In 2001, ARC XVI Fort Washington began work in the research area. It started with the Executive Director of ARC XVI working in an advisory capacity on research impacting minority elders through CALME and CHUM funded research programs of Columbia University. In 2006, we launched our first foray into leading a research project, a new, culturally competent project, the Northern Manhattan Exercise Project (NorMEP). NorMEP was funded by The Columbia University Center for the Health of Urban Minorities (CHUM), The Washington Heights and Inwood Council on Aging (WHICOA), and the Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation (NMIC). NorMEP was designed to create sustainable walking clubs by increasing the current physical activity levels of our mostly minority community elders. Our next research project was “Healthy Homes, Healthy Seniors,” a collaborative community-based approach to manage household hazards in a sample of older adults living in a disadvantaged neighborhood in NYC, funded by HUD. We have also undertaken research in partnership with Columbia University Medical Center on topics pertinent to the elderly such as injury prevention, falls prevention, stroke, diabetes, and academic-community research partnerships. We have a deep understanding of and commitment to education, promoting minority health, and eliminating health disparities through practice and research.

Currently, ARC XVI Fort Washington’s Executive Director is the Project Lead on a PCORI-funded project called “Building Community Capacity To Disseminate Research Findings on Falls Prevention.” This project supports and enhances seniors’ health information and addresses their great variety of health needs.