Community Partners Core

The Community Partners (CP) Core objective is to incorporate community perspectives into all parts of the research and training pieces and translate research findings to the community for their advocacy and other efforts. To do this, the CP Core has embedded community partners from the priority population as invaluable partners with the research and training cores of the Center. Black voices are elevated and incorporated throughout the Center through the establishment of equitable partnerships between representatives from Black-led community-based organizations (CBOs), researchers, and healthcare providers.

The CP Core will also lead a research training laboratory where community partners and researchers learn in partnership and synergize their knowledge, experiences, assets (e.g., community resources, access to academic institutions), and networks to achieve the Center’s overall objective.

Lastly, the CP Core will help translate and disseminate the results of the Center’s research back to the community and a wide variety of stakeholders.

The CP Core is co-led by Zainab Jah and Melissa Goldin Evans and consists of 15 community members. Community members are either on the Community Advisory Board (CAB) or the Community Action Committee (CAC). The CAB consists of 5 members whose main responsibilities are to provide broad oversight of Center activities using an equity lens and serve as mentors to Trainees within the Training Core. The CAC consists of 10 members who are more engaged in the research projects. Each CAC member is a research partner with one of the Research Projects (RPs) and attends at least one RP meeting per month to ensure the work values equity and centers community.