Consensus Study Report

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This activity was supported by a contract between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture in the U.S. Department of Agriculture under Award No. 2022-77036-38343. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.

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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Fulfilling the Public Mission of the Land-Grant System: Building Platforms for Collaboration and Impact. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/29092.

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COMMITTEE ON BUILDING IMPACTFUL COLLABORATIVE PLATFORMS IN THE LAND-GRANT SYSTEM

STEPHEN (STEVE) R. YANNI (Chair), Bay Mills Community College

ANTHONY (TONY) BOCCANFUSO, University-Industry Demonstration Partnership

MAHMUD FAROOQUE, Arizona State University

MICHAEL RIOS, University of California, Davis

Study Staff

ROBIN SCHOEN, Director, Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources

SUSANA RODRIGUEZ, Program Officer

ANNE JOHNSON, Science Writer

MALIA BROWN, Senior Program Assistant

BOARD ON AGRICULTURE AND NATURAL RESOURCES

JILL J. MCCLUSKEY (Chair), Washington State University

AMY W. ANDO, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

ARISTOS ARISTIDOU, Biomason, Inc.

BRUNO BASSO, Michigan State University

BERNADETTE M. DUNHAM, The George Washington University

KAIYU GUAN, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

JESSICA E. HALOFSKY, U.S. Department of Agriculture

ERMIAS KEBREAB, University of California, Davis

JAYSON LUSK, Oklahoma State University

MARTY D. MATLOCK, University of Arkansas

HOLLY MAYTON, Deere & Company

JOHN P. MCNAMARA, Washington State University

NAIMA MOUSTAID-MOUSSA, Texas Tech University

LINDA S. PROKOPY, Purdue University

PAMELA C. RONALD, University of California, Davis

V. ALARIC SAMPLE, George Mason University

ROGER E. WYSE, Spruce Capital Partners, LLC

Staff

ROBIN SCHOEN, Director

MALIA BROWN, Senior Program Assistant

CYNTHIA GETNER, Senior Finance Business Partner

MITCHELL HEBNER, Research Associate

KARA N. LANEY, Senior Program Officer

ALBARAA SARSOUR, Program Officer

BOARD ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE

PAMELA A. PADILLA (Co-Chair), University of North Texas

LAMONT R. TERRELL (Co-Chair), GSK

DOMINIQUE BAKER, University of Delaware

RAJEEV DAROLIA, University of Kentucky

MATTHEW HORA, University of Wisconsin–Madison

BRANDY HUDERSON, University of the District of Columbia

TRACIE LATTIMORE, Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense for Health Readiness Policy and Oversight

HIRONAO OKAHANA, American Council on Education

JOERG C. SCHLATTERER, American Chemical Society

AMANDA VERNON, National Science Foundation

ZAKIYA WILSON-KENNEDY, Louisiana State University

JOSH WYNER, The Aspen Institute

Staff

RIAN LUND DAHLBERG, Director

ANDREA DALAGAN, Senior Program Assistant

ANDRÉ N. PORTER, Senior Program Officer

KARLA RILEY, Senior Program Assistant

JOHN VERAS, Associate Program Officer

MELISSA E. WYNN, Program Officer

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Reviewers

This consensus study report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.

We thank the following individuals for their review of this report:

Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report, nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by SHANE C. BURGESS, University of Arizona, and FRED GOULD (NAS), North Carolina State University. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.

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Contents

SUMMARY

1 INTRODUCTION

The Charge to the Committee and its Interpretation of the Statement of Task

Study Process: How the Committee Conducted its Work

Organization of the Report

2 RECONNECTING THE MISSION OF LAND-GRANT UNIVERSITIES TO PUBLIC VALUES THROUGH COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIPS

Rethinking the Mandate: The Mixed History of Land-Grant Universities

Land-Grant Institutions and a Crisis of Public Trust

Reconnecting the Land-Grant Mission to the Public Value

Building Relationships for the Long Term

3 SUPPORTING AND SCALING ECOSYSTEMS OF ENGAGEMENT

Campus- and State-Level Collaborations

National Collaborations

4 BECOMING AN ENGAGED INSTITUTION: THE PATH TOWARD INSTITUTIONAL READINESS

Innovating for Collaboration

Institutional Infrastructure and Supports

5 EVALUATING AND COMMUNICATING IMPACT

Measuring and Communicating Impact

Using Vigorous Reciprocity to Define What Matters in Collaborations

Capturing the Public Value of the Land-Grant System

6 RECOMMENDATIONS

Recommendations

Next Steps

REFERENCES

APPENDIXES

A COMMITTEE BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

B PUBLIC MEETING AGENDAS

C RESOURCE GUIDE FOR CAPACITY BUILDING AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

