A boundary spanner intervention for increasing community engagement outcomes — Phase 1: Framing case studies in context

A framework is presented to provide guidelines for the implementation of a Boundary Spanner, or individual who links a university to its outside partners, to improve upon university/community engagement. A Boundary Spanner is systematically implemented to evaluate university/community engagement in order to provide insight into the interconnections between stakeholders to increase mutual benefits. The first phase of this research, which contextually aligns barriers and engagement initiatives around such an intervention, is discussed. The future phases of this research will strategically use the boundary spanner within case studies to minimize barriers, increase outcomes, and more clearly understand how a boundary spanner intervention can systematically impact university/community engagement.