LEVERAGING RESEARCH AND PUBLICATIONS FOR SUSTAINABLE UNIVERSITY-COMMUNITY RELATIONS
The task of sustaining tertiary education is one that needs consideration from various facets. Acknowledging the necessity to impact the host communities of tertiary institutions is a fundamental principle of sustaining tertiary education in Nigeria. It is against this background that this paper examines how research and publications can serve as tools for universities to impact host communities as part of their public and community relations strategies. Social Responsibility and Developmental Media Theories served as the paper’s theoretical frameworks. This theoretical paper shows that universities can strengthen ties with their host communities by dedicating research and publication projects which reflect the local environment. The paper concludes therefore, that Nigerian universities have a responsibility to re-address the collective goal of university education. One effective approach towards this goal is to prioritise research and publication efforts as means to cultivate strong relations with their host communities.
Community Relations, Developmental Media Theory, Publications, Research, Social Responsibility Theory, Tertiary Education.