Our mission is to foster the improvements in the analysis of health related phenomena among older minority; encourage the development of methods and measures that better capture the health and determinants of health of diverse elders; promote collaboration between RCMAR sites on analysis issues; and disseminate new knowledge in this area.

The Analysis Core involves a collaborative represented by all RCMAR centers dedicated to the development, fostering, and dissemination of research methods and measurements tools used in understanding and improving the health of racial and ethnic minority elders. The Analysis Core offers numerous resources for colleagues, affiliates, and community advocates to learn more about and access relevant measurements tools.

The goal of the IDC is to support the first two aims of the RCMAR programs: 1) Increasing the number of researchers who focus on the health of minority elders; and 2) Enhancing the diversity in the professional workforce by mentoring minority academic researchers for careers in minority elder health research.

A major RCMAR goal is to increase the number of researchers who focus on minority aging health and to enhance the diversity of the scientific workforce through mentorship in research skills and career development. Mentoring is the primary responsibility of the Investigator Development Core (IDC), which works with junior faculty who are referred to as RCMAR Scholars .

More information about this core can be found here

Growing evidence indicates that intensive effort, specialized skill, and creativity are needed to recruit and retain older minority research participants. To these ends, the CLW creates and maintains relationships with diverse community-based organizations to develop subject pools for RCMAR research involvement.

The Community Liaison Core (CLC) involves a collaborative represented by nearly all RCMAR centers dedicated to the creation and dissemination of scientific information regarding techniques for recruiting and retaining minority research participants. RCMAR centers with a CLC work to enhance and disseminate such knowledge through publications and presentations of information, conferences and symposia, and outreach activities to other institutions and Centers conducting social, behavioral, and/or clinical research on aging.

Our mission is to foster the improvements in the analysis of health related phenomena among older minority; encourage the development of methods and measures that better capture the health and determinants of health of diverse elders; promote collaboration between RCMAR sites on analysis issues; and disseminate new knowledge in this area.

The RCMAR CC Administrative Core (AC) is the central hub for executing all RCMAR CC functions. It supports the RCMAR CC goals of providing support for RCMAR coordination, communication and collaboration across RCMAR Centers. The AC is led by RCMAR CC Director, Steven P. Wallace, PhD. Other key AC team members include Co-Director, Nina Harawa, PhD; Director Emeritas, Janet C. Frank, DrPH; CC Administrator, Porsche McGinnis; Website Manager, Bruce Han; and Communications Manager, Gwen Driscoll, PhD.

The AC team meets weekly and also staffs the monthly RCMAR Cores and Workgroup meetings, manages the website, the reporting system, organizes and implements the Annual Investigators Meetings, workshops and R13-sponsored minority aging research training programs. The RCMAR CC reporting system is a web-based data management platform that provides the framework for Center reporting of uniform data and RCMAR Scholar productivity and achievements. It is central to documenting the accomplishments of the RCMAR Centers program and has evolved over time in its sophistication and utility.

The AC has also organized special projects, such as the Press and Media Training Program for print and electronic media reporters, two cross-site RCMAR Scholar pilot projects, NIMHD conference presentations and other professional and public dissemination activities. In addition, major evaluation efforts are completed for each training program and annual meeting that occurs. CC leadership has assisted in several RCMAR derived publications, including those generated from the R13 conferences. Most recently, Dr. Harawa has spear-headed a cross-site manuscript to describe the RCMAR Centers approach to mentorship of junior faculty and document its productivity to date. The CC also responds to many NIA and NIH special requests and has supported external evaluation efforts of the RCMAR Initiative.

A major AC annual activity is the organization and implementation of the RCMAR Annual Investigators Meetings and Workshops. Each year members from all of the RCMAR sites convene for an annual meeting. Host sites rotate among the funded RCMAR sites. These meetings bring together RCMAR leadership and RCMAR Scholars from each site, include program representatives from the National Institute of Aging, and often feature special guest speakers. Typically, each site has one Scholar give a podium presentation, and several Scholars present work-in-progress at a refereed poster session. The meetings serve as a professional development experience for the Scholars, and help foster collaborative ties among faculty and Scholars across the sites. Several times, pre-conference skill-building workshops have been organized for additional Scholar training.