Technical Assistance (TA) Network Invitation

The Center on Knowledge Translation for Disability and Rehabilitation Research (Center on KTDRR) is hosting its second TA Network online meeting on Friday, December 7, 2018 from 11 am–12 pm ET. The one-hour group conversation will allow NIDILRR grantees a forum to discuss their TA questions and activities, request advice on knowledge translation (KT) activities, and talk collectively with other grantees. A short agenda will be sent to National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) grantees who express interest prior to the event; however, we want to hear from you!

For additional details, please e-mail Joann Starks at jstarks@air.org. In your e-mail, please reference which NIDILRR project you work on, whom from your team you would like to invite, and any topics you might want to cover related to TA or KT.


Don’t Forget to Save the Date! NARRTC 2019

Planning is underway for the 41st Annual Conference of NARRTC (the association of NIDILRR grantees), which will take place April 23–24, 2019, at The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City (Arlington, Virginia). See www.narrtc.org for more details.

Submissions due Friday, January 18!

In-Person Workshop on Outreach to Policy Makers

What strategies are best for sharing research information with state and national policy makers? The Center on KTDRR will sponsor a free post-NARRTC conference workshop for NIDILRR grantees on Thursday, April 25, 2019, at The Ritz-Carlton. Bobby Silverstein from Powers Pyles Sutter & Verville PC will present research-based strategies for networking and sharing research results with representatives on Capitol Hill and in grantees’ home states. Restrictions on lobbying will also be addressed.

  • Date and time: April 25, 2019, 8:30 am–12:30 pm ET (Registration and refreshments 8:00–8:30 am ET)
  • Location: The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City, 1250 S. Hayes St., Arlington, VA 22202

Welcome Ariana Hammersmith to the Center on KTDRR Team

Headshot of Ariana Hammersmith Ariana Hammersmith joined the Center on KTDRR as a research assistant in August 2018. She is a recent graduate of Northwestern University with a degree in Social Policy. As a child of deaf adults (CODA), she is a native signer of American Sign Language (ASL), and she is passionate about disability rights, advocacy, and policy. Before joining the American Institutes for Research (AIR), she was an intern in Senator Tammy Duckworth’s office, where she gained an understanding of constituent services and the legislative process. As a part of the Center on KTDRR, she assists with utilization activities and has contributed to creating a policy portal that will connect consumer and advocacy organizations with NIDILRR grantees. Keep an eye out for the Center on KTDRR Policy Portal, which will launch soon!


2018 Center on KTDRR Webcasts on KT and Research Evidence

View audio/video archives with captions and transcripts, and download presentation materials. After viewing the archives, please complete a brief evaluation for each webcast.

11 Tactics, