Preventing youth violence, reducing health disparities and improving academic achievement and maternal health are challenges increasingly faced by communities throughout the country.

Organizers of an upcoming community engagement conference hope to explore ways to form new partnerships to address such concerns.

During the daylong Nov. 3 “Connect: Community Engagement Conference,” Virginia Commonwealth University faculty will discuss “experiential learning opportunities with VCU students and community-based research to address community identified needs,” according to a news release.

The conference is sponsored by the VCU College of Humani- ties and Sciences and the VCU Office of Institutional Equity, Effectiveness and Success. Community members, community organizations and faculty, staff, students and alumni at VCU are invited to come together for a day of learning, networking and skill development.

Participants in the event, which will take place from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Nov. 2 at VCU’s University Student Commons, 907 Floyd Ave., will engage with speakers from VCU and around the region as they showcase the impact of successful community partnerships.

Keynote speakers include Lynn Pelco, Ph.D., a senior scholar at the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement at the University of Richmond, and Maghboeba Mosavel, Ph.D., associate vice president of community partnerships at VCU and an associate professor in the Department of Health Behavior and Policy at VCU’s School of Medicine.

Other speakers include VCU students, faculty and representatives from The Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Richmond, Healthy Heart Plus, Henrico County Public Schools, Richmond City Health District, Richmond Public Schools, and Sacred Heart Center.

Faye Belgrave, Ph.D., associate dean for equity and community partnerships at VCU’s College of Humanities and Sciences, is a co-organizer of the event. Unlike similar conferences that took place before the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Belgrave said this year’s conference “is different in that there is an intentional focus on involving community residents as speakers and attendees (as) seen in our registration.”

The conference is free and open to the public. Lunch will be served. Registration is required by Thursday, Oct. 27. For more information, please visit https://chs.vcu.edu/connect/.