Community Health Engagement and Empowerment Research (CHEER) Lab

啦啦队实验室的使命是为开放大学的本科生提供研究技能培训和参与现实世界的机会 health research and service through faculty-led research projects. 我们的目标是提出一个知识和好奇心的框架，培养学生影响社区健康，并在各种健康和保健实践中担任领导者.

The CHEER Lab involves two 0-credit courses. Students start with IPE 1020 - Research Skills Training. After completion of this course, students may enroll in IPE 3020 - Research Skills Applications.

IPE 1020 - Research Skills Training (0 credits)

Learning Modules
Upon joining the CHEER Lab, students will complete a sequence of learning modules to educate them on a variety of research skills. These modules include skills that will prepare students to engage in faculty-led research projects. Modules include Research Ethics and Conduct, Evidence and Literature, Data Collection Methods, Data Analysis Methods, and Sharing and Applying Findings.

Application Activities
学生将在整个学期中完成与学习模块一致的应用活动，以练习使用研究技能并模拟现实世界的研究经验.

Weekly Meetings
Students will attend weekly group meetings. Some will be Research Skills Meetings, which will expand upon research skills through group activities and discussion. Others will be Journal Clubs, 在课堂上，学生们阅读经同行评议的关于各种主题的期刊文章，并参与有思想的小组讨论. The meeting times and locations are as follows:

Fall 2023: Tuesdays, 1-2 p.m. or Wednesdays, 12-1 p.m.
Winter 2024: Wednesdays, 12-1 p.m.
Location: Collaboration Center (3124 HHB)

IPE 3020 - Research Skills Applications (0 credits)

Prerequisite: IPE 1020

Work on Faculty-Led Research Projects
Students receive hands-on experience in health research. After completing the research skills training, students have the opportunity to work on faculty-led projects as a valued member of a research team. 

Regular Meetings
Students will regularly meet with the CHEER Lab Director and Graduate Research Assistant. Students will also continue participating in a Journal Club, 在课程中，学生将阅读经同行评议的关于各种主题的期刊文章，并参与深思熟虑的小组讨论. The meeting times and location are to be determined.

Ongoing:

Mentorship and Collaboration
Students will receive continued mentorship from the CHEER Lab Director and Graduate Research Assistant. 学生也将有很多机会与其他啦啦队实验室的学生和健康科学学院的教师合作.

Why are CHEER Lab courses 0 credits?

0-credit courses provide evidence of the work you do by showing up on your transcript. 0-credit courses do not cost you any money to enroll.

Will a 0-credit course impact my GPA?

No, 0-credit courses do not impact your GPA. Students will receive a satisfactory grade based on completion of materials and engagement in the lab.

我必须是健康科学学院的学生或对社区健康感兴趣才能参加啦啦队实验室吗?

No! The CHEER Lab is open to students who are interested in a variety of topics and careers within all aspects of health.

There is a specific project or topic that I want to research. Can I do that in the CHEER Lab?

It's great that you are passionate about a specific topic! The CHEER lab works on a model of students working on faculty-led research projects. It might be possible to work on a project that is closely related to your passion, but there's no guarantee that faculty will have projects available that are directly aligned with your topic.

Will the CHEER Lab help me with my class research papers and projects?

While the CHEER Lab is not a tutoring service, it will provide training on many skills and topics that will be helpful in completing school research assignments. In addition to completing research skills training, 在完成与啦啦队实验室和教师主导的研究项目相关的任务时，啦啦队实验室主任和研究生研究助理可以提供基于研究技能的支持和指导. It can also help connect students to research opportunities.

For assistance with understanding non-CHEER Lab assignment and/or project requirements, reviewing and editing papers for a class assignment, and other specific questions, please consult your professor or visit the resources below:

• OU Writing Center
• OU Research Office
• OU Academic Success Center
• OU Honors College

How much of a time commitment is the CHEER Lab?

Students can expect to dedicate 3-4 hours per week to completing lab-related tasks in IPE 1020. Once students begin working on faculty-led research projects in IPE 3020, the time commitment will vary based on the project and student availability.

