Community Health: Assessment and Improvement Measures Program Awards

Jul 24 12:49pm | Jasmine Souers | @jasminesouers

The Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCaTS) supports research projects across the clinical and translational spectrum that address community health priorities and lead to sustainable improvements in community health. The Community Health: Assessment and Improvement Measures Program (CHAMP) grants are two-year awards that promote ways for researchers to engage with and involve community in project design, implementation and dissemination. Over 30 projects have been funded through the program since 2014, many of which have led to further funding and investigations.

There are two types of awards: Research and Partnership.

CHAMP Research Awards - up to $75,000/year indirect costs plus indirect costs for study-related expenses – are well suited for investigators who have a community partner, a defined research question and a plan for implementation. The two-year timeline allows the team to strengthen partnerships and being implementation and subsequently complete research and evaluate the impact, all with the involvement of community. The findings should position the researcher to be competitive for external funding and allow for broader implementation.

CHAMP Partnership Awards support community-academic partnership activities needed for research engagement. Awards support up to $22,500/year in direct costs, plus indirect costs, for partnership-related expenses per year. Applications may be submitted by community partners, such as community-based organizations and patient advocacy groups, or by academic partners (Mayo Clinic investigators). This award supports establishing the right partners and co-developing a research idea. New partnerships and research readiness are outcomes of this award.

For all CHAMP awardees, the CCaTS Community Engaged Research team and the Community Outreach and Engagement in Research Services are available to work with investigators to understand community priorities and facilitate connections to community partners.

Feedback shapes research at ACTS and in the Mayo Clinic Framework for Community-Engaged Research: Development, Implementation, and Impact

“Our work is strongest when it starts with the communities we serve.” Doug Murrell, Administrator for Mayo Clinic Center for Clinical and Translational Science Community Engagement shared “At the 2026 Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS) conference, our team shared five posters that reflect how community partnerships, trust, and lived experience help shape better research. Being part of ACTS allows us to learn alongside communities and institutions nationwide and bring those insights home to strengthen how we work together across Arizona, Florida, and the Midwest.”

In addition to the posters and networking at ACTS this year, a recent article in Mayo Clinic Proceedings outlines many of the integrated programs and services that are a hallmark of Mayo Clinic’s community outreach and engagement across Mayo Clinic enterprise.

The strong presence at the conference and the recent publication demonstrate that Community Engaged Research activities in the Center for Clinical and Translational Science connect and support research activities of key stakeholders internally and externally. This helps to develop, strengthen, implement and disseminate vital information that impacts community health. Read more here.

C2DREAM: Longitudinal Partner hosts 5th Annual Conference

The Center for Chronic Disease Reduction and Engagement Across Minnesota (C2DREAM) is a unique partnership between the University of Minnesota Program in Health Disparities Research, University of Minnesota School of Public Health, the Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute, and the Mayo Clinic.

Funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number P50MD017342, the aims for research and action are

Conduct research targeting prevention, early intervention, and disparities reduction on obesity, hypertension, and Cardiovascular Disease (CVD).

Generate the knowledge and approaches to understand and address how access to opportunities relates to obesity, hypertension, and CVD.

Mentor and develop early-career health researchers.

Establish a regional network of stakeholders to advise on the center’s activities and implement the knowledge and resources to people in Minnesota.

Continue to assess and evaluate the center.

This is accomplished through the work of Principal Investigators Michelle Allen, MD, MS, University of Minnesota, Christi Patten, PhD and Felicity Enders, PhD, both of Mayo Clinic, and dozens of co-investigators. The work is done through support of Early-Stage Investigators (ESIs) and a core that focuses on community engagement.

An annual conference is held in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul. In May 2026 over three days and three distinct venues, practitioners, researchers, youth, and community partners gathered to share learning and foster collaboration around the C2DREAM initiative.

Core projects and grants to ESIs were featured during presentations and panel discussions. Data walks allowed participants to dig deeper into the research with members of the teams on hand to engage in dialogue and answer questions. Data walks are “an interactive, community-centered way of exploring research findings and data together.” Insights from participants are valued “as essential to understanding what the data means and what should happen next.”

Project 3, known as BRAID (Urban American Indian Youth Cardiovascular Disease Prevention: Implementation of culturally tailored evidence-based after school and home visitation programs for health eating and physical activity) was prominently featured throughout the program. The project is an example of work addressing a community need but also developing broader and deeper partnerships in the process. Community partners involved in the work include the Native American Community Clinic, Twin Cities Native Lacrosse, North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems (NATIFS), Minnesota Public School Districts, and the Minneapolis American Indian Center. From the opening keynote delivered by Chef Sean Sherman to a panel featuring BRAID youth on taking their health back, to a presentation on traditional lacrosse and a lacrosse fest to end the conference, the various threads of C2DREAM partners and participations were woven together to demonstrate lasting positive health impact for traditionally underrepresented communities.

For a full recap of the conference, visit Past Conferences — C2DREAM