MTSU's director of Experiential Learning (EXL) will share examples of civic and community engaged projects utilized in the EXL Scholars Program at Middle Tennessee State University, followed by a discussion of research findings from an extensive study regarding graduation rates of those enrolled in EXL courses. This longitudinal investigation explored the question, “Does graduation frequency improve incrementally with each experiential learning course completed and does student race or sex influence the results?” In addition, MTSU’s senior administrator for Community Engagement & Inclusion will discuss how a new institutional focus on community-engaged scholarship and pedagogy will enhance the university's 20-year EXL initiative. MTSU’s white paper on engaged-scholarship and its pedagogy toolkit will be shared.