Specific Aim

Foundation

Activity

Measurable Outcome

Improve the health-related research capacity at an Hispanic Serving Institution

HSIs, especially comprehensives, have great diversity in students, but few research resources

Develop a program that integrates quality researchers, community activists, and students to work on health disparities

Increase in grants  publications, conference presentations of faculty and students, grants with community members

Recruit faculty of color to the university

Faculty of color will bring relevant research questions, commitment

Use RIMI as a mode of faculty recruitment

Increase in the number and % of faculty of color

Develop the training to support high quality, culturally relevant research

Researchers, students, and community members need to learn culturally competent research skills and to communicate findings to grantors, professionals, policy-makers and stakeholders

On-campus and off-campus training of faculty and students in grant-writing, research methods and analysis, cultural competence in health research, methods in health disparities

Increase in grants, publications, conference presentations of faculty and students, grants with community members

Improve communication between researchers and community, professionals

Community-researcher liaisons allow for communication to the lay public and to policy-makers

Faculty, student training in policy, strategic communications planning, lay communication;

website, public lectures

Relevant, accessible materials given to community centers, published in lay press, and submitted to policy makers

Increase the likelihood of faculty writing grant

Faculty require time to conduct research effectively, conduct pilot studies

Provide faculty with reassigned time and software, other small tangibles to conduct pilot studies and  write grants

Increase in numbers of grants written by faculty members; increase in competitiveness of grants by more experienced faculty

Increase the representation of health disparities on courses

Exposure and understanding of health disparities research will motivate students and faculty to pursue health disparities research

Modification of curriculum to integrate transdisciplinary approaches to health disparities

Number of references to and examples using a health disparities paradigm in classes; number of student applicants to RIMI increase

Improve student preparation for health disparities research

Students will ultimately attend graduate programs that lead them to careers in health disparities research

Coursework; research training; professional development and support; research experience

Student admission to health-related graduate programs; student presentations, publications

Work with existing COR, SCORE, MARC, RISE, and other students to generate professionalism, productivity, and social responsibility

Generation of a community of student scholars increases the likelihood of their entering professions related to health and research

Common courses, workshops, training, community sites, and training groups

Student admission to health-related graduate programs; student presentations, publications

Build an alliance of health and mental health researchers who work to reduce health disparities and increase diversity in health care fields

Working with community members will increase the likelihood of identifying significant problems and solutions in health disparities.

 Students work as data interns with community agencies and organizations to maintain data sets, conduct evaluation, write grants.

Greater numbers of grants and funding at community agencies

Maintain a physical and social center for ecologically valid research

Laboratory studies may lack ecological validity, thereby compromising the quality of this work

CSUN-SFV Center for Reducing Health Disparities; EcoLab – homelike modifiable space for data collection

Greater validity in lab research  and interviews; greater number of grants, publications by faculty

Build research liaisons with community institutions and agencies

Community institutions contribute data, hands-on knowledge, researchers contribute formal methodological and analytic skills

Community forum; community leaders trained in research methods; collaborative research initiatives; student data support of agencies

Greater validity in choice of research questions by faculty; greater participation in research by community organizations

Improve the communication and dissemination of results by holding common meetings to practice presentations, give mutual feedback

Students and faculty members will be more successful in conveying their ideas with feedback from a local community

Presentation and support RIMI faculty and student meetings

Number of students and faculty who present and receive awards for their presentations; # of students who go on to graduate programs