How long can I be involved in the CHEER Lab?

The minimum length of participation is one semester to complete IPE 1020. Students may enroll in IPE 3020 for as many semesters as desired, pending approval by the CHEER Lab Faculty Director.

When can I join the CHEER Lab?

Students may join the CHEER Lab at any time during their undergraduate career. Applications are due in the second week of each semester. A student who applies for the CHEER Lab after the deadline will be considered for the following semester. Please fill out the interest form to apply! 

Is the CHEER Lab open to graduate students?

At this time, 啦啦队实验室旨在为本科生提供研究技能培训和参与研究的机会.

Through faculty-led research projects, the CHEER lab connects students with the School of Health Sciences and local organizations to help to create environments, opportunities, and resources that are conducive to improved health for all people. Recent projects include: 

mENTER 

Faculty: Christina Papadimitriou, Ph.D.
A remote mHealth enabled peer navigator intervention for people with disabilities transitioning to community living. 芝加哥的一个团队正在修改现有的培训课程，培训残疾人成为同伴导航员(PN)。. 这些PN随后将使用干预措施，使身体残疾的新残疾成年人能够实现其社区参与目标. 

TechRx

Faculty: Jennifer Lucarelli, Ph.D.
Increasing Produce Prescription Program (PPR) Efficacy. 该团队正在利用密歇根州现有的农产品处方项目进行案例研究，以了解项目管理和技术需求. 他们正在努力建立一个协作技术平台，以简化项目管理和评估，从而提高ppr的成本效益, provide better evaluation data across programs, and improve the sustainability and reach of these programs. 

Blight assessment in Pontiac 

Faculty: Jennifer Lucarelli, Ph.D.
研究小组正在Pontiac社区完成现场枯萎病评估测量，以帮助规划减少枯萎病的策略.

Access to low-income housing in Oakland County 

Faculty: Jennifer Lucarelli, Ph.D.
Investigating local policies and practices related to access to low income housing in Oakland County.

Dissemination of research findings 

Faculty: Jennifer Lucarelli, Ph.D.
创建各种通讯工具，与社会各界合作，分享重要的研究成果 Pontiac Collective Impact Partnership and the Healthy Pontiac, We Can! Coalition. An example includes creating infographics to share the findings from the 2021 Pontiac Community Survey. 

Community Health Needs Assessment in Pontiac 

Faculty: Jennifer Lucarelli, Ph.D., Laurel Stevenson, MPH, Ph.D.
In collaboration with Honor Community Health, OU faculty and students completed a comprehensive community health needs assessment.

My COVID Response

Faculty: Jennifer Lucarelli, Ph.D., Laurel Stevenson, MPH, Ph.D.
In collaboration with Lighthouse and dozens of community partners, the CHEER lab helped launch the My COVID Response emergency food delivery program, serving thousands of families throughout Oakland County.

Sheriff PAL (Police Athletic League) Program

Faculty: Jennifer Lucarelli, Ph.D., Laurel Stevenson, MPH, Ph.D.
To assist with planning efforts, the CHEER Lab interviewed PAL 家庭评估项目的满意度，并确定可以通过当地组织和合作解决的额外需求领域.

Developing a relationship-centered shared decision-making (SDM) assessment

Faculty: Christina Papadimitriou, Ph.D.
该研究小组与康复临床医生和因严重认知障碍而无法自我报告的人的护理人员合作. They study shared decision-making (SDM) among clinicians, caregivers and patients in the clinic. They are developing an observer assessment that would capture skills of SDM.

Persons Experiencing Homelessness Project

Faculty: Jennifer Lucarelli, Ph.D.
Preliminary work for a housing related project that community partners have been interested in launching. 这将涉及深入了解与奥克兰县获得低收入住房相关的当地政策和做法的背景信息.

