A civic engagement paradigm for reforming health administration education and recreating the community

The education of students of health administration has traditionally combined both the theoretical and practical to enhance and balance the learning experience. Classroom exposure to the principles of management, law, organizations, and finance is coupled with problem solving, practicum, internship, and administrative residency experiences. However, just as recent years have seen the developmentof courses from managed care and alternative delivery systems to total quality management and continuous quality improvement, there is also emerging an awareness of the need to enhance the practical side of the learning equation. Perhaps this need is finding expression in curricular opportunities for students to learn from a participatory model known as civic engagement (CE). CE is a way of integrating academic study and community service to strengthen learning while promoting civic and personal responsibility to strengthen communities. Based on experiences with graduate and undergraduate students spanning the last ten years at Texas State University--San Marcos (Texas State), it is suggested that a CE paradigm has been developed within the Department of Health Administration that merits consideration by other programs of health administration. As a model for change, it has the potential for reforming both health administration education and most other higher education disciplines as well.