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262362 Young co-researchers reflections on a community-university partnershipTuesday, October 30, 2012
: 11:15 AM - 11:30 AM
Establishing successful, sustained, university-community partnerships is an essential strategy for building capacity of both researchers and community leaders; and for achieving a more balanced distribution of power in the production of knowledge. As project co-researchers, we reflect on our diverse experiences conducting a community-based participatory research (CBPR) study. The first author, born and raised in Puerto Rico, is pursuing doctoral studies in Chicago; the second author is a youth leader in Chicago's Puerto Rican community in Humboldt Park. The purpose of this project was to inquire about ‘place attachment' among Puerto Rican youth as it relates to civic engagement for a community of wellness, using qualitative methods in the form of PhotoVoice, including: photography, group discussions, and narrative writings. Twelve Puerto Rican/Latino youth ages 16 to 20 were recruited through the referrals from community institutions. We will discuss how our collaboration began, the role that each co-researcher played, community ‘insider/outsider issues', the significance of previously established community-university connections, and the ways in which the community took project ownership (e.g., poster exhibition, community disseminations, translation for local educators, youth leadership development, publication in local media). As beginners and young ‘researchers', we benefited from each other's support, proactively building upon each other's strengths to balance our weaknesses. Moreover, a shared cultural heritage and lived experiences as students of color contributed to the development of a strong working relationship. Lessons learned included: dealing with ethical issues related to conducting research with youth, respecting organizational culture, and managing competing priorities and deadlines.
Learning Areas:
Diversity and culturePublic health or related research Social and behavioral sciences Learning Objectives: Keywords: Community-Based Partnership, Hispanic Youth
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I conducted the data collection and analysis of this study under the supervision of my academic advisor. I am a PhD Candidate (Community Health Sciences) with a MPH from the University of Puerto Rico, this project is part of my dissertation work. I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.
Back to: 4102.0: Academic-community partnerships: the good, the bad, and the ugly
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