Overview
Date: July 16, 2025, 5:00 PM – 7:30 PM
Location: 1974 East 66th Street,
Cleveland, Ohio 44103
Theme: Going for Gold: Advancing Equity in Community Research Partnerships
Summary:
The 2026 CHEEER Annual Dissemination Day was held on July 14, 2026 at the MidTown Collaboration Center. This year’s Olympic-inspired theme, “Going for Gold: Advancing Equity in Community Research Partnerships,” celebrated the power of collaboration, perseverance, and shared purpose in advancing health equity. Throughout the evening, attendees reflected on how community members, researchers, clinicians, and partner organizations work together across diverse perspectives to improve health for all.
Dissemination Day represents CHEEER’s annual commitment to transparency, accountability, and meaningful community engagement by sharing research findings and lessons learned with the communities and organizations that help make this work possible. The event also provided an opportunity to strengthen partnerships, foster new connections, and explore future opportunities for collaborative research.
The evening featured presentations highlighting several community-engaged research projects, including:
- Cooking Together – Preventing suicide and diabetes through a culturally informed mother-daughter cooking class. (Susan De Luca, CHEEER, Eiman Stiffler and Mishaal Omer, CWRU)
- NAVIGATE – A blueprint for rigorous, ongoing assessment of urban land disposition to improve health equity. (Ellen Matlock, Western Reserve Land Conservancy and Ashleigh Fletcher, CWRU)
- Asthma and Gas Stoves Project – Sharing project results, new directions, and community reflections on improving environmental health. (Ther Aung, CHEEER and Emily Shelton, Metro West CDC)
In keeping with the spirit of partnership, attendees also participated in an interactive “Building the Rings: Strengthening Partnerships” group activity that encouraged networking and collaboration among researchers and community partners.
Dinner was catered by Flying Pig Catering, led by Chef Jorge Hernandez, who is also a valued partner in the Cooking Together pilot project—further highlighting the event’s commitment to showcasing community collaborations in action.
We extend our sincere thanks to everyone who attended, presented, partnered, and contributed to making this year’s Dissemination Day a success. We look forward to continuing to learn together, strengthen community-academic partnerships, and share research that advances health equity for years to come.
2025-2026 Highlights Video [Gold Medals and Records]
Program
Welcome Signs
Agenda
