Community-Engaged Research Resource Center (CERRC)

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About the CERRC

CERRC logoThe Community-Engaged Research Resource Center (CERRC) supports the Justice Community Overdose Innovation Network (JCOIN) by strengthening the integration of community perspectives into research that is focused on substance use and criminal legal system involvement.

The CERRC provides infrastructure, guidance, and practical tools to help JCOIN investigators and others improve how they meaningfully and thoughtfully engage individuals with direct experience in justice and substance use systems across the entire research lifecycle. Thus, the CERRC supports JCOIN’s mission to generate actionable evidence for addressing substance use among justice-involved populations.

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Purpose

CERRC is designed to:

  • Enhance the relevance and applicability of JCOIN research
  • Support bidirectional communication between researchers and community partners
  • Promote meaningful involvement of persons with lived experience in research activities
  • Improve the translation of research findings into real-world settings

Who CERRC Supports

  • JCOIN investigators and research staff
  • Persons with lived experience involved in JCOIN
  • Community and practice partners
  • Researchers and persons with lived experience outside of JCOIN

Key Activities

Community Engagement Support

  • Establishes and supports a national Community Advisory Board of individuals with lived experience of substance use issues and the criminal legal system as a resource to JCOIN
  • Advises JCOIN research teams on engagement strategies during study design, implementation, and dissemination
  • Provides rapid feedback from people with lived experience of substance use issues and the criminal legal system to JCOIN and external investigators on research materials

Resources & Training

  • Assists human resources staff to align with Fair Chance policies and practices
  • Develops and disseminates practical tools, guides, and templates for community-engaged research and supporting people with lived experience on research teams
  • Provides mentoring to people with lived experience in JCOIN regarding research careers
  • Tailors training and networking support for JCOIN leadership and people with lived experience working within JCOIN

Build Pipelines & Research Emerging Topics

  • Provides research training and opportunities for justice-involved populations, including those within carceral settings
  • Elevates community-identified priorities that can inform ongoing or future studies
  • Conducts short-term research projects addressing emerging topics

Collaboration With JCOIN Hubs and Resource Centers

  • Works closely with JCOIN Research Hubs and Innovation Hubs to:
    • Identify engagement needs
    • Tailor support to specific projects
    • Integrate community feedback into research processes
    • Share examples of effective engagement approaches used across the network
  • Coordinates with the JCOIN Coordination and Translation Center (CTC) to disseminate engagement resources across the network

Who We Are

The JCOIN CERRC is a partnership between Chestnut Health Systems (U24DA064498) and to the SEICHE Center for Health and Justice at Yale/JustLeadership USA (U24DA064520). This collaboration includes other sector partners such as Addiction Policy Forum, University of Illinois Chicago, Indiana University, Formerly Incarcerated College Graduates Network, Faces & Voices of Recovery, From Prison Cells to PhD, National Harm Reduction Coalition, BARD Prison Initiative, and an Experiential Experts with Lived Experience.

Contact the CERRC

To learn more about CERRC resources, training opportunities, or ways to engage, please contact us via the form below:

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