I settled at my global site at the end of June, working under the mentorship of Dr. Keng-Yen Huang and Dr. Janet Nakigudde, the lead PIs on multiple NIMH grants that have championed PARENTCORP for the past 10 years in Ugandan low resource schools. PARENTCORP is multi-level intervention designed for kindergarten and early primary school children living in low-income neighborhoods to create safe, nurturing and predictable environments at home and in the classroom and improve relationships and communication between parents and teachers. During this fellowship, I participated in a workshop with policy stakeholders from the Ministry of Education, met the study coordinators and trainers on the PARENTCORP team. Interacting with different stakeholders has been important in illuminating the ethical issues around research processes, importance of building trust and what goes into creating “community buy-in.”
Key takeaway–– Community engagement varies from context to context and it is the glue that binds the entire research process together. Invest the time in doing it well.
After time well spent in Kampala District, I traveled to Northern Uganda-my home region, for what should have been a brief home visit. As it turns out, I could not rid myself of the “researcher’s itch” and on my return journey, I took a detour and stopped by some schools. In many ways, the trip was adventurous. At the same time, it left me rather distraught and feeling overwhelmed at what I saw- I always knew that the schools in rural Uganda were strikingly different from other well-funded Ugandan private schools. Perhaps the extent of the need, the school challenges openly voiced by the different stakeholders left me distressed. What will education be for the next generation of Ugandans?
Key Takeaway-Understanding the context and culture is crucial before writing up your proposal and conducting your research- do your homework! Also, effective stakeholder engagement is paramount- obtain consent from the community, even when you are not going to do any actual data collection. Relationship building activities such as what I did are informal knowledge gathering and sharing opportunities, thus, seeking permission from the stakeholders went a long way in establishing trust and being welcomed into the community.
A BIG Thank you—to all who have made these past 10 weeks worthwhile. Our esteemed professors, the Club936 NINJAS, all fellows, my mentors and the fantastic dynamic duo-Chelsea & Laura!