Reducing Administrative Barriers to Community-Engaged Research at Duke

Background of initiative 

A key dimension of President Price’s Duke strategic framework is “Partnering with Purpose” which aligns with the Clinical and Translational Science Institute’s goal of improving the health of our communities by facilitating partnerships. To further this priority, an institutional effort is underway to gather, consider, and begin to address administrative barriers to Community-Engaged Research & Scholarship at Duke. 

Through ongoing discussions with groups such as the Community-Engaged Research Initiative, the Duke Cancer Institute, and other researchers and scholars across Duke, we are increasingly clear that there are hurdles to community partnerships in multiple areas, including agreements, contracts, compensation, ethics review, training, proposals, transportation, and reimbursements. Duke is committed to tackling these barriers to enable meaningful and successful relationships with our community.

Long-term goal and deliverables 

The team aims to reduce barriers to engaging our community partners by: 

• Developing and sharing tailored resources (i.e., a “community engaged research” toolkit) with our partners and Duke’s research community  

• Streamlining processes as possible and advisable 

• Helping navigate the administrative elements of community-engaged research and scholarship 

PROGRESS TO DATE 

The institutional initiative was fully launched in the spring of 2024 and since then the team has:

• Interviewed CER leaders at peer Universities to assess shared problems and best practices 
• Completed structured interviews to understand administrative hurdles, learn about how they were overcome (or why they are still ongoing), and begin to accumulate practical solutions to the issue
• Established and started convening working groups in three areas:
  • Compensation for individuals and agencies
  • Training for inclusion on IRB protocols
  • Process and policies related to transportation and child care

If you, a colleague, or partner, would like to be interviewed to help in establishing the priorities of the working group, please contact Nicole Peloquin (nicole.peloquin@duke.edu).

Key Partners and Working Group 

Community partnerships are not new to Duke, nor are the challenges. To that end, there are several groups at Duke who have been focused on improving partnerships with our community. This initiative looks to assemble these various groups and work towards institution-wide solutions.  

Staff from various corners of the university are collaborating on this priority in the form of a true “working group”, charged with taking on tasks to propel the initiative forward. The group currently includes the following members [and is open to others who wish to contribute time and effort]: 

• Jen Allen, Clinical and Translational Science Institute 

• Tuere Bowles, Operations, Durham & Community Affairs 

• Rebecca Brouwer, Office for Research & Innovation 

• Sue Budinger, Duke Office of Clinical Research 

• Debbie Goldstein, Education and Community Engagement, Durham & Community Affairs 

• Eang King, Family Medicine and Community Health

• Ashley Price, Family Medicine and Community Health

• Yadu Raveendran, Duke Cancer Institute 

• Raquel Ruiz, Clinical and Translational Science Institute 

• Lynn Sutton, School of Medicine

• Joni Whitt, Duke Clinical Research Institute 

• Project management support from the Duke Office for Research & Innovation (Nicole Peloquin)

Governance for the initiative is provided by Jenny Lodge, Vice President for Research; Susanna Naggie, Vice Dean for Clinical and Translational Research and Director of Duke’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute; Stelfanie Williams, Vice President for Durham & Community Affairs; Ed Balleisen, Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Studies, and Steve Patierno, Charles D. Watts Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Member of the Duke Cancer Institute.