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Hennepin University Partnership highlights two decades of county–university collaborations
Summary
Hennepin University Partnership (HUP) presenters told the county board July 29 that the university collaboration has supported more than 500 joint projects over two decades, providing research and student engagement to help county programs.
Hennepin University Partnership staff and university faculty briefed the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners on July 29 about two decades of joint work between the county and the University of Minnesota.
Amy Delahanty, director of the Hennepin University Partnership (HUP or HUB in the meeting), told the board the partnership has produced more than 500 joint projects that translate research into county programs. "When researchers, public servants and communities collaborate, residents thrive," Delahanty said, summarizing the partnership's mission.
Delahanty described a master cooperative agreement the county and university use to speed contracting and support sustained collaboration through a jointly funded HUB office housed in the University of Minnesota's Center for Urban and Regional Affairs. Faculty and staff speakers recounted projects that included research on disposition of tax-forfeited land, community gardening siting, asset-mapping for natural resource resilience and a broadband and digital inclusion survey completed by a student assistantship.
Ryan Allen, faculty at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, said university research helped the county prioritize locations for community gardens and led to unanticipated community benefits. Karen Gallas, manager of the Land and Water Unit in the county's Environment and Energy Department, described the university's data and technology capacity as critical to county natural-resources planning.
A recent student project in the county Office of Broadband and Digital Inclusion was highlighted by Nuzhad Fatimam, who said the work produced a comprehensive report with recommendations to reduce broadband disparities in Hennepin County.
Delahanty noted HUP's 20th anniversary and thanked more than 60 stakeholders who contributed to the partnership's recent visioning process; materials were made available on the HUP website and copies were noted as available at the meeting.
The board received the presentation as part of the "Hennepin highlights" portion of the agenda; no formal board action was required.
