UWM School & College Realignment: The Helen Bader School of Social Welfare, School of Education and School of Information Studies will be housed under the new College of Community Engagement and Professions on July 1, 2023. Learn more.
Adults and children huddle together and put their hands together in a pile while smiling and laughing

A community education bachelor’s program for challenging inequality and enhancing strengths in schools and urban communities.

Many classes have online and hybrid options, and you may be able to apply credits from past professional experiences to this degree. Plus, most students in the Community Engagement and Education program choose a submajor that fits their interests and career goals.

Program Type

Major

Program Format

On Campus, Online
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Why Choose the Program?

  • Flexibility: Full online (not all classes offered online every semester) and hybrid options.
  • Affordability: Up to 42 credits for prior experience.
  • Individual support: Responsive faculty who understand that students have lives beyond the classroom.
  • Diversity: Over 50% students of color.
  • Success: High graduation rates for students from all backgrounds.
Image of School of Education December 2022 graduate, Jasmine Salton (african american woman)
Community Engagement and Education graduates talk about their experience in the program.

Program Highlights

  • Gain skills in:
    • Leadership and collaboration
    • Education
    • Program development
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Social analysis
  • Discover the rich complexities of community and school contexts in collaboration with local leaders.
  • Thrive in a supportive learning environment with one of the most diverse student bodies and faculties in Wisconsin.
  • Complete program fully online (not all classes offered online every semester) and/or through hybrid (face-to-face and online) coursework.
  • Pursue careers in
    • Community-based organizations and government
    • K-12 schools (CEED does not license K-12 teachers for public schools)
    • Colleges and universities

Interested? Applications are free! Advisors will help you plan your pathway to graduation.

Accelerated Master’s Degree Program

Interested students can pursue MS degrees in Cultural Foundations of Community Engagement and Education or Cognitive & Developmental Sciences in conjunction with the Community Engagement and Education BS program, completing the combined degrees with fewer total credits.

Program Requirements

Note: Not all classes are available online every semester. View the Required Course Offering Pattern table below to see online and face-to-face/hybrid offering patterns for Community Engagement and Education required courses each semester. Few required classes are offered in summer semester.

Required Course Offering Pattern

Course #FallSpringSummer
ED POL 111OnlineFace-to-Face/Hybrid
ED POL 112Face-to-Face/HybridOnline
ED POL 113/203Face-to-Face/Hybrid, OnlineFace-to-Face/Hybrid, Online
ED POL 114Face-to-Face/HybridOnline
ED POL 375Face-to-Face/Hybrid, OnlineFace-to-Face/Hybrid, Online
ED POL 506OnlineFace-to-Face/Hybrid
ED POL 534OnlineOnlineOnline
ED POL 601Face-to-Face/HybridOnline

Credit for Prior Professional Educational Experience (PPEE)

The Community Engagement and Education major values the experience you bring to the program. Students with a range of work and community experience may earn up to 42 lower-division credits by taking exams. Students pay for 3 credits, and any additional credits earned through exam are free. Community Engagement and Education is the only major at UWM that offers PPEE credits.

Submajors

Most students in Community Engagement and Education build their own program by choosing classes that fit their interests.

Community Engagement and Education also offers a series of transcript-designated certificate programs and submajors designed for students interested in specific careers.

Minor

The minor in Community Engagement is open to all undergraduate students. With this minor students can learn about local urban communities and how to improve them. This practical knowledge can provide a foundation for building a career in human services.

Honors Requirements

Alumni Profiles

Explore brief interviews with Community Engagement and Education graduates by visiting the Alumni Profiles webpage.

Fast-Growing Employment Prospects in Program Related Employment

  • 12% (double the average) job growth: Social and Community Service Program Managers.
  • 10% (double the average) job growth: Community and Social Service Occupations.
  • 8% (one and a half times the average) job growth: Administrators of Preschool and Childcare Centers.

Fieldwork for Experience

Get credit for fieldwork internships in the Community Engagement and Education program to strengthen your resume, network to make connections for jobs, and get recommendations from people in the field.

