What Are the Lessons Learned?
We continue to learn with each community and academic partnership. We continue to reflect on what has provided positive outcomes and where there have been challenges. The following is an evolving list that we have created in collaboration with our community partners.
Process
Planning
Relationships
Incentives
We continue to learn with each community and academic partnership. We continue to reflect on what has provided positive outcomes and where there have been challenges. The following is an evolving list that we have created in collaboration with our community partners.
Process
- Create a safe environment to explore and make recommendations.
- Engage with local community-based organizations in the identifying and sharing of lessons learned.
- Revisit goals often and consistently communicate the shared vision.
- Identify partners with open spirits to participate, avoid people who may limit the process or success.
Planning
- As a planning team, encourage a participatory and relaxed atmosphere, open to learning from each other to advance the project's activities and overall goal. Be flexible and adapt as needed.
- Bring together and hire a variety of skills: group facilitation, data analysis, communication, organizational expertise, outreach, recruitment, leadership, and project coordination skills. These talents tend to rest within a variety of people, which necessitates that a variet of partners be engaged in the planning and implementation.
- Allow plenty of time for planning.
- Provide a pathway to success for members.
Relationships
- Allow ample time for relationship building - for partners and for community members.
- Respect and value each member's perspective, experience, voice and input.
- Connect members with other assets within the community as appropriate.
- Be an effective listener, processing what the community is saying and following up with action as appropriate. Meet personal and community needs within the context of the project and the relationships.
Incentives
- Include a variety of incentives to both demonstrate the value of the community member's time and expertise as well as to remove barriers to participation.
- Advocate for paid positions for community members to be a part of the planning and implementation of projects.
- Incentives to cover community members' time are highly recommended. However, whenever possible and the grant allows, equitable compensation for lay community persons involved in the CAB should be included. For instance, members who take a leadership role (such as Spokespersons) or other community members involved more heavily in the project should be paid whenever possible.
- Provide day care, snacks and transportation for the community members.