Back to Institute News" Inauguration Ceremony and Seminar Celebrate First Activity of the Inter-American Consortium for Applied Research on Children and Communities (IAC)"
A new consortium at CFS will promote collaboration and cross-border relationships between applied researchers working with Latino and Latin American youth in the areas of health and human services, education, and community studies. The new IAC is aimed at helping to create a better understanding of the issues that affect Latino and Latin-American children and youth by promoting communication, collaboration in research, and exchange of knowledge among researchers and practitioners from throughout the Americas.
The first activity of the Consortium involved a relatively intensive seminar on computer assisted qualitative data analysis, with an orientation toward applied research in health, education, and community development. The idea of the seminar came as a result of a visit made by the Department of Child and Family Studies° (CFS) Ricardo Contreras to the Universidad Automoma de Tamaulipas, Tamaulipas (UAT) Mexico in Cuidad Victoria. He accompanied a delegation from Texas A&M University and had the opportunity to exchange points of view about social research with UAT students and faculty, and with people working in governmental and non-governmental organizations.
Following that visit, a productive planning process occurred among MC Maria Cecilia Montemayor Marin, Director of the UAT Center for Social Research at UAT and CFS staff Linda Callejas and Ricardo Contreras. "The effectiveness of this long distance and cross-cultural planning process showed that collaboration between USF and UAT is possible and that the Seminar represents only the first activity in a potentially strong relationship," said Ricardo Contreras.
The Seminar was taught by a combination of video conference technology with the presence of an instructor in Ciudad Victoria. Ricardo Contreras taught the seminar from Tampa, while Linda Callejas provided direct support to students at UAT.
An Inauguration ceremony was held before the Seminar, and in attendance to represent USF were:
Dr. JoAnn McCarthy explained the international programs at USF, and stated that USF is actively pursuing collaboration with Latin American and Caribbean universities in research and teaching. She expressed her willingness to continue collaborating with UAT and invited the Mexican participants to attend this year's annual meeting of the Gulf of Mexico States Accord.
Dr. David Shern provided a brief overview of the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute. "We partner with our colleagues who work directly in service settings, and see our role in bridging the gap between universities and the service sectors, said Shern. "Our role is to translate between the field where work is done and the universities where we train our future leaders."
"We no longer think exclusively of mental health problems," added Shern, "but think of people°s health and well-being overall. We have many similar interests with UAT, and I°m particularly excited about our new partnerships that will give us new understanding in multicultural needs."
In Ciudad Victoria, participants in the inauguration ceremony included the University President, Ing. Humberto Filizola Haces (through a representative), the President of the Department of Children and Families, and the Secretary of the State Department of Health. The DCF representative described the work that they do in the state in terms of promoting the well-being of children, families, and communities. The DOH representative discussed the different health issues of the Tamaulipas population and emphasized adolescent suicide, juvenile justice, substance abuse, teen pregnancies and AIDS.
"The experience acquired in this process will be instrumental for the development in the future of international seminars and/or courses," added Contreras.
In October, Ricardo Contreras will meet with Dr. Sergio Martinic, Academic Director of the Center for Educational Research and Development (CIDE), at Santiago, Chile, on which occasion CIDE's membership in IAC will be formalized. During the meeting, Dr. Martinic and Contreras will discuss the exchange of opportunities between IAC and CIDE, particularly in the area of qualitative research methods and policy analysis. The first collaborative initiative to be carried out between IAC and CIDE will be a seminar on computer assisted qualitative analysis, which will be taught by CFS staff in Santiago, Chile, early in 2003. (CIDE is a leader in Latin America on applied research on educational programs and policies. CIDE's work is organized in four divisions: Schooling; Children and Families; Youth, Work and Civil Society; and College Level Pedagogy. Additionally, CIDE is the coordinator of REDUC, the largest Latin American bibliographic database on educational topics. For more information, see www.cide.cl )
For additional information, view the IAC brochure in English or Spanish, or contact Ricardo Contreras at 813-974-4598 or contreras@mirage.usf.edu
The Department of Child and Family Studies (CFS) is a department of the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida. The faculty and staff of CFS are committed to enhancing the development, mental health and well-being of children and families through leadership in integrating research, theory & practice.