What role should colleges or universities play in the local communities in which they are located?
Of course, different institutions have different missions, so no single answer to this question could apply to every institution. Most individuals agree that universities should focus on educating students and, in some cases, research. But it does not follow, as some maintain, that a university has no obligation to the city or region in which it happens to be located.
In fact, the local institutions that comprise the Cross-College Alliance (CCA): New College of Florida, Ringling College of Art and Design, State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota, The Ringling Museum and the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee owe their existence to the communities in which we are located. The health of our institutions depends on the health of our communities, and each of the CCA institutions encourages students and staff to participate in community service.
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