Matías G. Flores (Chile) uses a socio-historical approach to study higher education community engagement. Currently, he is focused on three lines of research: 1) Recovering the history of community engagement practices in the Global South, focusing on Latin America; 2) Understanding the politics and university imaginaries of the next-generation engaged-scholars in Chile, in a context of sociopolitical change; 3) Fostering a global dialogue in higher education community engagement, questioning the limits and potential reproduction of neo-colonial dynamics.

Before starting his Ph.D. studies at Cornell University, Matías worked at Universidad de Chile in the Vice-Provost Office of Community Engagement and Communications (Vicerrectoría de Extensión y Comunicaciones), where he coordinated the Data and Analysis Unit. In that position, he studied the experience of faculty, students, and community members, conducted quantitative studies for external accreditation, organized seminars on community engagement, and co-edited a book that gathered more than 50 community engagement projects.