Virtual East St. Louis Historical Society
The purpose of the Virtual East St. Louis Historical Society is to provide an online past and present vision of the East St. Louis community. The virtual collection includes document archives, maps, photo galleries and videos. It is the aim of this project to provide students, teachers and the general public with important information that will enhance their knowledge of the great city of East St. Louis. The collection and archives can be utilized as a primary source for individuals who wish to further the legacy of the city.
This project is in line with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville's goal of community engagement in the St. Louis metropolitan area, in the hope that it will provide a valuable resource for East St. Louis community members and help strengthen the relationship between the community and the university.
Illinoistown: A Cultural History of East St. Louis in the Twentieth Century
This historical website is a joint project between McKendree University and East St. Louis Senior High School. The project contains numerous accessible documents about East St. Louis and its history.
The website contains documents of discussion questions, primary sources, secondary sources, student essays, and photographs/scans. All of which can be used for valuable learning and research.
The East St. Louis Action Research Project
The East St. Louis Action Research Project (ESLARP) began in 1987 and was led by students, faculty, and staff from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. ESLARP facilitated service projects that sought to improve neighborhoods and communities in East St. Louis, Alorton, Brooklyn, Centerville, and Washington Park, Illinois. Faculty at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign affiliated with ESLARP offered courses pertaining to East St. Louis, and students participated in outreach weekends, which gave students opportunities to work with organizers and local residents in East St. Louis and the region on service projects.
Over the last few years, responsibilities for the project transferred to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Institute for Urban Research. So far, we have worked on service projects and have begun reaching out to community organizations to coordinate service programs in the community.
Community-Engaged Scholarship Workgroup
The Community-Engaged Scholarship Workgroup (CESW) is a collaborative project initiated by Dr. Aminata Cairo (Department of Anthropology) and Dr. James Hanlon (IUR and Department of Geography). It includes SIUE faculty and staff who are committed to advancing scholarship that involves and serves the communities in which we do our research.
