Cathy Avila-Linn is a Community Engagement Consultant who participated in training by the Carnegie Elective Classifications Team and served as a reviewer for the 2024 cycle of the Community Engagement Carnegie Classification. Cathy brings over 20 years of experience in the field of community engagement and experience designing and facilitating strategic planning processes and program reviews.
Cathy supports campuses applying for the Carnegie Classification by:
- Assisting you in communicating the value of community engagement on student learning throughout the application process.
- Guiding a high-level review of the 2026 application framework to identify your campus’ strengths and areas for growth.
- Advising campus leadership on developing an assessment team with input on the roles and responsibilities of team members.
- Preparing your team for the application process by identifying campus data sources, resources needs, tasks and timeframes.
- Supporting your team in communicating a coordinated, unified voice throughout all ten sections of the application narrative.
- Providing periodic consultative coaching sessions focused on the applicant's needs (e.g., choosing community partnership and curricular examples or designing the application narrative).
- Assisting your team in collecting, synthesizing, and prioritizing large amounts of ideas, information, goals, and strategies in support of a larger vision.
- Providing feedback on written drafts of the application.
- Facilitating workshops on specific sections of the application.
- Supporting your team in planning for post-assessment celebration, reflection, and action planning.
