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Community Spotlights

CED Core Mini Grant Impact

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In 2024, the IHER Center’s CED Core awarded 8 mini grants. The mini grant program provides support to DSU researchers and community partners addressing health equity to establish and/or strengthen research practice partnerships. The mini grant program has three specific goals: 1) Increase research practice partnerships; 2) Strengthen community engagement; 3) and Advance Community Engaged Research. This evaluation of the first round of the mini grant program shows progress toward our goals and satisfaction among research and community partner participants.

Goal #1: Increase research practice partnerships

  • 4 new partnerships
  • 2 small-scale intervention evaluations
    • Leisure reading to reduce stress
    • Juvenile diabetes education
  • 1 state program evaluation
  • 3 needs assessments
    • 1 included residents in administering surveys
    • 2 included community partners in design and administration of needs assessment

Goal #2: Strengthen Community Engagement

Project # of Participants # of Minority Participants # of Residents from Underserved Communities
Community Needs Assessment 123 98 122
DHSS Pandemic Shelter Evaluation 14 – 14
Juvenile Diabetes Awareness 50 50 29
DE Prostate Cancer Coalition 20 20 15
Leisure Reading as Stress Reduction 23 18 –
KNS Needs Assessment 53 50 50
Total 283 236 230

 

Goal #3: Advance Community Engaged Research

Community Engaged Research Status, Before and After the Mini Grant

CEnR Status

Mini-Grant Benefits Evaluation

Benefits to the Community

  • Topic awareness
  • Knowledge
  • Improved data collection
  • Increased awareness of community needs
  • Improved depth of relationship

Benefits to the Community Organization

  • Improved organizational processes
  • Increased insight into the populations being served
  • Increased interest in the organization

Benefits to the Researcher

  • Access to quality real-time data
  • Stronger partnerships
  • Useful research experience
  • Enhanced understanding of community populations

Percentage of all survey respondents* who found that the mini grant had been beneficial for each category:

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*includes both DSU researchers and community partners

Dissemination

  • 4 poster presentations at the annual IHER Center Conference
  • 1 poster presentation at the annual National Alliance of Prostate Cancer Coalitions meeting in Washington, DC
  • 3 reports to the community partner organization
  • 1 information included in dissertation