A national higher education analysis of the skills, knowledge, and values essential for students in Community Development Education

The growing discipline of Community Development plays a vital role in addressing urban and rural community issues within the United States, and globally. Still, as Hains et al. pointed out in their 2020 article, there continues to be no consistent education or pedagogical practices available for future Community Development practitioners during students’ higher education experience. Thus, researchers conducted a modified Delphi study with an expert panel of Community Development educators from institutions of higher education across the United States. Upon culmination of three examining rounds, experts achieved consensus on 21 skills, 14 knowledge constructs and 17 values deemed essential for inclusion in Community Development Education curriculum in higher education. Ideally, including these constructs in a more coherent CD Education curriculum will lead to more consistently and effectively trained future Community Development practitioners. Implications, field application and future research are further discussed.