For 35 years, Associate Professor Billy O’Steen has measured the impact that experiential learning has on individuals and organisations in order to build better learning experiences. In Ōtautahi Christchurch, Billy’s community impact is widely known and recognised in the work of the Student Volunteer Army (SVA) following the 2010/2011 earthquakes and UC’s Community Engagement Hub. Consistent across his work is the application of critical reflection and evaluation to maximise learning outcomes and impact.
Building Better Experiences through Research
Since its founding in 2015, the Community Engagement Hub (Hub) has served as both a facilitator of community-based experiences and a research hub about them with the goal of building better experiences through research. For a decade the Hub has collaborated with local and international individuals and organisations to provide life-changing experiences for staff and students from UC and other educational institutions. Along the way, research on these experiences has resulted in articles, book chapters, conference presentations, films, and the design and launch of the Bachelor of Youth and Community Leadership degree in 2019. These collective efforts were recognised in 2023 by becoming a finalist for the international Community Engagement Initiative of the Year Award.
