Building Healthier Communities Through Bold Collaboration

How Furman University and its partners are redefining health disparities through community-driven research.

Progress in community health is not the product of isolated efforts. It emerges when residents, organizations, researchers and local leaders work together toward a shared purpose. At the heart of this work is Furman University’s Institute for the Advancement of Community Health, a trusted partner committed to helping communities address the root causes of chronic disease and strengthening the systems that support health and well-being.

Thanks to a $5 million grant from the American Heart Association and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Furman’s IACH is leading transformative work through the Health Equity Research Network on Community-Driven Research Approaches (HERN). The HERN was awarded to only four institutions and their partners: Furman (partnered with LiveWell Greenville), Yale University (partnered with JustLeadershipUSA), the University of California San Diego (partnered with YMCA of San Diego County) and the University of Texas at San Antonio. Unlike traditional HERN projects, which often focus on clinical interventions at large research institutions, this initiative is different. It centers on understanding how to meaningfully engage those most impacted by chronic disease in the research process. To accomplish this, IACH works with communities that have historically experienced mistrust and marginalization by medical and research institutions.

“We are a primarily undergraduate liberal arts institution, and I think this shows the contribution that a school like Furman can make,” said Melissa Fair, IACH director of community action. “Communities trust us, and we take seriously our responsibility to work alongside them and not above them.” The HERN’s distinctive focus resonates with Furman’s commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration, creative inquiry, critical thinking and innovative problem-solving. Rooted in these values, Furman demonstrates how a small, primarily undergraduate institution can transform community health by forging deep partnerships that amplify community voices and expertise.

Listening to communities is the first step toward change

A key strength of this research is IACH’s longtime partnership with LiveWell Greenville, a coalition of organizations, residents and leaders committed to ensuring every Greenville neighborhood can thrive. Through two ambitious initiatives, IACH and LiveWell Greenville are proving a fundamental principle: lasting health improvements begin with authentic engagement and listening to the communities at the heart of the challenge.

Community power matters

IACH recognizes that chronic disease disparities don’t exist in a vacuum, but stem from deeper systemic forces. The cornerstone of IACH’s research revolves around addressing the fundamental causes of chronic disease, which includes community power. IACH analyzes community power through focus groups with South Carolina residents and government stakeholders to determine perceptions of power and how that relates to an individual. Jody Teel, IACH research principal investigator, explained, “Everything really is based on the idea of power—the distribution of power, how we share power effectively in these types of relationships—so that we are equally benefiting the people who we’re researching.” By addressing community power, the upstream driver of disparities in chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes, IACH is laying the groundwork to find solutions that dismantle barriers and advance community health.

A national look at community-engaged research

IACH is also conducting nationwide surveys of Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR), which examines how an academic unit and a community partner can effectively work together for lasting impact in a community. The survey will generate a roadmap of insights, capturing lessons learned, best practices and adaptable models that will shape the future of community-engaged research as a powerful engine for health innovation.

Lived expertise in action

As part of the HERN initiative, IACH and LiveWell Greenville established community advisory boards to ensure community members have an active role in shaping health strategies that impact their lives. “Research is not something done to a community, it should be something done with a community,” Fair reflects. “We bring academic expertise, but the people who interact with local systems every day bring expertise as well. Shared learning leads to better solutions.”

Roots in Research

The Roots and Research community advisory board blends community expertise with academic training. Both researchers and board members will benefit from creating a blueprint that can be replicated for future partnerships between researchers and advisory boards.

HEAL community advisory board

The HEAL community advisory board exemplifies what happens when lived experience drives decision-making. The board leads action projects in the community with a focus on civic engagement, mental health resources and building community power. Serving on the board has strengthened their capacity to trust resources and implement changes in their neighborhoods. They created Lunches for Love, a program that feeds children in transitional housing during the summer. They also brought attention to the need for bilingual services at the Greenville County Tax Office. As Teel explains, “Things are happening because of the work that we’re doing.”

Next phase

As the HERN initiative progresses, IACH will continue collecting and analyzing data, sharing findings nationally and learning from community partners. IACH will lead a postdoctoral fellows program hosting six fellows, with Clemson University’s Public Health Sciences department serving as a collaborative partner to provide additional expertise and resources.

From starting as a concept on a grant application to activating change, IACH is already turning vision into action. By connecting academic expertise with community voices, they are redefining research to understand barriers and identify solutions for community health.

IACH is transforming traditional research. Historically, research is conducted on a community, but IACH is flipping that script. Fair sums it up well: “We’re hoping to shift how people think about community power and strengthen the systems that allow communities to shape their own health futures. And we are already seeing meaningful progress.”