Brightmoor neighborhood when she passed a for sale sign at a house that caught her eye. When she decided to buy the house and move her five children into it everyone she knew […]
Felecia Bennett-Clark of Macomb Community College Receives Award for Excellent Teaching
Felecia Bennett-Clark, a professor at Macomb Community College who teaches political science courses in the CLP-affiliated Certificate in Community Leadership program, received the 2019 National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) Excellence Award. The honor is given to recognize community and technical college educators who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment and contribution to their […]

Community Learning Partnership

Pathways into Community Change Careers