Local Economic Inclusion
For Drexel, being an engaged anchor institution means that we look to our campus neighbors as important partners in a shared
local economy.
Our Economic Inclusion initiative
The Economic Inclusion initiative of the Office of University Community Partnerships takes on a centralized support
role for Drexel's business functions. Our staff act as facilitators, connecting West Philadelphia economic development
partner organizations, businesses, and residents to the Drexel units that handle human resources, procurement, and construction. We work closely with Drexel's divisions of Procurement Services, Human Resources, Business Services, and Real Estate and Facilities to support and coordinate the locally-engaged anchor mission of the University's operations side.
Part of that work is coordinating adult education programs and access to human resources staff through the
Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships. At the Dornsife Center, local residents can use our open computer
lab, get help with applying for jobs, learn more about open positions at Drexel, and work towards completing their high
school diploma or GED. We run periodic programming at the Dornsife Center for West Philadelphia small businesses and
entrepreneurs around peer support and building capacity. UCP also works with important partners like
West Philadelphia Skills Initiative to hold periodic on-the-job training programs for jobs within the Drexel system.
These are just some of the different ways in which we pursue a local economic inclusion agenda:
Local Economic Inclusion Strategies: Step by Step Resources
After several years of careful work aligning Drexel's business practices to support local economic development, the UCP team
have developed a set of resources for other colleges and universities who are embarking on a similar path. We are committed
to deepening, sharing, and supporting this work with our colleagues in other institutions as part of the
Democracy Collaborative's
Anchor Dashboard initiative, and we disseminate information and resources at relevant conferences. We share these
resources here as part of that commitment.