Dr. Delphia Shanks part of program to
collaborate on scholarly projects, lead equity-focused change
CONWAY, Arkansas (September 22, 2022)—Campus Compact has announced
the 15 faculty and staff selected as the 2022-2023 cohort of Engaged Scholars
as part of its Engaged Scholars Initiative. Dr. Delphia Shanks of Hendrix
College was among those selected.
The Engaged Scholars Initiative is a year-long collaborative
learning and leadership program. Each cohort consists of a diverse group of
early-career faculty and staff who are equipped to lead equity-focused change
at their institution and in communities.
Scholars were selected from a highly competitive pool of candidates
from Campus Compact member institutions. Scholars were nominated by
institutional leaders and represent 14 institutions from 12 states. Members of
the cohort hold a wide variety of roles on their campuses, but each has a
demonstrated history of effective civic and community engagement work.
Shanks enjoys a multifaceted career as a professor, scholar, and
advocate. After earning a B.A. in Sociology from Grinnell College and both an
M.A. in Policy Analysis and Management and a Ph.D. in Government from Cornell
University, she arrived at Hendrix College in 2018. At Hendrix, she teaches
classes on the carceral state, public policy, inequality, civil society and
nonprofits, and research methods. Prior to her time at Hendrix, she taught
public policy at Auburn State Prison, a maximum-security facility in upstate
New York. She is also a trained instructor through the Inside-Out Prison
Exchange Program.
As a scholar and advocate, Shanks’s research focuses on the policy
feedback effects of public policies and how philanthropic efforts shape policy
reform, advocacy, and design. Within these areas, she has a special focus on
the carceral state. She carries this research into her work on the board of
decARcerate, a nonprofit organization that works to end mass incarceration
through education, smart legislation, advocacy, and empowering the leadership
of people directly impacted by the criminal injustice system. She also
volunteers as a grant writer for various local nonprofits. Prior to her time in
central Arkansas, she worked at a community action agency in Missouri, was a
Teach For America corps member in Louisiana, and helped start a community youth
center in Iowa.
Over the course of the academic year, Engaged Scholars will
participate in professional development, virtual learning opportunities,
retreats, and individual support through mentoring and coaching. The aim of the
program is to strengthen individual and collective scholarship, research, and
impact.
“I am thrilled to welcome this year’s cohort of the Engaged
Scholars Initiative,” said Nicole Springer, Director of Institutional Capacity
Building at Campus Compact. “Our implementation team, made up of
representatives from Campus Compact and the Lang Center for Civic & Social
Responsibility at Swarthmore College, was impressed with the caliber of
candidates for this cohort. We look forward to a year of connection,
collaboration, and learning as we lift up the voices of this outstanding and
diverse group of practitioner-scholars.”
“Engaged learning at Hendrix has always been about applying traditional
knowledge and scholarship to issues and communities beyond the confines of our
campus,” said Dr. Kiril Kolev, the College’s associate provost for engaged
learning. “Delphia has worked hard to literally bring our campus to vulnerable
and underserved populations. The Engaged Scholars Initiative will allow her to
meet other like-minded scholars and practitioners, and I am really excited
about the work she will continue doing at Hendrix and in central Arkansas
following this experience.”
The Engaged Scholars Initiative is led by Campus Compact and is
offered in partnership with the Lang Center for Civic & Social
Responsibility at Swarthmore College. The Lang Center at Swarthmore College is
a strategic partner whose thought leadership, in-kind staffing, and financial
support are critical to the success of the program.
Read more about the Engaged Scholars Initiative on the Campus Compact website.
About Hendrix College
A private liberal arts college in Conway,
Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns recognition as one of the
country’s leading liberal arts institutions and is featured in Colleges That
Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its
academic quality and rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a
fixture in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876,
Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To
learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu.