PROJECT SUMMARY
Our proposal to establish the Colorado Resource Center for Tribal Epidemiology Centers capitalizes on the
Centers for American Indian and Alaska Native Health’s 30+ year, nationwide experience providing high quality,
scientifically grounded, culturally informed training and technical assistance to hundreds of Native programs
through resource centers that addressed needs similar to those highlighted in RFA-MD-21-003. We marry this
programmatic focus with an equally superior record of preparing Native investigators to compete for NIH-
sponsored research and, thereby, enhance the nature, extent, and quality of the science undertaken by Tribal
Epidemiology Centers (TECs). Accordingly, the specific aims of our Resource Center-TEC are to:
1) Jointly plan, issue, monitor, and evaluate subawards of varying degrees of support to each TEC consistent
with local priorities and needs that progressively expand their capacity to engage in the full spectrum of
research activities ranging from data acquisition, management, and analysis to data visualization,
interpretation, and reporting.
2) Provide technical assistance to each TEC to design, implement, and analyze both primary data acquisition
as well as secondary data analytic studies consistent with local priorities, and to prepare as well as
disseminate lay, program, policy, and scientific reports of findings to a wide array of audiences.
3) Enhance the research capacity of TEC personnel across all levels of preparation by drawing upon an
extensive body of existing instructional materials and experience to offer:
a. bimonthly interactive, 2-hour didactic sessions on timely data science topics;
b. on-line, short-course offerings that target foundational and intermediary knowledge and skills regarding
data collection, linkage, management, and analysis;
c. once annually, a 6-month, mentored grant-writing course for senior TEC personnel—tailored to the
interests and priorities of their respective key stakeholders—to increase the number of submitted and
funded NIH R-series grant applications, and
d. a year-long research career development program for early-stage investigators to add to and retain them
in the health disparities scientific workforce.
4) Promote collaborative research between the TECs and external investigators by disseminating information
about sponsored research opportunities and related resources and building upon our current Satellite Center
research network led by senior, NIH-funded American Indian and Alaska Native health disparities scientists
at 7 adjacent major institutions, and other organizational partnerships.
Recent calls to action by advocates underscore the important contribution of research to address the health
priorities of Native peoples. This Resource Center will enable TECs to bring this vision to fruition.