Validating institutional commitment to outreach at land-grant universities: Listening to the voices of community partners

The need for public understanding and awareness of the value of university Extension and outreach is at an all-time high due to flattening Extension budgets and recent criticisms about higher education's commitment to public service. Drawing on interviews from community partners in three states, this article examines how community partners formulate their perceptions about an institution's commitment to its outreach mission. Community partners form their opinions about institutional commitment to engagement through a combination of three factors: language and symbolic actions of campus leadership, personal experiences with faculty and staff, and success in navigating the complex structures of the university.