What is the Purpose of the Hennepin-University Partnership? Vision Statement The Hennepin-University Partnership is a strategic alignment between the state’s primary research university and the state’s largest county—focusing on connecting where it counts. Goals Develop knowledge: Conduct joint research on issues of mutual interest Share Expertise: Both academic and practitioner expertise Provide Students field experiences to enrich their learning experience and build a more capable future work force Share knowledge and best practices around the operation of large institutions Since 2005, Hennepin County and the University of Minnesota have partnered on a broad initiative to capture the value for both organizations through a more strategic collaboration—connecting the two organizations where mutual benefit can be found. This includes collaboration on community-based research, sharing of academic and practitioner expertise, and providing students with valuable real-world experience. Examples of recent collaborations include: Hennepin County (HCL) offers a wealth of information resources, including databases and selected websites, free to the public via its website ( But how easy is it for users to find these resources? To help answer that question, librarians from HCL’s Information and Online Services section will be working with Lee-Ann Kastman Breuch, PhD, and her students in the course titled, Usability and Human Factors in Technical Communication. Students enrolled in the course will conduct usability tests of the library website in the University’s Usability Lab by observing actual users as they move through selected website tasks. At the end of the semester the library will receive a copy of the student-generated test plan, test materials, and test results (including recommendations for improvement). In addition, librarians will be invited to a final presentation in which the student team discusses the results of the usability test. HC librarians are excited about this opportunity to work with university students and to learn about improving the public’s experience of using the library’s website. Human Services and Public Health Department is working on a project titled, “Extension: Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD)” with the University of Minnesota Extension. The purpose of the project is to develop a training video for community-based staff that provides services to adults with IDD. The University is helping to develop the video and one of the University members “starred” in the first video. Housing, Community Works & Transit worked with interns from the University of Minnesota, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, on a project titled, “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Impact on Hennepin County.” This short-term research project provided the Hennepin County Board with an objective summary to publish research about the macroeconomic effects of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Hennepin-University Partnership “Connecting where it counts.” Interested in working with the HUP? Contact us!│ Kathie Doty │ Program Director │ │ 12/17/2015