Overview

As a vital component of higher education, community engagement reflects a growing recognition of the interconnectedness between universities and the communities that surround and support them. Community-based learning (CBL) engages students with practical experience that enriches their academic education while developing critical skills such as teamwork, leadership, and empathy. This is particularly in line with DKU’s animating principles of rooted globalism, collaborative problem-solving, as well as its emphasis on research and practice. The overall goal of this lab is to explore effective models for the designing, organization, and assessment of CBSL courses suitable for undergraduate curriculum in China and beyond. 

Timeline

Spring 2026 – Spring 2027

Faculty Fellow: 

Keping Wu, keping.wu@dukekunshan.edu.cn

Staff Leads: 

Ying Xiong (Assessment), Jiawen Cai (Student Experience) 

Levels of Faculty Engagement 

• Core Lab Members: Research the current theory and practices of CBSL and consider their relevance for DKU. Attend monthly meetings, provide solid guidance and feedback to student researchers, draft and edit the white papers, organize speaker series, seminars and conferences, in Spring 2026. Compensation will be provided. 
• Lab-Affiliates: participate in the lab events, such as lectures, discussions and conferences on CBSL, starting in Spring 2026. CFPs will be available February 2026. 
• Project Contributors: Provide feedback and consultations to the project through occasional meetings or email exchanges to help the lab set priorities and agenda for programming.