A Sample of Actual Jobs Found by Graduates

Nonprofit Sector

After School Programs

  • After-School Site Director: Milwaukee Public Schools & many other organizations
  • Lead Program Specialist: YMCA
  • Program Coordinator & Club Manager: Boys and Girls Clubs

Youth Work

  • Youth Organizer: Pathfinders & Voces
  • Coordinator: Boys & Girls Clubs & Racine Youth Coalition
  • Foster Care Educator: Children’s Hospital
  • Career Counselor: Milwaukee Public Schools

Community Engagement

  • Family Engagement Coordinator: Head Start
  • Community Outreach Specialist: Girl Scouts
  • Community Development Advisor: Peace Corps

Other Nonprofit Positions

  • Supervisor of Life Skills: Sojourner House
  • Volunteer Coordinator: Walker’s Point Center
  • Program Manager: City Year
  • Branch Director: Boys & Girls Clubs
  • Recruitment Manager: Girl Scouts
  • Founder and Director: ASHA Project
Government Sector
  • Housing Program Officer: City of Milwaukee
  • Supervisor for Family Services
  • Employment and Training Specialist: WI Department of Workforce Development
  • Social Work Supervisor, Rock County
K-12 Education: Teaching

Community Engagement and Education graduates teach, often after pursuing post-graduate licensure, in:

  • Public School Districts: Milwaukee, Waukesha, Stevens Point, Shelby County….
  • Charter Schools: La Causa, Hmong American Peace Academy, Highland Community….
  • Private Schools: Salam, Milwaukee Excellence Charter….
University Sector (often after completing MS degree)
  • Student Advisor: UWM, Carthage College, UW-Whitewater and Boston College
  • Admissions Counselor: MATC and Concordia
  • Student Support Specialist: Gateway Technical
Child Care Sector

Community Engagement and Education graduates direct, own or teach in child care organizations across Milwaukee.

Non-School Educators
  • Parent Educator: Next Door Foundation
  • Nutrition Education Coordinator: UW Extension
  • Early Childhood Trainer: West Allis Association
Case Management

Case Manager: Southwest Key, Legal Aid Society, Community Care and more

Political Service
  • WI State Representative & State Senator
  • Milwaukee Alderperson & County Supervisor
  • Wauwatosa Alderperson
Graduate School – Post Graduation

Community Engagement and Education graduates often go on to complete graduate degrees including the MS in Cultural Foundations of Community Engagement and Education in the same Educational Policy department; MBAs; master’s degrees in Counseling, Higher Education, Educational Administration, a range of social sciences and more.

Some complete PhDs and are university faculty.

Faculty

Toshiba Adams (black woman), Lecturer in Educational Policy & Community Studies
  • Lecturer, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Raquel Farmer-Hinton (black woman), Associate Professor in Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Associate Professor, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Darwyn Fehrman
  • Lecturer, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Florence Johnson (black woman), Lecturer in Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Lecturer, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Okja Kwon
  • Lecturer, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Calvin Lewis (black man), Lecturer in Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Lecturer, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Kalyani Rai (nepalis woman), Associate Professor in Educational Policy & Community Studies
  • Associate Professor, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Aaron Schutz (white man), Professor in Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Professor, Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Department Chair, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Rajeswari Swaminathan (indian woman), Professor in Department of Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Professor, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Javier Tapia (hispanic man), Associate Professor in Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Associate Professor, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Ben Trager (white man), Lecturer in Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Lecturer, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Aaria Troiano (white woman), Teaching Faculty III in Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Teaching Faculty III, Educational Policy and Community Studies
Agnes Williams (african american woman), Lecturer in Educational Policy and Community Studies
  • Lecturer, Educational Policy and Community Studies

Advising

  • (Last names A – L) – Tyree Bolden
  • (Last names M – Z) – Andrea Azarian
Andrea Azarian (white woman), Senior Academic Advisor in Office of Student Services
  • Senior Academic Advisor, Office of Student Services
Tyree Bolden (black man), Academic Advisor in Office of Student Services
  • Academic Advisor, Office of Student Services