Community-University Partnerships: The Benefits of Collaboration in Measuring Public Support for a Community Recreation Center

Abstract

Community recreation centers (CRCs) are gaining popularity across the country. While many support the argument that CRCs improve quality of life by building social capital and improving the physical health of residents, that support does not necessarily translate into community support for the funding and construction of CRCs. Some communities undertake surveys to try to gauge the support for CRCs, but have had mixed results on the insights provided by such polls. Furthermore, public perceptions about the accuracy and usefulness of survey data could lead to stakeholder disregard for the data produced by them. This paper focuses on the benefits of a robust partnership between a local community and a university to develop a survey that is beneficial to elected officials in gauging public support for funding and building a CRC. The community-university partnership was beneficial, productive and served the public interest and provided several lessons that can benefit others interested in a similar partnership.  The first lesson is that the community-university partnership helped build trust in the results of the survey.  Second, the partnership demonstrated that developing trust allows for stakeholders to view polling as an effective tool for gauging public opinion.  A third lesson learned is that collaboration between community stakeholders and the research team contributes to a survey tool that helps decision makers answer critical questions.  Another lesson learned is that shared values between the community and university research team contribute to building a strong partnership serving the public interest.  The fifth lesson is that experimental testing of funding options provides insights that allow decision makers to choose the most viable funding mechanism.  Overall, a robust community-university partnership contributed to the passage of a ballot referendum to build a CRC.  This community-university model of collaboration provides a framework for communities and universities to work together to serve the public good.