Online Program

292025
Combining science and community benefit: The community engagement coordinating council pilot grant review process


Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Adam Paberzs, MPH, Michigan Institute for Clinical & Health Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Celeste Choate, MLIS, Services, Collections & Access, Ann Arbor District Library, Ann Arbor, MI
Karen Calhoun, MA, City Connect Detroit, Detroit, MI
Patricia Piechowski, MPH, MSW, MA, Michigan Institute for Clinical & Health Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Marc Zimmerman, PhD, Prevention Research Center of Michigan, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI
Carolyn Sampselle, PhD, ANP, FAAN, School of Nursing, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Kanchan Lota, MPH, CQIA, Michigan Institute for Clinical & Health Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Kent Key, MPH, PhD, Community Based Organization Partners, Flint, MI
While a growing number of communities are being engaged in health research, community partners are often left out of the review process to award grant applications. Community involvement and decision-making during the review process is essential to ensuring that research conduct is fair, equitable, and results in tangible benefits to community health. At the University of Michigan's (UM) Clinical and Translational Science Award, an innovative review process has been developed to improve the quality of pilot proposals and strengthen community leadership in funding decisions. The Community Engagement Coordinating Council (CECC), a group of community partner organizations and researchers, reviews pilot studies funded through the Community-University Research Partnership Award (CURES). CECC community peer reviewers evaluate and score applications based on specific criteria, including shared responsibility of research activities, equitable distribution of budget, relevance of research topic to the community, and translation for improved health outcomes. In the past four years, the CECC has reviewed 42 CURES pilot applications and funded 16 projects totaling $431,482 in various communities. Community and academic partners have worked together to establish a detailed review process and scoring guidelines modeled after standards recommended by the National Institutes of Health. Throughout its history, the CECC has incorporated many lessons learned and adapted the process to enhance community decision-making. The CECC model for pilot grant review represents a promising approach to developing community leadership on grant review boards and sustaining meaningful community involvement in research that is relevant, reliable, and responsive to community health priorities.

Learning Areas:

Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Public health or related organizational policy, standards, or other guidelines
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
Describe the CECC model for community partner pilot grant review and scoring. Demonstrate how community leadership in funding decisions for pilot grants can improve proposals and community-based participation in health research.

Keyword(s): Community Research, Community Capacity

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a research liaison for the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research focused on building community-academic partnerships in health research. I coordinate the CECC community partner pilot grant review process and work closely with pilot teams and community co-investigators to ensure that research is equitable and responsive to community-identified health priorities.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

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.