Collaboratory partner network report
Date: 2026-06-14
Data source: sources/inbox/2026-06-14-collaboratory-ingestion/extracted/ (715 public activities, June 2026 API export)
Action: Analysis and report only — no corpus modifications, no EXT promotions
Related: collaboratory-ingestion-report.md · collaboratory-external-partner-promotion-review.md
1. Executive summary
The Collaboratory partner network is a bipartite graph linking 562 external organizations to DePaul campus units through 715 engagement activities. One partner dominates by every measure: Chicago Public Schools (60 activities, 15 DePaul units, 7 years of record). After CPS, centrality spreads across Steans Center–mediated community nonprofits, Egan Office–mediated CPS school sites, and Mission & Ministry / health / law pathways.
Most central institutional partners (non–CPS-school):
| Partner | Acts | Units | People | Years | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marillac St. Vincent Family Services | 7 | 9 | 5 | 6 | Anchor |
| Care for Friends | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | Anchor |
| Telpochcali Community Education Project | 7 | 8 | 6 | 6 | Anchor |
| Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital | 8 | 7 | 7 | 5 | Anchor |
| Erie Neighborhood House | 7 | 5 | 10 | 6 | Anchor |
| Archdiocese of Chicago | 13 | 3 | 3 | 4 | Emerging (high volume, narrow units) |
| ABCD Institute | 11 | 3 | 4 | 3 | Emerging |
DePaul units most connected to external organizations: Irwin W. Steans Center (191 distinct partners), Division of Mission and Ministry (145), Egan Office for Urban Education & Community Partnerships (72).
2. Methodology
2.1 Graph model
External partner ←——→ Activity ←——→ DePaul campus unit
↘
Activity member (faculty/staff)
- Nodes: external partners, DePaul units (from
campus_partnerson each activity). - Edges: partner linked on activity; unit linked on same activity. Edge weight = co-occurrence count.
- Internal filter: DePaul colleges, schools, divisions, and programs excluded from the external partner set (~8–10 mis-tags remain, e.g. “Accountancy,” “Provost” — noted and excluded from anchor lists).
2.2 Ranking axes
| Axis | Definition |
|---|---|
| Activities | Distinct Collaboratory activities listing the partner |
| DePaul units | Distinct campus units co-occurring on those activities |
| Faculty/staff | Distinct named members on shared activities |
| Courses | Course codes extracted via regex from activity title/description (API classes field empty in export; 112 partners with ≥1 code signal) |
| Years active | Distinct calendar years from activity created / modified timestamps (2020–2026 span in corpus) |
2.3 Centrality score (composite)
3×activities + 8×units + 2×people + 5×courses + 4×years + 0.5×weighted_unit_links
Used to identify anchor vs emerging vs peripheral partners (§4–5).
2.4 Role definitions
| Role | Criteria |
|---|---|
| District anchor | Chicago Public Schools district record |
| CPS school hub | Individual CPS school with ≥10 activity links (rollup under district graph) |
| Institutional anchor | ≥7 activities and ≥5 units, or ≥8 activities and ≥4 units; not a CPS school |
| Emerging | Last activity year ≥2024, ≥4 activities, ≥3 units |
| Established | ≥5 activities, not meeting anchor/emerging |
| Peripheral | <5 activities |
3. Network topology
flowchart TB
subgraph anchors [Anchor layer]
CPS[Chicago Public Schools]
MAR[Marillac St. Vincent]
CF[Care for Friends]
LURIE[Lurie Childrens Hospital]
ERIE[Erie Neighborhood House]
end
subgraph depaul [DePaul hub units]
STEANS[Steans Center]
EGAN[Egan Office]
MISSION[Mission and Ministry]
NURSING[School of Nursing]
CPIL[Center for Public Interest Law]
end
subgraph emerging [Emerging layer]
ARCH[Archdiocese of Chicago]
ABCD[ABCD Institute]
CCSO[Cook County Sheriffs Office]
LBFE[Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly]
end
CPS --> EGAN
CPS --> STEANS
CPS --> NURSING
MAR --> MISSION
MAR --> CPIL
CF --> STEANS
CF --> MISSION
LURIE --> MISSION
ERIE --> STEANS
ARCH --> NURSING
ABCD --> STEANS
CCSO --> STEANS
LBFE --> MISSIONInterpretation: The graph is hub-and-spoke, not evenly distributed. Three DePaul units—Steans, Mission & Ministry, Egan—account for the majority of external partner degree. Research-intensive units (CDM, ORS, individual labs) are underrepresented in Collaboratory partner metadata.
