Three CHCs in Tennessee (Nashville. Chattanooga, and Memphis) and Meharry Medical College, will fonn the CNP Center. Meharry will be the Coordinating Center and will lead the CNP as the target communities engage in network and capacity building, program development, and program actualization. A community-based participatory approach will be used in all phases of project operations. A Steering Committee, and Regional community advisory groups will serve the four sites. Meetings will occur with the following frequency: (i) steering committee - annually;(ii) Regional Committees - monthly;(iii) Task Forces - weekly, or as needed;and (iv) the CAP (Community Action Plan) Committee - as needed. A program development and management model will be used to provide planning guidelines, and to record progress and setbacks. This will facilitate process evaluation, and help us learn about the dynamics of community organization around the issues. Local data gathered In needs assessments (survey, focus groups) in CNP I will inform the communitybased approach for this project (CNP II). Meharry is the central resource, focusing and coordinating each program (outreach, research, and training) to produce a Center of Excellence in CBPR and health disparities research. The specifics of each program are elaborated upon in each respective section of the proposal- N2, N3, N4, and N5.
