What are the opening hours?

Monday 9am - 6pm Tuesday 9am - 6pm Wednesday 9am - 8pm Thursday 9am - 9pm Friday 10am - 6pm Saturday 9am - 5pm Sunday 9am - 5pm

Observing Civic Engagement Lab

Home
United States
Bloomington, IN
Observing Civic Engagement Lab

Call Directions Website Contact the organization

Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Observing Civic Engagement Lab, Nonprofit Organization, 107 S Indiana Avenue, IN 47405, Bloomington, IN.

Our research seeks to uncover how people interact within civil society organizations and how those interactions can strengthen organizations, promote civic engagement, and improve the quality of life in communities.

09/14/2026

Meet Margaret Ferguson!

Margaret is a Research Assistant for OCE. She really enjoys reading and researching all things related to the beauty industry. She is also the founder of a nonprofit organization called Beyond the Chair, which advocates for enhancing beauty education and unions in the beauty industry. In her free time, she also loves to paint while watching a good TV show or movie. When she feels physically good, she loves roller skating or working on her plants. She joined the OCE Lab to learn about other nonprofits and how organizations work together to bring about service and change for community members.

09/08/2026

Bloomington Sunrise Rotary engages professionals in service projects that strengthen communities locally and globally. Their work focuses on friendship, business development, personal growth, leadership, citizenship, education, and many other benefits for members and the community.

09/03/2026

What does a century-old service club actually look like in practice?

New on the OCE Lab blog, Claire Woodward takes a closer look at Kiwanis International: founded in Detroit in 1915 as a business networking group, reoriented toward service to children in 1919, and now roughly 6,300 clubs across 83 countries with headquarters just up the road from us in Indianapolis.

Several Kiwanis chapters participate in our observational research, which gives us a rare view of how much clubs vary. Some keep weekly meetings and patriotic rituals; others coordinate online and come together mainly for service projects. Our data also shows women participating at close to equal rates with men across participating clubs, less than four decades after they were first admitted as members in 1987.

Our thanks to the Kiwanis clubs partnering with us.

09/01/2026

OCE is excited to have students back on campus for the 2026-2027 Academic Year. Whether or not school is in session can have dramatic effects on the attendance, activities, and topics that Civil Society Organizations discuss. OCE continues to support research that reveals trends in how these groups affect democracy and their communities.

08/13/2026

The International Society for Third-Sector Research (ISTR) is dedicated to developing a global community of scholars, researchers, and practitioners who celebrate diversity, non-profit and philanthropic commitment to society, and rigorous interdisciplinary approaches in third-sector research.

Find Claire Woodward's conference report here, along with other conference participants reflecting on the big questions facing those in the third sector today.

Link below in comments:

07/30/2026

Who actually gets a seat at the table in civil society, and who's left bringing their own chair?

In our latest blog post, postdoctoral fellow Claire Woodward reflects on ISTR's International Conference in Lisbon, where OCE researchers presented on women's leadership and the role of technology in CSOs. She unpacks how income, education, employment, and even caretaking responsibilities shape who shows up to participate in civil society — and why lowering barriers matters more than opening doors that still require navigating an obstacle course to reach.

07/23/2026

We were honored to be selected for an Affinity Grant from Women's Philanthropy at Indiana University, which aspires to foster an ecosystem of inclusive philanthropy that creates transformational change for all. Their support of OCE Lab's research is invaluable and helps us continue our research on civil society, notably findings on local women in leadership who make meaningful impact possible.

06/22/2026

Do we seek out people who think like us, or can community organizations help bridge differences?

Inspired by The Big Sort, our latest blog examines whether Americans are becoming more isolated in like-minded groups. Observing Civic Engagement Lab observations suggest that even in seemingly homogeneous communities, civil society organizations continue to create opportunities for dialogue, relationship-building, and problem-solving across differences.

Check out Claire Woodward, PMP / PhD's latest article at https://blogs.iu.edu/oce/2026/06/19/the-big-sort-sort-of/

04/08/2026

Meet Yuchen Hu, one of our Research Assistants!

Yuchen is a Master's student who joined the lab to explore how civic engagement contributes to community development. In her free time, Yuchen enjoys baking and playing video games.

Address

107 S Indiana Avenue, IN 47405
Bloomington, IN
47403

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 6pm
Tuesday	9am - 6pm
Wednesday	9am - 8pm
Thursday	9am - 9pm
Friday	10am - 6pm
Saturday	9am - 5pm
Sunday	9am - 5pm

Telephone

+17196609416

Website

https://oce.indiana.edu/index.html

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Observing Civic Engagement Lab posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Observing Civic Engagement Lab:

Want your organization to be the top-listed non profit organization in Bloomington?