Linking the community to the classroom: Engaging the community to move academic public health instruction from the theoretical to the practical

Sometimes a gap exists between instruction in courses that are skill-based and the practice of those skills in the field. The hypothetical models used in the classroom for addressing a public health problem don’t always reflect reality, and students are anxious to apply skills in situations that do. Forging academic-community partnerships is essential to help inform instruction that moves from the theoretical to the practical, and benefits both the student experience and the community in need of public health initiatives; it can result in high quality and well-researched products a health department can implement.  In spring 2013, an intervention planning and communication course at Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) utilized practice-based teaching through a partnership between the classroom and the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC).  Students created deliverables for BPHC based on the commission’s priority areas.  Students continually met with BPHC and key stakeholders to understand the needs of the community, the resources of BPHC, and the areas of interest for program development.  Students not only met the course objectives but gained practical experience and skills, with some students continuing work with BPHC after the semester.  In addition, BPHC obtained high-quality deliverables in a relatively short time-frame that they are implementing. The following year, the initial collaboration extended to other divisions within BPHC and other courses within BUSPH.  Regardless of focus area, practice-based teaching benefits students, faculty, and community alike.  The development and implementation of this collaboration offers lessons learned to the field.