Community work in UDELAS: a critical review

Abstract

As of 2018, the Specialized University of the Americas- UDELAS, begins a process of study and analysis of the critical extension approach, with the purpose of introducing changes in university extension policies, within the framework of the formulation of the new plan strategic 2019-2023. At the time of the impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic that begins in March 2020, the world experiences a moment of generalized crisis, which has resulted in review processes within higher education institutions. UDELAS, in response to this new reality, has had to rethink and adopt new guidelines to fulfill its functions of teaching, research, extension and management, in accordance with the health regulations issued by the health authorities in Panama, which redefine a change in national life, from the economic, social, political and cultural point of view.

Work in the territories, one of the areas of action of university extension in UDELAS, constitutes one of the greatest challenges in this new reality, as the presence of the university in the community is limited; This is due to the measures of social isolation decreed by the national authorities and, therefore, the implementation of the distance work modality adopted by the university. It is precisely this scenario, which raises the need to take a look at the evolution of community work in UDELAS, identifying at each stage those elements that allow us to rethink the implementation of the critical extension approach as an essential part of the new policies of university extension, work models in territories and the adaptation of new schemes for a renewed connection with society.