Renee Miller Zientek is the executive director of the Center for Community Engaged Learning (CCEL). In that role she is responsible for contributing to development and expansion of community-engaged learning at Michigan State University. She is also interim executive director of the Career Services Network and co-director of the MSUvote Campus and Community Initiative.
Renee was the founding director of the Center for Service Learning and Student Volunteer Programs at the University of Michigan–Flint (UM–F). In her 10-year history with UM–F she was responsible for university outreach, alumni affairs, and corporate and foundation affairs. She served as a director, executive director, and assistant vice chancellor at UM–F. From 2010-2013 she served as executive director of the Michigan Campus Compact and senior director of civic engagement for the Michigan Nonprofit Association. In those roles, she was responsible for supporting 40 college presidents and campuses across the state of Michigan as well as leading a national college access and success initiative for Campus Compact. Her role with the Michigan Nonprofit Association was to facilitate partnerships focused on opportunities for lifelong engagement in Michigan, which included directional oversight of several large-scale national service (AmeriCorps) programs.
Renee has presented at several national conferences focused on higher education, collaboration, and nonprofit management. She has a BA from the University of Michigan-Flint and an MA from the University of Michigan. She has served multiple nonprofit organizations in Michigan as a volunteer and/or board member, notably the Flint River Corridor Alliance (where she was appointed the first president/chair) and the Community Relations Coalition in East Lansing. She is currently the chairperson of the Capitol Area United Way’s Volunteer Services Workgroup and the campus representative of the Campus Compact TRUCEN (The Research University Civic Engagement Network) for Michigan State University.
Research and interest areas:
- Community engaged learning and co-education
- Partnerships and collaboration
- Community and economic development
- National service
Recent Publications
Brown, R. C., Doberneck, D. M., Sewavi, J., Springer, N. C., & Wilson, B., Jr. (2020). Michigan State University Global Community-Engaged Learning Rubric and Best Practice Guide [Scholarly project]. In MSU Center for Community Engaged Learning. Retrieved 2020, from https://communityengagedlearning.msu.edu/
Doberneck, D. M., Bargerstock, B.A., McNall, M., Van Egeren, L., & Zientek, R. (2017). Community engagement competencies for graduate and professional students: Michigan State University’s approach to professional development. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning 24(1).
Brown, R.C. (2017). [Review of the book Rebuilding Community After Katrina: Transformative Education in the New Orleans Planning Initiative by Reardon, K, & Forester, J.]. Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, Volume 21, Number 1, 172
Fitzgerald, H. E., Bargerstock, B., van Egeren, L., & Zientek, R. (2017). Community engagement scholarship, research universities, and the scholarship of integration. In J. Sachs & L. Clark (Eds). Learning through community engagement: vision and practice in higher education (pp. 31-52). Singapore: Springer.
Doberneck, D. M., Bargerstock, B.A., McNall, M., Van Egeren, L., & Zientek, R. (2017). Community engagement competencies for graduate and professional students: Michigan State University’s approach to professional development. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning 24(1).
Recent Presentations
(May 2026)
Mindfulness in Community Engagement: Cultivating Ethical Partnerships
Brewer, S., & Miller Zientek, R. (2026, May 7). Mindfulness in community engagement: Cultivating ethical partnerships [Conference presentation]. MSU Spring Conference on Teaching and Learning, East Lansing, MI.
(March 2026)
Are We Getting It Right? Centering Community Partner Perceptions in Community Engagement
Barrett, M., Frabutt, J., Hightower, M., & Miller Zientek, R. (2026, March 18). Are we getting it right? Centering community partner perceptions in community engagement [Roundtable]. Campus Compact Conference (Compact26), Chicago, IL.
(March 2026)
Mindfulness in community Engagement: Cultivating Ethical Partnerships
Brewer, S., & Miller Zientek, R. (2026, March 17). Mindfulness in community engagement: Cultivating ethical partnerships [Promising practices presentation]. Campus Compact Conference (Compact26), Chicago, IL.
