Laurel Hirt, MA, is Director of the Center for
Community-Engaged Learning at the University of Minnesota. She has worked at
the U of MN in the field of community engagement for over 27 years supporting
academic and co-curricular community-engaged learning and community partnerships. Laurel led the effort to
create and implement the Community Engagement Scholars Program, which gives
undergraduates recognition on their academic transcript for thoughtfully
connecting community work throughout their undergraduate career. Laurel
received the 2005 MN Campus Compact’s Sister Pat Kowalski Leadership Award for
Advancing Service-Learning and Community-Campus Partnerships, the 2008 President’s
Award for Outstanding Service to the University of Minnesota and the 2015 President’s
Outstanding Community Service Award. Laurel represented the UMTC in the work to
pilot the Community Engagement classification system led by Carnegie Foundation
for the Advancement of Teaching. Laurel has served on several boards of
directors for local and national non-profits and is currently serving on the
Campus Compact TRUCEN Leadership Team.