4. Anchor partners
4.1 District anchor
| Partner | Acts | Units | People | Courses | Years | Primary hub |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Public Schools | 60 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 7 | Egan Office (50 links), Steans (10), Nursing (3) |
CPS is the single most central node in the entire Collaboratory graph. Individual schools (Nixon, GALE, Lawndale, Pius V, etc.) are local hubs within the CPS subgraph—not separate institutional anchors.
4.2 Institutional anchors (non-CPS)
| Partner | Acts | Units | People | Years | Top DePaul units | Cluster |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Care for Friends | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | Steans, Mission & Ministry, Nursing | Steans engagement |
| Marillac St. Vincent Family Services | 7 | 9 | 5 | 6 | Law, CPIL, Pro Bono, Mission & Ministry | Mission / health |
| Telpochcali Community Education Project | 7 | 8 | 6 | 6 | Steans, Egan, CSS | Steans / education |
| Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital | 8 | 7 | 7 | 5 | Mission & Ministry, HPW, Athletics | Health |
| Erie Neighborhood House | 7 | 5 | 10 | 6 | Steans, CSS | Steans engagement |
| Maternity BVM | 7 | 5 | 3 | 3 | Steans, Egan | Steans / Egan |
Anchor insight: Marillac has the highest DePaul unit breadth (9) among non-CPS partners—bridging Law, Pro Bono, and Mission & Ministry. Erie has the highest named faculty/staff exposure (10 members).
4.3 CPS school hubs (subgraph only)
| School | Acts | Units | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| William P. Nixon Elementary | 17 | 6 | Egan-primary |
| GALE | 17 | 4 | Egan-primary |
| Lawndale Elementary Community Academy | 17 | 6 | Egan-primary |
| St. Pius V School | 15 | 2 | Parochial; cross-link Archdiocese |
| Our Lady of Tepeyac | 11 | 4 | Faith / Pilsen |
| Leif Ericson Elementary | 10 | 4 |
5. Emerging partners
Partners with last activity ≥2024, ≥4 activities, showing recent network growth:
| Partner | Last year | Acts | Units | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archdiocese of Chicago | 2024 | 13 | 3 | High activity volume; narrow unit fan-out (Nursing-heavy) |
| ABCD Institute | 2025 | 11 | 3 | Unconference / community-development thread via Steans |
| Centro Romero | 2026 | 6 | 5 | Immigration / Little Village |
| Cook County Sheriff's Office | 2024 | 4 | 9 | Unusual: low activity count, very high unit breadth |
| Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly | 2025 | 6 | 6 | Aging / Mission & Ministry cluster |
| Care For Real | 2025 | 5 | 8 | Food insecurity / Steans |
| St. Sabina | 2025 | 6 | 6 | Faith-community anchor (Auburn Gresham) |
| Institute for Housing Studies | 2026 | 4 | 6 | Housing / SPARK-adjacent |
| Goldin Institute | 2025 | 5 | 4 | Housing / LAS thread |
| Breakthrough Urban Ministries | 2025 | 4 | 5 | East Garfield Park / health equity |
Emerging vs anchor: Archdiocese and ABCD have high activity counts but fewer DePaul units than anchors— they are vertical (deep in one pathway) rather than horizontal (cross-unit) partners.
6. Partner clusters
Clusters derived from primary DePaul hub unit on each partner’s top co-occurring campus units.
6.1 Steans engagement cluster (largest)
Hub: Irwin W. Steans Center (191 partners, 293 partner–unit links)
| Representative partners |
|---|
| Chicago Public Schools, Care for Friends, Telpochcali, Erie Neighborhood House, Care For Real, Cradles to Crayons, KEEN Chicago, La Casa Norte, ABCD Institute |
Character: Service-learning, community-based research, nonprofit client pipeline. Primary translational pathway from DePaul to Chicago nonprofits.
6.2 Egan / CPS education cluster
Hub: Egan Office for Urban Education & Community Partnerships (72 partners, 230 links)
| Representative partners |
|---|
| Chicago Public Schools (50 links), GALE, Lawndale Community Academy, Nixon Elementary, Henderson, Maternity BVM |
Character: K–12 school partnerships, parent education, community drives. Distinct from Steans despite shared CPS district node.
