Community-centered learning: A pedagogical approach to building research capacity in community-based organizations

Efforts are underway around the country to find meaningful ways to engage communities in the research enterprise. Leaders in community-based organizations have voiced their intention to do more than merely help academic investigators recruit for research studies in their communities without community input. Instead, community-based leaders want the knowledge and skills to sit at the table with academic investigators and collaboratively plan and implement the research projects that affect their communities. In Boston, three academic medical institutions with Clinical Translational Science Awards and two community partners have come together to collaboratively design and implement a community-based training curriculum. Building your capacity: Advancing research through community engagement aims to build the capacity of community-based organizations to participate in research partnerships. Ten community agencies that addresses a range of community health needs make up the first cohort of this training program. This training builds on the strengths, resources and opportunities inherent among these community-based leaders and offers opportunities to strengthen academic-community partnerships. This paper focuses on the planning process to develop a community-based curriculum to meet learner's needs. The planning process with academic and community stakeholders included baseline interviews with training participants about their needs, expectations, and hopes for the training program. Observational data from the training sessions will supplement the interviews. Preliminary data and analysis from the first cohort – including the process of creating a collaborative learning community – will also be shared. This presentation will provide concrete strategies for developing a community-centered training program and recommendations for future interventions.