Shared Decision-Making in Spinal Cord Injury-Related Chronic Pain Management

Faculty: Edward Rohn, Ph.D.
该研究的目的有两个方面:1)提高对患者和临床医生沟通方式的理解, negotiate and make decisions around spinal cord injury (SCI)-related chronic pain (CP) management, 2)为现有的共享决策(SDM)辅助工具的定制提供信息，以解决脊髓损伤患者及其医疗保健专业人员(HCPs)的CP决策过程。. This study applies a novel, mixed methods approach. In particular, the use of video ethnography combined with video elicitation interviews to provide new insights. 将预期的研究结果综合到选择性网格SDM辅助SCI-CP的开发中，将为SCI-CP的护理提供新的工具. Vetting this aid with community stakeholders will assure its applicability and usefulness.

为评估大学运动员健康行为的定量调查项目准备拨款申请/最终数据收集

Faculty: Emily Van Wasshenova, Ph.D.
The project is still in the development stages, but generally the aim is to identify gaps in the literature on health behaviors and disordered eating in college athletes. If the grant is funded, 我们将与OU体育部合作进行这个项目-这个部门可能有额外的目标或目的，将被添加到项目中.

Hormones and Affective Change in Exercise (HACE) Study

Faculty: Kate Rougeau, Ph.D.
The HACE study aims to decipher psychophysiological effects of different types of cycling (volitional vs. motor-driven). By using a custom build cycle ergometer (bike), they will be examining the effects of physical activity (PA) on hormones (testosterone and cortisol), emotional affect (calmness, tension, energy, 疲劳和状态焦虑)，以及在主动(意志)和被动(机动驱动)骑行期间和之后的性格差异和行为决策. 他们的目标是在夏季之前过渡到收集脊髓损伤患者的试点数据，以申请拨款.

Student Interest

Are you an OU undergraduate student looking for research experience? Follow the steps below, or email [email protected] for more information! Applications are due in the second week of each semester. A student who applies for the CHEER Lab after this time will be considered for the following semester. 

1. Fill out the interest form
2. Instructor will submit a registration override
3. After you receive a confirmation email, you can register for IPE 1020 on MySail

Donate

Show your support for improving community health and undergraduate student research by making an online gift to “SHS-Gifts - Interdisciplinary Health Sciences (30395)” and enter “CHEER Lab” in the lower comments panel.

Emily Van Wasshenova, Ph.D.

Dr. Van Wasshenova, assistant professor of interdisciplinary health sciences, is the faculty director of the CHEER Lab. In this role, 她促进本科生基本研究技能的培训，并与健康科学学院的专家教师协调，提供一系列多学科研究机会.

Laurel Ammond

Laurel Ammond is a Master of Public Health Candidate and the CHEER Lab Graduate Research Assistant. She coordinates the development of the CHEER Lab online learning modules, policies and procedures, Moodle, and marketing materials. She also assists in the training of undergraduate researchers and coordinates with expert faculty across the School of Health Sciences.

“The CHEER Lab broadened my perspective to different kinds of research and the impact that it can have, such as the work we did with the PAL program in Pontiac and the efforts to improve it. 欢呼实验室也为我的研究生涯提供了一个良好的开端，并将我与优秀的人联系起来，向他们学习. 我很高兴能继续我在实验室的研究之旅，了解更多关于庞蒂亚克社区的信息，以及我能如何提供帮助.”
- Sofia Mansour, Health Sciences / Pre-Health Professional Studies major

“My experience of being a part of the CHEER Lab has been really eye opening. I have never conducted research and going into college seemed like such a scary thing. I became involved when some of the CHEER Lab’s research was shown in one of my health classes. Immediately after class I asked the professor for more information so I could volunteer and be a part of it. Ever since my sophomore year at OU I have contributed to the team. Although I joined right around the time COVID-19 hit, that didn’t stop us. The majority of the research I contributed was during the pandemic and was something I could do from home. We had several zoom and phone calls throughout this time and it was a great learning experience. Now the concept of research isn’t so scary and I know if it involves public health it's something that actually excites me!”
- Sarah Evans, Health Sciences major