Strategic Priority 4: Enrich Community Engagement
We enrich Health Sciences community engagement initiatives by partnering with new and existing outreach programs to develop and expand health information literacy, health equity, service-learning, research, and enrichment opportunities.
Strategic Goals Addressed in FY 25
- Goal: Strengthen and expand partnerships
- Goal: Identify new community outreach opportunities
- Goal: Use feedback and data to enhance impact
This year, HSLS advanced its community engagement priority through partnerships with outreach programs across the Schools of the Health Sciences. These collaborations expanded access to reliable health information, strengthened research readiness, and promoted health equity. Through initiatives such as the Digital Literacy Series at the Homewood Community Engagement Center and partnerships with student enrichment programs, including the Research Training Program and the Health Career Scholars Academy, we created meaningful learning experiences for both students and community members. HSLS connected learners with the tools, skills, and confidence to critically and responsibly navigate health and scientific information.
Partnering in Community Engagement
Overview
HSLS advanced its commitment to community engagement through meaningful partnerships that promoted digital literacy, research readiness, and health equity. Collaborating with nine outreach programs across the health sciences, we delivered 17 health and research information sessions, reaching 112 participants.
The following examples illustrate the impact of these collaborations in strengthening community-engaged learning, research, and equitable access to information.
Digital Literacy for Homewood Community Engagement Center (CEC)
Building on our partnership with Pitt’s Homewood CEC, HSLS launched a Digital Literacy Series designed to strengthen community capacity to find, evaluate, and use trustworthy health information online.
Developed with input from the CEC’s Community Advisory Board, the series addressed local needs and priorities through sessions such as:
- How to Steer Clear of Health Misinformation
- When Seeing Isn’t Believing: Visual Misinformation in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
- Stay Safe: Avoiding Scams and Protecting Your Privacy Online
- Clickbait or Credible? Evaluating Health Reporting
These classes empowered participants to navigate the digital landscape more safely and critically, especially when accessing and evaluating health-related information online.
Early Research Exposure for Health Career Scholars Academy
HSLS has maintained a long-standing partnership with the University of Pittsburgh Health Career Scholars Academy, a residential summer program that introduces academically talented high school students to careers in health care. As part of their experience, students complete a research paper and poster on a topic of their choosing.
HSLS librarians led interactive sessions introducing academic research, library resources, and citation practices. The sessions combined short lectures with hands-on searching exercises, culminating in a lively Kahoot! quiz that reinforced learning through friendly competition. A follow-up working session allowed students to refine their research topics with librarian guidance, ensuring they left with the scholarly resources needed to complete their projects. These experiences help students develop foundational research skills and confidence navigating academic resources.
Sustainability in Healthcare Research for the Office of Sustainability
In our new collaboration with the Office of Sustainability in the Health Sciences, HSLS supported undergraduate, graduate, and medical students participating in sustainability-focused healthcare research. Tailored library sessions introduced students to research databases, guided them through effective search strategy development, and provided instruction in advanced literature searching for biomedical and environmental topics. This partnership has positioned HSLS as a key collaborator in advancing research literacy for emerging scholars exploring sustainability and healthcare innovation.
Research Skills for VMI Undergraduate Experience
Through our partnership with the Vascular Medicine Institute Undergraduate Experience (formerly PURDIP) HSLS supported the development of underrepresented minority students as future physician-scientists by delivering sessions focused on building essential research skills.
Topics included:
- Searching the Literature with PubMed
- Analyzing Gene Expression Data Using NCBI’s Gene Expression Omnibus Database
- Managing Citations with Zotero
- Truth, Lies, and…Nuance? How Health Research Can Become Health Misinformation
These sessions helped students build confidence in navigating digital tools and understanding the nuances of scientific communication, strengthening their readiness for future academic research.
Impact
Through these outreach programs, administered by the schools of the health sciences, HSLS has empowered learners to access, evaluate, and apply reliable health and research information. Participants gained practical skills in digital literacy and academic research, strengthening their preparation for future careers in medicine and science. These initiatives not only enhance individual learning but also advance health equity, foster research readiness, and reinforce HSLS’s role as a trusted partner in supporting school-administered community engagement and education.
9 Partnerships
HSLS collaborated with nine outreach programs across the health sciences to strengthen community engagement.
112 Participants
Through 17 educational sessions, HSLS reached 112 learners, from community members to aspiring physician-scientists.
Homewood CEC
HSLS created a Digital Literacy Series in collaboration with the Homewood Community Advisory Board.
Health Careers Scholars Academy
HSLS guided high school students through academic research basics, building skills for their research papers and posters.
Office of Sustainability, Health Sciences
HSLS launched a new partnership supporting undergraduate, graduate, and medical students in sustainability-focused healthcare research.
VMI Undergraduate Experience
HSLS sessions introduced underrepresented students to digital research tools.
Hands-On Bioinformatics with HSLS
Overview
HSLS Molecular Biology Information Services, in collaboration with the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences Research Training Program (RTP), provided high school and undergraduate students an opportunity to gain hands-on experience in cutting-edge bioinformatics research.
Program Highlights
Introduction
Our 10-16 week research training program combined biomedical knowledge with hands-on bioinformatics research. By analyzing publicly accessible datasets, students developed valuable skills and a practical, real-world understanding of the field. We guided students through each stage, from developing research questions to analyzing complex data, fostering critical thinking and scientific inquiry.
Skills Development
Through a combination of instruction and hands-on practice, we taught core bioinformatics skills, including biomedical data retrieval, workflow construction, data analysis, and scientific writing. Students also gained access to our dedicated LibGuides page, which provides valuable resources for computational tools, data repositories, and career development.
Hands-On Projects
Building on these core bioinformatics skills, students conducted guided, independent research projects. They formulated questions, developed hypotheses, and utilized computational methods to analyze complex biomedical data–gaining experience with scientific inquiry, critical thinking, and practical data-driven research.
Impact
One of our high school participants, Sreeman Koka, credits the program with helping them secure admission to the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine’s (LECOM) medical program through Washington & Jefferson College. LECOM is very prestigious and ranked 37th nationally for the number of graduates practicing primary care.
Future Direction
Encouraged by positive student feedback, we are excited to continue this program. We plan to expand bioinformatics resources and project options, aiming to build student skills and confidence in this rapidly evolving field.
HSLS Bioinformatics Training and Mentorship
HSLS, in partnership with the Schools of the Health Sciences Research Training Program, offers high school and undergraduate students an immersive bioinformatics experience.
Student Outcomes
One of our RTP students credited the program with securing admission to LECOM.