HORIZON Center: Healthy Options, Research, Interventions & Community Organizing

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): University of Massachusetts Boston (UMass Boston) and Harvard University School of Public Health (HSPH) have partnered with the Cherishing Our Hearts and Souls Coalition (COHS) of Roxbury (a Boston neighborhood comprised of 51% African Americans and 23% Hispanics) to establish an exploratory Center (P20) for Health and Health Care Disparities that is dedicated to Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR). The Healthy Options, Research, Interventions & Community Organizing Center (HORIZON Center) will: 1) conduct health disparities related research projects in partnership with COHS, 2) offer research training, with an emphasis in CBPR, to faculty, students, and community stakeholders, and 3) build a neighborhood based infrastructure that can partner with academic institutions in Boston to research and implement "best practices" in CBPR and academic-community partnerships. UMass Boston was designated a minority-serving institution by the National Cancer Institute and is the lead partner in the HORIZON Center. The diverse characteristics and strengths reflected in both academic institutions and in the six-year old community coalition (COHS) set the stage for significant changes in cultural norms (public knowledge, attitudes and behaviors) and professional practices surrounding research activities and academic community partnerships. The implications of successfully engaging a diverse urban underserved community in health promotion activities, in research and in advancing the cause of research are nationally significant. We partner to further the research mission of COHS and its Community Research Advisory Board (CRAB). The HORIZON Center has 4 cores, 3 research projects and 6 pilot projects; all designed to strengthen the evidence-based practices and strategies for understanding and training practitioners in health disparities reduction. We propose to increase the number of local agencies, community organizations and residents that contribute to and participate in research, training, health promotion, and community organizing activities. The cores provide an infrastructure and process for the translation of research into innovative community outreach strategies, educational interventions and public policy initiatives. The Administrative Core provides overall support to the HORIZON Center by coordinating the other cores and projects. The Research Core supports the research projects which are investigating the behavioral, social, and biological sciences related to health disparities. The Community Engagement Core is responsible for projects that investigate the best practices for outreach and mobilization in an urban community. The Training Core is responsible for projects that implement and evaluate strategies for increasing the number of people who are trained and engaged in CBPR and from health disparity populations.