Prioritizing partnership: Critical steps towards relationship development for sustaining community-university partnerships

Abstract

The increase in undergraduate programs in public health within liberal arts institutions in the United States creates an opportunity for community-engaged research with local public health organisations. This type of engagement is one way to connect community members, agency representatives, students, staff, and faculty around social justice organizing efforts that impact entire communities. Authentic relationships and partnerships can reduce real barriers to building bases of support for intervention development, local advocacy efforts, and policy change, to achieve a more just and equitable society. This practice-based article describes key steps to partnership development between a private, engaged-teaching liberal arts institution and a local public health nonprofit located in central North Carolina. The partnership was formed to use community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches to address health equity. To create an authentic CBPR partnership, an intentional partnership development process took place with key steps that were integral to the formation. Structured learning experiences and mentorship provided by previously established CBPR partnerships were critical to partnership development. Shared capacity building experiences, consistent meetings and goal setting facilitated progress. This partnership has lasted since 2015 and continues to grow. Partnership development is an important foundational activity for CBPR and is feasible for local community organizations and undergraduate public health studies departments outside of Schools of Public Health.