- ADMINISTRATIVE CORE (AC) The overall goal of the Administrative Core (AC) is to provide a structure to facilitate effective interactions toward accomplishment of the aims of this Program Project. To accomplish this goal, the AC will be structured into a Steering Committee and a Project Management Team. These groups will work together to accomplish the following specific aims: 1) Provide research direction by setting the research agenda focused on addressing cervical cancer disparities in Appalachia and promoting transdisciplinary research; 2) Ensure operational efficiency for all components of the Program by providing centralized grant administration, information dissemination, budget data processing, and seamless exchange of information and services; and 3) Promote integration of the Projects and Cores (Survey and Data Collection, Intervention and Consortium, and Biostatistics and Evaluation) to promote interaction among the four Universities, the investigators, the Appalachian communities, the participating community clinics/health systems; and relevant external entities. The proposed AC builds upon the successful experience of the structure of the Appalachian Community Cancer Network (P30 CA016058), in which the Multiple Principal Investigators (MPIs) worked together for over 10 years. The proposed structure will be led by a Headquarters unit located at The Ohio State University and be directed by MPIs, Drs. Paskett, Anderson, Dignan and Kennedy. The members of this team are well acquainted and have a track record of conducting research projects together, as well as each has substantial experience with conducting community based research in Appalachia. We have designed an organizational and administrative structure that defines and preserves clear responsibilities and facilitates interactive dependence among projects and cores. The MPIs will be responsible for day-to-day oversight of the important milestones, and integration among all Program components. The AC will also oversee the operation of the Steering Committee, an External Scientific Advisory Committee, comprised of four scientists from outside institutions, and will also work with the Intervention and Consortium Core to facilitate input from and meetings with members of the Community Advisory Board and the Clinical Partners, assuring Community-Based Participatory Research in all the aspects of the Program, and be responsible for regular meetings of the Data and Safety Monitoring Board, in conjunction with the Biostatistics and Evaluation Core. The Program also has two consultants ? Drs. Mack Ruffin and Jaimie Ostroff ? to advise on clinical issues and Implementation Science, respectively. Lastly, the AC will ensure that all components of the Program work seamlessly together to accomplish the Overall and specific project goals of the Program Project and that the two conceptual models which underlie the research ? the Multi-Level Model for Addressing Health Disparities (for intervention and assessment) and the Proctor Implementation Framework (for implementation and evaluation of the interventions) are fully embraced and integrated.
