Assistant VP for University Outreach wins service learning award at Gulf-South Summit

Ralph Foster

Outreach's own Ralph Foster, Assistant Vice President for University Outreach and Public Service, was awarded the Outstanding Practitioner Contributions to Service-Learning in Higher Education award at the 2020 Gulf South Summit, which was postponed due to COVID-19 but will be held in person in March of 2021.

Ralph Foster is Assistant Vice President for University Outreach and Public Service at Auburn University, with more than 30 years of service at the institution. Foster earned his bachelor’s degree from Auburn and a master’s from Troy State University-Montgomery, and completed the University of Georgia’s National Leadership Institute in Adult and Continuing Education. He is responsible for policy and strategic planning for the division, providing leadership for three administrative units, and overseeing service-learning projects and interdisciplinary outreach initiatives engaging more than 100 community and institutional partnerships. He oversees University Outreach’s institutional compliance and accreditations, twice leading Auburn’s successful application for the Carnegie Foundation’s prestigious community engagement classification, the most significant such designation in higher education.

In the academy, Foster has served on the Gulf-South Summit Executive Committee since 2009 and chaired the Summit conference in 2014. He has also served two terms on the Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement national editorial board and coedited a special edition on community engagement best practices. Foster’s publications include journal articles and book chapters on ethics, education, management, marketing, and civic engagement. His professional activities include board and committee positions in several state, regional, and national academic and community organizations. His awards and recognitions for civic and professional engagement include the title of Fellow in the Society for Advancement of Management, the highest professional designation of that international organization. Ralph and his wife Lesley reside in Montgomery, Alabama.

Last Updated: May 28, 2020