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Fostering community vitality in Southtown, a group of interrelated neighborhoods on the southside of Grand Rapids, takes many partners. ������Ƶ has been one of them for many years. This past month, the university deepened its commitment by leasing space in Hub 07—a large center for community impact in the Boston Square neighborhood of Southtown.

“Having a presence in Hub 07 provides a tremendous opportunity for collaboration in the community, which helps us live into our vision of promoting the welfare of the city,” said Kevin den Dulk, associate provost at Calvin. “Our presence in that space will allow us to deepen relationships with existing partners and develop new relationships in the city.”

Establishing a consistent presence

Leaders of this effort say they are excited to be shoulder-to-shoulder with community partners and to see the opportunities that will come about through consistent proximity.

“Calvin having space in Hub 07 is a clear indication of living into the mission and vision of the university, being an intentional partner and serving community,” said Shaq Anthony, chair of the 49507 Advisory Council. “It's an opportunity for deep insights and meaningful partnerships that benefit both students and community.”

“To be present in Hub 07 gives us yet another opportunity to listen well and co-create programming based on that shared knowledge,” said den Dulk.

Building upon longstanding partnerships

The university is no stranger to taking this community-engaged approach. In fact, den Dulk highlights the university’s Plaster Creek Stewards and community-based Nursing programs as exemplars.

“These are just a couple of examples of how we are co-creating programming with the community. This work requires that we share knowledge and take the knowledge of the community seriously,” said den Dulk. “Listening with a posture of humility and with a curiosity that’s open to local knowledge can be challenging for higher ed institutions, so you have to do this work with an intentional process that reveals your biases and blind spots. And I think that’s kind of the genius of the community-based Nursing and Plaster Creek Stewards is they were very intentional of that process, and they embedded in that process virtues of humility and curiosity.”

Opening up opportunities for students

Having a consistent presence in Southtown will also provide greater opportunities for both undergraduate and graduate students at Calvin.

“From nursing to social work, business to environmental science, there will be ample opportunities for students to engage with community partners in this collaborative space,” said den Dulk. “Our students will not only have greater access to internship and clinical placements as a result of proximity to community partners. What’s more important is they will have consistent opportunity to enter into mutual learning spaces with their neighbors.”