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ADDITIONAL SERVICES AT CUP:

BACKGROUND
A number of factors have provided a fertile background on which to establish new university-community collaborations. The University of Nevada Las Vegas is undergoing rapid transformation and reorganization, commencing with the development of a strategic plan and a renewed emphasis on becoming a premier urban university. Coupled with the introduction of the strategic plan in 1996 the Greenspun College of Urban Affairs was created to bring together several units from across campus that had the greatest direct interface with community agencies. These same departments contained a rich repository of faculty that engaged in applied research initiatives that specifically addressed urban issues. Over a brief period of time, the Greenspun College has increased its collaborations with the local community and has promoted extensive applied research. The Center for Urban Partnerships (CUP) helps the Greenspun College and UNLV extend outreach services into the community. A primary goal of CUP is to facilitate collaboration between the University and the community to address the issues and concerns facing the citizens and human service agencies in the Las Vegas Valley. The Center for Urban Partnerships builds on a myriad of existing collaborations and programs both inside and outside the Greenspun College.

BASIC CUP DESCRIPTION
The Center for Urban Partnerships is an interdisciplinary organization whose purpose is to develop, coordinate, implement, support, and publicize collaborative projects within the community. As an umbrella organization, CUP provides an infrastructure and serves as a clearinghouse where faculty and staff from the university seek partnerships in research, service, and education. A major strength of the Center is its reliance on a community coalition network, comprised of local businesses, service agencies, and community outreach organization. A primary goal of the network is to establish research collaborations between the Center and the community that prove beneficial for all organizations and to remedy those factors that place individuals and organizations at risk for failure. The Center casts a wide berth with respect to focal populations and promotes developmental studies and action-oriented program development across the lifespan

Faculty and staff at CUP strive to make CUP a nationally visible center for conducting research, providing a full range of training services, and establishing collaborative partnerships focusing primarily on urban issues. A primary strategy of the Center in accomplishing this goal in collaboration with community organizations is to empower the community with necessary and requisite skills so that individual organizations can become equal partners in executing the functions of each of five Cores (program development, evaluation, inter-group relations, training and dissemination, policy and development).