D RESOURCE GUIDE FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT JOURNAL SELECTION

Boxes, Figures, and Tables

BOXES

1-1 Statement of Task

2-1 Public Values and Public Interest: Rebalancing Priorities

2-2 Community Engagement

2-3 Industry Insights from Procter & Gamble: Technical Needs as the Core of Successful University Collaborations

2-4 Leveraging Strengths, Transforming Communities: The Purdue–Turtle Mountain Community College Partnership

3-1 Cultivating Innovation: North Dakota’s Statewide Ecosystem

4-1 Building the Ecosystem: How the University of Georgia’s Innovation Infrastructure Drives Collaboration and Economic Impact

5-1 Measuring Impact: Return on Investment Analysis of the UNC System

FIGURES

4-1 Examples of institutional support strategies for engaged scholarship at multiple levels

TABLES

C-1 Organizations Involved in Capacity Building and Community Engagement

D-1 Collaborations: A Journal of Community-Based Research and Practice

D-2 Engaged Scholar Journal: Community-Engaged Research, Teaching, and Learning

D-3 Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement

D-4 International Journal of Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement

D-5 International Undergraduate Journal for Service-Learning, Leadership, and Social Change

D-6 Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education

D-7 Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship

D-8 Journal of Community Practice

D-9 Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement

D-10 Journal of Service-Learning in Higher Education

D-11 Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning

D-12 Public: A Journal of Imagining America

D-13 Transform: The Journal of Engaged Scholarship

D-14 Undergraduate Journal of Service Learning and Community-Based Research

Preface

When President Lincoln signed the first Morrill Act in 1862, the land-grant system was established as a new way forward for higher education in response to the daily, practical needs of all American citizens. Vast tracts of federal land were the initial commitment to this new way forward as each state established a flagship land-grant institution (referred to as the 1862s) that would ultimately coordinate research, education, and extension efforts in concert with its in-state citizens and stakeholders. Further commitments expanded the system to include Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in 1890 and Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) in 1994 and extended to institutions in the U.S. territories and the District of Columbia. Universities and colleges that were added to the land-grant system include: the University of Puerto Rico in 1908; the University of District of Columbia in 1968; the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam in 1972; institutions in American Samoa and Micronesia in 1980; and the Northern Mariana Islands in 1986.

The land-grant system often refers to itself as a family, whose makeup includes colleges and universities established around inspiring missions to serve the public good, to be “the People’s Colleges” (Ruby Green Smith). Grounded in the agricultural sciences and other practical lifeways, the land-grant system has had a profound impact on modern society across the globe. However, today, the mission of the land-grant system has expanded to address areas of importance beyond its historical roots in agriculture. This acknowledges that land-grant universities as a system is equally embedded in regional geographies that are more urbanized and plural in their demographic makeup.

As the human family unit is staring down challenges and opportunities in today’s world, the land-grant family is also being challenged. Global economic influences, partisanship, and protectionism at many levels; changes to natural systems; increased complexity of human communities; and living with the impacts of technology, along with countless other local, national, and universal forces, are motivating the land-grant system to revisit its mission, how it does “business,” and how it serves its multifaceted public purpose defined by regions, states, and a nation of “multiple publics.” How does the land-grant system provide a return on investment in society in an increasingly “market environment” and how is its value measured and communicated? Equally important, how does the land-grant system respond to different and often competing interpretations of public value?

Past work by the National Academies (2022) points to the tremendous potential of increased collaboration within the land-grant system and with external collaborators. It is now time to put this potential into action by empowering and connecting all members (1862s, 1890s, and 1994s) of “the family” in ways that link public mission to different public voices and values; that support and embrace all three pillars of the system—research, education, and extension; that recognize and encourage the value of long-term, structured collaboration; that build relationships across lines of difference; and that respect the challenges of the past while collectively championing a better today and tomorrow.

The land-grant family should take the steps necessary to earn the trust and respect of its stakeholders or risk becoming increasingly irrelevant.

This report came to fruition thanks to the exceptional contributions of the National Academies staff. Leadership of the project was provided by Robin Schoen, who serves as

director of the Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources. Valuable writing assistance was offered by Anne Johnson, whose efforts helped shape the final document. Susana Rodriguez played a key role in ensuring the smooth operation of the project, offering steadfast support as a program officer, and Malia Brown supported the team as senior program assistant. The committee extends sincere thanks to each of these individuals for their important contributions. The committee is also grateful to the many professionals who contributed to the workshop as presenters and participants. It has been an honor to serve on this committee alongside Dr. Mahmud Farooque, Dr. Michael Rios, and Dr. Anthony Boccanfuso.

Stephen R. Yanni, Chair
Committee on Building Impactful Collaborative
Platforms in the Land-Grant System
August 2025

Acronyms and Abbreviations

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