Dr. Theresa M. Harrison brings both passion and a proven record of community engagement at the local, state, and national level in addition to over 15 years of experience as a higher education administrator. A community-engaged scholar, Dr. Harrison’s work focuses on how local communities engage with various stakeholders (e.g., university-community partnerships, anchor institutions) and the resulting impact. She was recently selected to the Bridging Differences in Higher Education Learning Fellowship-Campus Based Cohort.

Harrison earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and Biology from East Tennessee State University, Master of Science degree in Counseling & School Psychology from the University of Nebraska at Kearney, Master of Public Administration with an emphasis in Community and Economic Development from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Foundations and Inquiry from the University of South Carolina.

Prior to her current role, Harrison served as a research scientist, project manager, and in various student affairs roles focused on community service, living-learning communities, and experiential learning.

Harrison currently serves on the Board for Literacy SC, a committee member for Housing Innovation: Children's Edition, and maintains active involvement in various professional organizations, including Campus Compact, International Association for Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement, and the American Educational Research Association.

Recent publications:

Harrison, T. M. (2025). Community Engagement Networks: Utilizing the Untethered. The Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education.

Myers, C. & Harrison, T. M. (book chapter proposal accepted, 2025). “We Been Had the Sauce: Carrying Culture, Confidence and Care in the Academy”. In A. Gilmore & A. Mitchell (Eds.), Don’t Get Lost in Their Sauce: Navigating Academic Identify, the Creative Self, and Reductive Practices. Myers Education Press.