6.3 Mission & Ministry / faith-health cluster
Hub: Division of Mission and Ministry (145 partners, 179 links)
| Representative partners |
|---|
| Daughters of Charity, Marillac Social Center, Precious Blood Ministry of Reconciliation, Marillac St. Vincent, Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly |
Character: Vincentian mission, faith-based service, elder care, reconciliation ministries.
6.4 Nursing / health sciences cluster
Hub: School of Nursing (62 partners, 97 links)
| Representative partners |
|---|
| Archdiocese of Chicago, Compassionate Care Network, Chicago Public Schools, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital |
Character: Clinical placements, health education workshops, hospital community service.
6.5 Law / pro bono cluster
Hubs: Center for Public Interest Law + Pro Bono & Community Service Initiative (31 partners each)
| Representative partners |
|---|
| Chicago Volunteer Legal Services, Ignite, First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple |
Character: Legal clinics, pro bono, immigration/asylum activity theme. Underconnected to hard-tech map but dense in Collaboratory.
6.6 CSH / behavioral health cluster
Hub: Department of Psychology + College of Science and Health
| Representative partners |
|---|
| Autism Assessment, Research, Treatment & Services (AARTS) Center at Rush, Endeavor Health, Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence |
Character: Community research, practicum, health equity. Rush appears here (2 acts) rather than as a top-level Collaboratory hub—consistent with low Collaboratory recurrence for EXT-010.
6.7 CSS / labor justice cluster
Hub: Community Service Studies
| Representative partners |
|---|
| Cook County Sheriff's Office, Telpochcali, A Just Harvest, Mujeres Latinas en Acción |
Character: Worker justice, policy-facing community engagement.
7. DePaul units most connected to external organizations
Ranked by distinct external partner count, then partner–unit link weight.
| Rank | DePaul unit | Distinct partners | Link weight | Top external partners |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Irwin W. Steans Center | 191 | 293 | ABCD Institute (11), CPS (10), Erie NH (5) |
| 2 | Division of Mission and Ministry | 145 | 179 | Daughters of Charity (7), Marillac Social Center (4) |
| 3 | Egan Office | 72 | 230 | CPS (50), GALE (16), Lawndale (16) |
| 4 | College of Science and Health | 63 | 69 | CPS (4), Nixon (2), Pius V (2) |
| 5 | School of Nursing | 62 | 97 | Archdiocese (4), CPS (3), Compassionate Care (3) |
| 6 | Department of Psychology | 51 | 54 | AARTS/Rush (2), IL Coalition Against DV (2) |
| 7 | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences | 47 | 48 | Goldin Institute (2), Endeavor Health (1) |
| 8 | Community Service Studies | 45 | 59 | A Just Harvest (3), Telpochcali (3), Cook County Sheriff (3) |
| 9 | Student Involvement | 35 | 36 | Feed My Starving Children (2), KEEN Chicago (1) |
| 10 | Center for Public Interest Law | 31 | 33 | Chicago Volunteer Legal Services (2), Ignite (2) |
| 11 | Pro Bono & Community Service Initiative | 31 | 33 | (same legal cluster as CPIL) |
| 12 | DePaul Family and Community Services | 29 | 29 | Mental-health school placements |
Notable absence: CDM, ORS, Jarvis/CyberLabs, individual research labs—minimal external partner degree in Collaboratory. The partner network reflects community engagement units, not research infrastructure.
