(PROJECT 2) The goal of the WashU-UCSC-EBI based Human Genome Reference Center (HGRC) is to maintain and update the new human genome reference produced by the Human Genome Reference Program (HGRP) and to provide it to the scientific community. The goal of the HGRP Outreach and Education Center (HGRP-OE) is to communication with the entire scientific and medical communities and disseminate data, resources, tools, protocols, and educational materials. To support the HGRC and the entire HGRP consortium, we will provide information to the community about the genome reference, obtain feedback from the community, and respond to community needs. Towards this goal, we propose innovative and robust strategies that define how the HGRP will engage with the broader user community. We will develop an HGRP web portal that serves as a user interface for the new human genome reference and a resource repository for the associated data and tools. This new resource will be tightly linked with many other genomic resources currently supporting biomedical research. We will develop comprehensive strategies to train and update users on the current state of the reference, including a comprehensive educational website, a suite of web-based training modules, seminars and webinars, workshops at conferences as well as regional, traveling workshops, an HGRP APP for mobile devices, and outreach via social media. Importantly, we will develop a transition plan from the current reference assemblies (GRCh37 and GRCh38) to the new human pan-genome reference, and rigorously engage investigators and the broader community to assist the transition. We present plans to proactively connect user feedback and respond to it. If successfully implemented, our proposed HGRP-OE will greatly increase community awareness of the new human genome reference and its usage, and thus maximize its use, value, and significance.
