Methods

The CBCRP contracted with the consulting firm Marj Plumb and Associates to evaluate the CRC Awards. The main goal was to gather practical information that the staff and Council of the CBCRP could use to improve the program.

We invited 31 current and past recipients of the CRC awards (representing 16 projects) as well as to 25 applicants who did not receive funding to take part in the evaluation. We conducted a total of 17 telephone interviews, 15 with current or past award recipients, representing nine projects and two with researchers who had unsuccessfully applied for funding. The interviews lasted 45-60 minutes. We also reviewed all of the grant applications and progress reports from the nine funded grant proposals associated with the 15 people we interviewed who had received CRC Awards.

Conclusion

The CBCRP has succeeded in making it possible for women affected by breast cancer to design and conduct research on the disease in collaboration with experienced research scientists. By making the changes in the research program suggested in the “Areas for Improvement” section above, the CBCRP can stimulate more of this type of research and make it possible for more women affected by breast cancer to collaborate on research as truly equal partners.

For More Information

For a free copy of the complete evaluation report, September 2001,Community Research Collaboration Awards, Report on the Evaluation & Capacity Expansion Project, please contact us:

California Breast Cancer Research Program
University of California Office of the President
300 Lakeside Drive, 6th Floor, Oakland, CA 94612-3550
1-888-313-BCRP (2277) or 510-987-9884
Fax: 510-587-6325
Email: cbcrp@ucop.edu

Research Scientists and Members of Communities Affected by Breast Cancer are invited to request a copy of the current Call for Applications for Community Research Collaboration Awards, which can be downloaded as a PDF file (343kB)

Staff Members of Research Funding Agencies interested in funding community-researcher partnerships for their own program are invited to contact the CBCRP for more information.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to CBCRP staff who contributed to this project: Mhel Kavanaugh-Lynch, MD, MPH, Director, and Walter Price, DrPH, Research Administrator. Special thanks to all the CRC partnerships who participated in the study.

Finally, thank you to the taxpayers of California who help support the California Breast Cancer Research Program through their tax check-off contributions.

Evaluation Conducted by Marj Plumb
Marj Plumb and Associates, Berkeley, CA

Print version designed by Yvonne Day
Y.Day Designs, www.ydaydesigns.com