8. Multi-axis rankings (top 15 each)
8.1 By activities
| Rank | Partner | Acts | Units | People | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago Public Schools | 60 | 15 | 10 | 7 |
| 2 | Archdiocese of Chicago | 13 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| 3 | ABCD Institute | 11 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| 4 | Care for Friends | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| 5 | Lurie Children's Hospital | 8 | 7 | 7 | 5 |
| 6 | Marillac St. Vincent | 7 | 9 | 5 | 6 |
| 7 | Telpochcali | 7 | 8 | 6 | 6 |
| 8 | Erie Neighborhood House | 7 | 5 | 10 | 6 |
| 9 | Maternity BVM | 7 | 5 | 3 | 3 |
| 10 | Daughters of Charity | 7 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| 11 | Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 |
| 12 | St. Sabina | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| 13 | Centro Romero | 6 | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| 14 | Care For Real | 5 | 8 | 4 | 4 |
| 15 | Erie NH — Little Village | 5 | 7 | 8 | 4 |
8.2 By DePaul unit breadth
| Rank | Partner | Units | Acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago Public Schools | 15 | 60 |
| 2 | Marillac St. Vincent | 9 | 7 |
| 3 | Cook County Sheriff's Office | 9 | 4 |
| 4 | Telpochcali | 8 | 7 |
| 5 | Care For Real | 8 | 5 |
| 6 | Care for Friends | 7 | 8 |
| 7 | Lurie Children's Hospital | 7 | 8 |
| 8 | GoSTEM | 7 | 4 |
| 9 | Erie NH — Little Village | 7 | 5 |
| 10 | Chicago Lights | 7 | 4 |
8.3 By faculty/staff (activity members)
| Rank | Partner | People | Acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago Public Schools | 10 | 60 |
| 2 | Erie Neighborhood House | 10 | 7 |
| 3 | Erie NH — Little Village | 8 | 5 |
| 4 | Precious Blood Ministry of Reconciliation | 8 | 5 |
| 5 | Lurie Children's Hospital | 7 | 8 |
| 6 | Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly | 7 | 6 |
| 7 | Envision Unlimited | 7 | 5 |
| 8 | Care for Friends | 6 | 8 |
| 9 | Telpochcali | 6 | 7 |
8.4 By course signals (regex extraction)
| Rank | Partner | Course codes | Acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago Public Schools | 5 | 60 |
| 2 | Care for Friends | 2 | 8 |
| 3 | GoSTEM | 2 | 4 |
| 4 | Centro Romero | 2 | 6 |
| 5 | ABCD Institute | 2 | 11 |
Limitation: Most activities lack structured course linkage in the export; course ranking is sparse and approximate. Cybersecurity Clinic course (CSC 390) does not surface at partner level because the clinic is tagged as a DePaul-internal community partner.
8.5 By years active (2020–2026 window)
| Rank | Partner | Years | Span |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago Public Schools | 7 | 2020–2026 |
| 2–7 | Marillac, Care for Friends, Telpochcali, Erie NH, LBFE, St. Sabina | 6 each | multi-year |
| 8 | La Casa Norte | 6 | 2020–2025 |
| 9 | Goldin Institute | 6 | 2020–2025 |
9. Central partners — synthesis
| Tier | Partners | Network function |
|---|---|---|
| Super-central | Chicago Public Schools | District-scale hub; bridges Egan + Steans + Nursing |
| Cross-unit anchors | Marillac, Care for Friends, Telpochcali, Lurie, Erie NH | Multi-unit institutional partners |
| Vertical emergents | Archdiocese, ABCD Institute | High activity, narrow unit spread |
| Breadth outliers | Cook County Sheriff's Office | Few activities, many units (CSS/Steans touchpoints) |
| CPS local hubs | Nixon, GALE, Lawndale, Pius V | School-level; subgraph of CPS |
| Already EXT-mapped, low Collaboratory degree | Rush, Sinai, Steans Family Foundation, Argonne | Important to Resource Map; peripheral in Collaboratory graph |
10. Implications for Resource Map (no action taken)
| Finding | Map relevance |
|---|---|
| Steans Center is the dominant broker | UNI-004 is the correct hub for recurring Collaboratory sync |
| Research labs absent from partner graph | Collaboratory cannot replace CDM/CSH web discovery for infrastructure |
| Health/legal clusters dense | Enrich UNI-012, RC-007, EXT-009/010 via Collaboratory edges, not new facility pages |
| CPS subgraph massive | EXT-013 is the correct aggregation point; do not spawn school-level EXT pages |
| Course linkage weak in API export | Future sync should capture structured classes field for curriculum-index crosswalk |
11. Limitations
- Course count derived from regex on activity text—not structured Collaboratory course entities.
- Faculty/staff = activity
membersonly; no role attribution (faculty vs student vs staff). - DePaul-internal leakages (~8 names) in raw partner set; filtered in this report’s anchor/emerging lists.
- Single snapshot (June 2026); emerging partners inferred from
last_year, not year-over-year delta. - No betweenness centrality computed (networkx unavailable); composite score used instead.
12. Data artifacts
| File | Contents |
|---|---|
extracted/partner_network_analysis.json |
Full partner stats + cluster seeds |
extracted/partner_network_report_data.json |
Ranked lists, anchors, emerging, unit connectivity |
Corpus modifications: none
Promotions performed: none