CRFT Fellows complete the program over 16 weeks, including orientation and a closing ceremony. Fellows have dynamic and expert visit faculty come from universities all over the country who come to NYU to teach each week. Fellows explore various subjects such as health literacy, community-based participatory research, ethics, health policy research, and grant writing. They also participate in group class activities that allow them to put their newly obtained knowledge and skills to use. Fellows also have homework assignments, such as a photovoice, a grocery store audit, and a windshield survey.
Community Research Fellows Training Program - New York City (CRFT-NYC) 2026 Syllabus
Thursdays 6:00-9:00 PM
Date: April 9, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Orientation Session
Date: April 16, 2026
Room: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 1: Public Health and Health Inequities
Professor: Keon Gilbert, DrPH, Brookings Institute, Saint Louis University
Learning Objectives:
1. Describe public health
2. Define health inequities
3. Identify major health inequities, including those by gender, race/ethnicity, geographic location, and socioeconomic status
4. Understand and provide examples of causes of health inequities with respect to prevention, incidence, and mortality
5. Discuss the social determinants of health
Date: April 23, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 2: Introduction to Epidemiology/Social epidemiology
Professor: Kayleigh Blaney, DrPH, Senior Fellow to the Dean, NYU GPH
Learning Objectives:
1. Define epidemiology and social epidemiology
2. Identify major contributions of epidemiology
3. Identify frameworks for understanding disease processes
4. Compare and contrast observational studies vs. clinical trials
Homework 1: Windshield Survey
Date: April 30, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 3: Community-Based Participatory Research/ Community Organizing
Professor: Joyce Moon Howard, DrPH, NYU GPH
Learning Objectives:
1. Describe history and principles of community based participatory research
2. Critically evaluate their own position within their community(ies) and their potential roles within CBPR projects
3. Describe methods to ensure that CBPR research benefits all partners
4. Describe history and principles of community organizing
5. Describe community organizing resources useful for public health initiatives
Date: May 7, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 4: Beyond Cultural Humility: Seeing Humanity
Professor: Kristen Bush, MSSW, Inner Alignment Coaching and Consulting; Renee Blake, PHD, United Solutions Consultancy Group
Learning Objectives:
1. Define cultural humility
2. Describe the need for cultural humility in research and practice based on a historical perspective
3. Identify contributing risk factors for health inequities
4. Identify skills associated with cultural humility in practice
Homework 2: Grocery Store Audit
Date: May 14, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 5: Health Literacy Professor: Kim Kaphingst, ScD, University of Utah
Learning Objectives:
1. Define health literacy
2. Understand the limited literacy perspective
3. Describe the association between literacy and health
4. Describe health literacy on a national scale
5. Discuss current research on health literacy
Date: May 21, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 6: Health Policy Research Professor: Jose Pagán, PhD, NYU GPH
Learning Objectives:
1. Define health policy and health services research
2. Identify and develop relevant, well-framed health policy research questions
3. Describe public use and other common data sources for health policy research
Homework 3: Park Audit
Date: May 28, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 7: Quantitative Methods & Data Literacy
Professor: Melody Goodman, PhD, NYU GPH
Learning Objectives:
1. Identify strengths and weakness of quantitative methods
2. Describe strengths of mixed methods approaches
3. Understand usefulness of statistics in health research
4. Discern when a quantitative research design is desirable
Date: June 4, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 8: Qualitative Research Methods
Professor: Nandi Marshall, DrPH, MPH, CHES, Georgia Southern University
Learning Objectives:
1. Define basic principles of qualitative research methods
2. Describe the advantages and disadvantages of qualitative methods
3. Understand and distinguish between different types of qualitative approaches
4. Understand the relationship between qualitative and quantitative research methods
5. Discern when a qualitative research design is desirable
Homework 4A: Photovoice Part 1
Date: June 11, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 9: Grant Writing
Professor: Robyn Gershon, DrPH, NYU GPH
Learning Objectives:
1. Understand grant guidelines and requirements
2. Understand the power of collaboration for grant writing
3. Develop SMART goals and Specific Aims
4. Understand components of a good grant proposal
Homework 4B: Photovoice Part 2
Date: June 18, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Session 10: Human Subjects Research
Professor: Liz Reilly, CIP, NYU Institutional Review Board
Learning Objectives:
1. Participants will be trained in the conduct of human subjects research
2. Conduct an informed consent process to recruit a participant in a research study
3. Develop a human subjects and HIPAA compliant research proposal
4. Understand the role of an IRB
Assignment: Final Assessment
Date: June 25, 2026
Location: GPH, Room 801
Topic: Closing Ceremony