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CHSS Public Service and Community Engagement

Executive Summary

The College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Montclair State University has a long- standing tradition of dedication to public service in a multitude of ways. It is demonstrated through the curriculum and co-curricular activities as well as through the abundance of vital and complementary services that CHSS provides to the community. Many of the faculty also demonstrate their personal commitment to service through their own private endeavors. In order to illuminate the components of CHSS’s deep commitment to service, we have collected data from the individual departments and collated it into the following report.

CHSS Public Service Audit Spring 2022
For accessibility issues with this document please contact Kelly Mieth at miethk@montclair.edu

Some highlights revealed through the data include that of our 16 departments, 13 of them have public service as part of the curriculum. These include partnerships with over 75 community organizations as well as local public schools, federal and state agencies, international collaborators, and public health clinics. Local relationships include The Turtle Back Zoo, Green Acres Community Gardens in Paterson, and the Ramapough Lenape Nation. The CHSS serves many of the local school districts by providing diagnostic and therapeutic services, language acquisition, and mental health services. There are existing relationships with the school districts of Irvington, East Orange, Edison, Belleville, Kearny, Montclair, and many more. All of these services are part of the curriculum requirements allowing Montclair State University students to learn service in real world environments.

CHSS provides many clinical services to the community through 3 of its departments. The Psychology Department serves over 50 sites in NJ, NY, PA, IL, NE, and MD with over 100 students delivering supervised psychological services in general and psychiatric hospitals, community mental health clinics, college counseling centers, schools, and corrections facilities. Montclair State University’s Center for Audiology Clinic completed more than 1500 patient visits and the Speech-Language Pathology clinic served 216 clients for over 2500 therapy sessions. In addition, the Biofeedback Treatment Clinic serves 30-40 clients per year. Aside from clinical services, additional services are provided by the Social Work and Child Advocacy department which provides over 60,550 hours of services to children and families.

Our individual faculty contribute their time personally to over 250 organizations through partnerships with schools, government organizations, international collaborations, and many more organizations. Partnerships include Boys & Girls Club, Madagascar Health and Environmental Research, and the Jewish Home, an assisted living facility in Bergen County. We believe that these relationships with the community can be further built upon and our connections to the community constitute a base for us to grow new and established programs.

It is our goal that through a shared commitment to serving the community, we will instill in our students a passion for service and a deep understanding of the needs within our society that their education will help to alleviate. Our dedicated faculty have worked to weave service components into the curriculum and provide credits for internships so that students can play an active role in helping others while they fulfill their educational requirements. It is these opportunities that help to mold these students into civic minded and engaged citizens and to teach a pragmatic approach to problem solving in the real world.

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Peter Kingstone
Dean, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Montclair State University
973-655-4314
kingstonep@montclair.edu