Community and Collaborator Services
Resources for Engaging Communities in Research
The CCE program provides research teams with resources and best practices to help meet community-engaged research goals. The program focuses on providing services through one-on-one consultations, training and education, and community engagement.
- Individual consultations: Consultations are designed to guide study teams in implementing and applying evidence-based approaches, methodologies, and resources that facilitate meaningful engagement in research. CCE staff can advise researchers at any stage of the research process, from proposal planning to implementation and dissemination of findings, on the design of community engagement plans, patient and public advisory boards, engagement strategies, data access, and preparation.
Consultations are available during regular office hours or by appointment and are free of charge to university researchers and the public.
- Liaising with community stakeholders: On behalf of researchers, CCE brings community experts and organizational representatives to the table to contribute their expertise and insights on research questions, study implementation, and community engagement plans. These sessions often take the form of specialized, community-facilitated focus groups, based on a method developed at Vanderbilt University and widely used nationally. CCE staff also broker connections to trusted partners, guide environmental scans of study areas, and orient research teams to local research contexts.
- Trainings: CCE staff and faculty develop and deliver training designed to build the capacity of research teams and the public to engage in multi-directional dialogue, collaboration, and participation in health research. We achieve this through conventional lectures and presentations in graduate, postdoctoral, and vocational training programs, as well as through public science academies, mini-medical schools, and public events that integrate the arts, sciences, and storytelling into powerful lessons on the workings of science.
How much does this service cost?
CCE program staff support researchers at no cost.
What kind of help can I expect from CCE?
The CCE Program serves as a bridge between investigators and community collaborators. Consultations are an opportunity to consult with social science, and public health specialists in a friendly, informal setting on approaches, methods and resources available to study teams designed to support engaging the public in research––as patients, advisors, or collaborators, and at all stages of the research process. CCE supports researchers to:
- Develop partnerships for research
- Form an effective partnership with community collaborators around your healthcare research interest
- Design a community-engaged study
- Integrate the lived experience and skill of community members into the design or implementation of a research project
- Build skills in community-engaged research methods
- Understand the health limitations and possibilities of different data sources
How can a CCE consultation enhance my proposal?
Researchers increasingly are called upon to address, engage, and involve communities. We advise the study team on how to:
- Bring community collaborators or community members' perspectives into the development of a research question
- Adopt effective recruitment and retention strategies for adolescent and young adults, older adults, and other populations underrepresented in health research
- Identify appropriate data collection tools and approaches
- Prepare proposal sections related to community engagement plans and partnerships
- Disseminate findings to communities
How much does this service cost?
CCE program staff support researchers free of charge.