Community Coaches

Community Coaches are on-site clinicians, health educators, teachers and administrators who are committed to enhancing health in the community and mentoring community-oriented healthcare providers.

What duties are included in the Community Coach role?
How much time is involved?
What are some benefits of participating in ISCOPES as a Community Coach?
If I can't serve as Community Coach, how else can I get involved?

What duties are included in the Community Coach role?

• Participate in each team meeting to provide guidance and insight into the team project, trainings, and process (1 Coach must be present at each team meeting and each team event/service activity)
• Offer insight/content expertise about personal work experiences
• Monitor student learning and reflection
• Communicate and interact with the Faculty Coach regularly to provide consistent supervision and guidance to the students on the team
• Serve as a regular contact for fielding student questions, addressing student concerns, and brainstorming appropriate solutions regarding the ISCOPES project
• Serve as a liaison between the team and the community organization, voicing community concerns and ensuring that the team develops projects that appropriately address community-identified needs
• Meet with students individually to provide guidance and advice regarding tasks and progress on the project, to give timely feedback, and to discuss other topics as needed
• Introduce teammates to other community members and leaders
• Help approve student project proposals in October/November
• Complete an evaluation of each student on the team after each semester using an online scoring rubric
• Complete an online evaluation of coaching experience in ISCOPES after each semester
• Participate in coach trainings/mentoring experiences with other coaches and the ISCOPES Leadership Team (ILT) (approximately 3/year)
• Communicate regularly with team, other coaches, and ILT

How much time is involved?

• The time commitment is approximately 8 hours per month which includes the bi-monthly team meetings held every other Tuesday morning from 8:00 am -10:00 am, activities/service at the community site, and project planning and communication with the team.

What are some benefits of participating in ISCOPES as a Community Coach?

• Interact with graduate health professional students and faculty from a variety of disciplines
• Collaborate with other Community Coaches
• Build partnerships with other community organizations
• Receive recognition from colleagues
• Identify opportunities for community-based participatory research (CBPR)
• Mentor future clinical providers and policy makers
• Develop and complete projects that enrich the services and practices of the organization which may not otherwise be feasible due to lack of time and/or personnel resources
• Rejuvenate interest in and commitment to community health work
• Enhance mentoring skills
• Model professional practices and responsibilities

If I can't serve as Community Coach, how else can I get involved?

• Serve as a Practicum Preceptor for the School of Public Health (contact us for details at iscopes@gwu.edu)
• Assist with Wednesday specialty trainings/Lunchtime talks (contact us for details at iscopes@gwu.edu)
• Suggest somebody else at your organization as a coach
• Volunteer your time, talents, and/or treasures (contact us for details at iscopes@gwu.edu)
• 4/17/2012 – Attend our End of Year Celebration/Culminating Event