The Detroit URC was pleased to share CBPR success stories and study results at the Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Association (APHA) in Atlanta, Georgia, November 2-8, 2017. Slides and posters from Detroit URC presentations, as well as presentations by a number of our affiliated partnerships (i.e., Healthy Environments Partnership, Community Action to Promote Healthy Environments), can be found on our website.

Among the highlights of the conference was the session “Capacity building to foster the development of community-university partnerships: lessons learned from the CBPR Partnership Academy.” This session included presentations by the Detroit URC, the FAITH! (Fostering African-American Improvement in Total Health) program, and the East Tacoma Collective Impact Collaborative, CBPR partnerships involved in the Academy based in Rochester and Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, and Tacoma, Washington, respectively.

Those in attendance at the session were eager to hear about the community-academic partnerships, and the outcomes they had achieved. Barbara Israel stated: “It was such an inspiration to hear about the accomplishments and lessons learned from members of the Partnership Academy, and to see the well-deserved recognition they received from members in the audience.”
The presentations highlighted the goals and activities of the CBPR Partnership Academy. Chris Coombe noted that the presenters’ “different perspectives and approaches highlighted the value of a nationwide, co-learning network to advance equitable CBPR partnerships." Karen Meyer, who represented the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department and presented with David Reyes, of University of Washington Tacoma, reflected that the case studies represented “an excellent way to give attendees a different perspective on the use of CBPR for a longer period of time.”

LaPrincess Brewer and Clarence Jones noted the unique opportunity to share their CBPR approach applied to the FAITH! Program. “It is not often that community representatives, researchers, and the academic community have the opportunity to share their collective works on such a prestigious stage as the APHA Conference” they said. “We left the CBPR presentation energized, more prepared, and ready to move on to the next level in our community engagement project.”

The following partners presented the session “Capacity building to foster the development of community-university partnerships: lessons learned from the CBPR Partnership Academy”:

• Barbara A. Israel, DrPH, MPH, University of Michigan School of Public Health
• Chris M. Coombe, PhD, MPH, University of Michigan School of Public Health
• LaPrincess Brewer, MD, MPH, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, MN
• R. Clarence Jones, MEd, Hue MAN, Minneapolis, MN
• David Reyes, DNP, MPH, RN, University of Washington Tacoma, Tacoma, WA
• Karen Meyer, MA, Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, Tacoma, WA