NKU earns 2026 community engagement classification from Carnegie Foundation

January 15, 2025 — Northern Kentucky University has received the 2026 Carnegie Community Engagement (CE) Classification, highlighting the university’s continued commitment to community engagement. NKU joins the 2026 cohort as one of more than 230 universities nationwide to receive the designation. This recognition marks NKU’s third CE Classification; the university received its first in 2006 under President James Votruba.

“NKU is honored to, once again, be nationally recognized for our sustained commitment to community engagement. Over the past 20 years, NKU’s applied learning and impactful research in our region has become our distinctive quality,” says NKU President Dr. Cady Short-Thompson. “This Carnegie Classification not only recognizes our deep roots in the northern Kentucky region but is a reflection of the collective efforts of our faculty, staff and students to make a lasting impact. Together, we solve real-world problems with our community partners, and our hard-working students graduate as servant leaders and problem solvers.” 

The Carnegie Foundation defines community engagement as collaborations between higher education institutions and their larger communities—whether that be local, regional, state, national or global—with the purpose of sharing knowledge and resources to enrich scholarship, prepare educated and engaged citizens, strengthen democratic values and civic responsibility, address critical societal issues and contribute to the public good.

“The Carnegie Community Engagement Classification highlights the everyday work happening at NKU to connect teaching and research with the needs of our community,” says NKU Assistant Vice Provost for Outreach and Engagement Dr. Shauna Reilly. “Our faculty create learning experiences that extend beyond the classroom and allow students to apply their knowledge in meaningful, real-world contexts, and this recognition affirms the value of this collaborative approach for both our students and the northern Kentucky region.”

The CE Classification has been the leading framework for institutional assessment and recognition of community engagement in U.S. higher education for nearly 20 years. The classification is awarded following a process of self-study by each institution, and is an elective designation determined by the American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.