The document proposes a model called the Translational Scholar Corps (TSC) to help address gaps in research teams and facilitate knowledge translation. As part of the TSC, student Translational Scholars would take on multifaceted roles as content curators, disseminators, and communication experts to capture research processes, connect interdisciplinary teams, and create open educational resources. This provides students an innovative way to engage in applied research experiences while benefiting researchers through improved documentation, communication, and broader impacts. When embedded in participatory action research like AgShare, Translational Scholars could generate thesis data, teaching materials, and publications to inform farming practices.

1. Student
Translational
Scholars
New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
A model for communicating research
impact and facilitating connections.

2. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Student Translational
Scholars
Maria Knight-Lapinski, PhD
Department of Communication and Michigan Ag-Bio Research
Michigan State University
19 November 2013

3. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
The Need
Gaps in research team skill sets
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Translating knowledge “from bench to bedside”
Broader impacts of project findings need to be taken seriously
Project visibility
Busy, unqualified personnel (for THIS job)
A new kind of student experience.

4. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
The Context:
One Health Symposia at MSU
-Interdisciplinary teams
-6 degrees of separation among team members
-Critical need for:
• Common language
• Connections among researchers
• Content capture and formalization; dissemination

5. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior

6. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
The Context: One Health Symposia at MSU
• Piloted a Translational Scholar Corps (TSC)
• Multifaceted role of TSC
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–
–
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Content curators
Content disseminators
Internal and external communication experts
Creative energy

7. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Translational Scholar Competencies
• Basic communication intervention design
• Research methods
• Science writing
• Digital media capture, curation
• Interdisciplinary team science
• Understanding project
goals and structure

8. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Translational Scholars’ Product Examples
• Knowledge sharing
• Capture of process
• Connecting teams
– Off-season communication
• Identifying RFP’s
• Facilitating project
development

9. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Translational Scholar Product Examples
• Publishable research (thesis or contribution to paper)
• Teaching case or example
– Print or video medium
– Data
• Training or information materials for the community or
setting where research is done

10. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Translation Scholars, Open Educational
Resources (OER) and Research
• Facilitate OER adoption
• Create open data and open research
• Create OER

11. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
New Kinds of Relationships
Scholarship
Student Action,
Research, and
Knowledge
Outputs
Impact on
Challenges
Learning &
Teaching

12. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
The Role for Researchers
• Big picture thinking about process and outcome value
• Mentoring; counseling student-lead research
• Users of student-generated materials

13. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Benefits for Researchers
• Documentation
– Process
– Case studies
– Broader impacts
• Communication
– Internal
– External
• Moving science to practice
• Dissemination
• Digital Footprint

14. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
The Role for Students
Innovation for engaging students in research
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Formalized roles on research teams
Identification of stakeholders
Assess needs
Create appropriately tailored open knowledge
Taking charge…
Curate. Translate. Disseminate.

15. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Benefits for Students
• In-depth research experience
• Portfolio and resume/CV discriminator
• Relevant, applied learning

16. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
AgShare
Embedding Translational Scholars in participatory action research
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Master’s thesis data
Learning curriculum and research in “authentic” contexts
Teaching case studies
Informational publications for farmers
Better farming practices

17. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Global Center for Food Systems Innovation

18. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Community
Stakeholders
Open
Knowledge
Teaching
Research
Learning

19. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
Acknowledgements
•
Collaborators Chris Geith, Julie Funk, Theresa Bernardo, and Lauren
Moccia
•
Karl Gude for the graphic design assistance.
•
Information reported in this presentation was supported by the National
Cancer Institute of the U.S. National Institutes of Health under Award
Number R13CA162849; USAID’s Higher Education Solution Network and
the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
•
We also recognize the contributions of the One Health and Emerging
Communication Technologies in Human Decision-Making and Behavior
Research Consortia.

20. New & Emerging Communication Technology
in Human Decision-Making & Behavior
The Translational
Scholar Model
Community
Stakeholders
Open
Knowledge
Teaching
Research
Learning