Community Scientist Program

"Community scientists" refers to people who are not formally trained as scientists but who are trained to engage in research efforts responsive to community needs. Community scientists serve the dual roles of bringing community involvement and external expert scientific advice to research initiatives. This program will help bridge the divide and increase the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University's transdisciplinary capacity for engaging in bidirectional linkages between Community Outreach & Engagement–related activities, community stakeholders and Lurie Cancer Center priority research programs. Community scientists will provide different views and experiences and will help foster science teams to better articulate and frame their research with respect to a grounded and more culturally responsive approaches relevant to, and mindful of, the Lurie Cancer Center catchment area and cancer disparities.

Thus, this project aims to develop, pilot and evaluate a community scientist brigade that will spend a minimum of one year assigned to the Lurie Cancer Center's Basic Science, Population Science and five disease teams from its Clinical Trials Office programs. Each cohort of community scientists will have a unique set of deliverables based on the priorities of each program. Findings from this program will be shared with Lurie Cancer Center's scientists and across the larger NCI Cancer Center Consortium as a model to improve engagement of community members within catchment areas with basic and translational science teams. The proposed Community Science program will improve Lurie Cancer Center's basic and translational science programs through science that is better informed and focused on our catchment area and the diverse underserved populations that bear the brunt of cancer disparities.

The Metals Project

Gayle Woloschak, PhD (from Metals Project team) The Metals Project began in 2022 as a response to anecdotal community concerns and the Environmental Protection Agency's documentation of disproportionate exposure to heavy metals (including mercury, lead, cadmium and arsenic) in the Chicagoland area. Neighborhoods on the South and West sides of Chicago are hypothesized to have higher levels of heavy metal pollution from sources such as highways, lead pipes and industrial waste, which negatively affect human and environmental health.  Two hundred healthy volunteers were recruited at community events throughout Chicago, and participants agreed to provide buccal swabs and sociodemographic data in support of the research initiative. Analysis of the collected samples is underway by Lurie Cancer Center bench scientists. Our team of community scientists has been critical to informing the design, implementation, recruitment and dissemination activities necessary to safeguard the community-centric emphasis for this project.

The community scientists affected the design of our study. We had intended to collect DNA as well as buccal samples, but they cautioned that this could be difficult in their community due to concerns about identifying people (immigrants, for example) based on DNA. Because of their suggestions, we modified the project to include only buccal samples. I’m convinced we had a positive response because of their input. In addition, they suggested several places where we should go to collect samples, and they were all good suggestions and successful.”

— Gayle Woloschak, PhD (from Metals Project team)

The Infographics Program

The infographic program focused on connecting community scientists and Lurie Cancer Center scientists to develop more approachable and community-centered research material. During small-group meetings between the paired community scientists and Lurie Cancer Center basic scientist facilitated by CHET director Melissa Simon, MD, MPH, the basic scientists received valuable insight from community scientists regarding:

The accessibility of the language with which they explain their work
The applicability and significance of their research to the communities that community scientists themselves serve

During these meetings, scientists worked together to develop concise, accessible and relevant descriptions of the Lurie Cancer Center scientists' research that could be incorporated into infographics. Further group meetings focused on revising the bespoke infographics with feedback from both groups. These infographics will be kept in a library and will be used by both groups for outreach and community engagement efforts in the future.

Seeking New Community Scientists

Community science programs are emerging as effective approaches for training community members to actively and meaningfully engage in outreach research activities. This program is aimed at increasing the bidirectional relationship between communities and Lurie Cancer Center from the community to the bench.

The community scientist team will bring both community and external scientific and educational perspectives to:

Establish operating norms of how community can truly bridge with basic and translational scientists and vice versa that will promote more collaborative basic and translational research at Lurie Cancer Center with community and the catchment area at the center
Guide the community appropriateness and scientific rigor of the research questions, intervention and evaluation approach geared toward benefiting communities across the Lurie Cancer Center catchment area that bear the brunt of cancer disparities
Make recommendations to basic and translational scientists based on study objectives and the needs of the community
Support dissemination of investigators' progress and findings to the broader community. The community scientists will be responsible for collaboratively interacting with select research scientists at the Lurie Cancer Center. In addition to observing the conduct of research, they will promote dialogue and communication around the relevance of the research teams' work to their communities, the Lurie Cancer Center catchment and cancer disparities. Contributions as a community scientist may also include helping to develop materials for dissemination in the community that articulate research to the lay public, such as in creating infographics for each participating Lurie Cancer Center research team's work. Community scientists will also advise grant application planning and preparation from a community perspective and support Lurie Cancer Center seed grant programs by bringing the community perspective to the selection process.

This program has the potential to accelerate translation of Lurie Cancer Center science from the bench to the community while also doing what many NCI comprehensive cancer centers have yet to do: bring the community back to the bench. In doing so, community scientists can create more informed basic and translational science research teams that produce more community-relevant research that will directly impact communities that bear the brunt of cancer disparities.

Job Responsibilities

Serve as a member of a two- to three-person community scientist cohort.
Attend quarterly community scientist small-group meetings with assigned Lurie Cancer Center investigators and supplement team members.
Provide insight and feedback to Lurie Cancer Center investigators about the accessibility and relevance of their research to the Northwestern catchment area, particularly to communities most impacted by cancer disparities.
Assist Lurie Cancer Center scientists in tailoring their research design, implementation and dissemination efforts to better respond to true community needs.

Minimum Qualifications

Experienced representative of a local community organization focused on underserved populations; or
Experienced representative of a local educational institution serving diverse communities; or
Experienced patient advocate; or
Experience participating in community advocacy projects/programs.

Compensation

Community scientists will be compensated at a rate of $250 per hour, with an minimum annual payment of $1,000.

Application

Interested candidates can fill out this form by May 1.