People interested in forging high-impact community-academic research partnerships have a new, free training module designed to help them do just that.
The module, “Building a foundation for community-engaged research,” focuses on what community-based participatory research (CBPR) is, what it can accomplish, and how it differs from similar research approaches. More training modules are expected to be available in the future.
The module covers principles and tools for success, offering guidance for supporting authentic, equity-grounded research collaborations that drive social change.
The module includes real-world examples of research partnership situations that may be encountered with the opportunity to identify and analyze underlying issues. Plus, there are questions trainees can ask themselves to assess their readiness for community-engaged research, along with steps that can be taken to get started or improve readiness.
The training module is available to all, including community members, students, faculty, staff, and community-academic research teams. It can be used for asynchronous individual learning, classrooms and other group learning settings, or incorporated into hybrid approaches that combine modules with opportunities for in-person practice and community-academic co-learning and relationship-building.
Authors include:
- Susan Ann Gust, Community Knowledge Holder and Facilitator, President, Partners Three Consulting Company (currently a Senior Program Manager with the UMN Clinical and Translational Science Institute’s Community Engagement to Advance Research and Community Health (CEARCH) team)
- Shannon Pergament, MPH, MSW; M. Beatriz Torres, MPH, PhD; and Bai Vue, MEd, SoLaHmo Partnership for Health & Wellness (SoLaHmo) at Community-University Health Care Center (CUHCC).
- Michele Allen, MD, MS, Co-Director, Community Engagement to Advance Research and Community Health (CEARCH) and Co-Lead, Community & Collaboration, UMN Clinical and Translational Science Institute
In addition, Janet Shanedling, PhD, and Susan Wolf, MEd, contributed to the module’s design and technology, respectively.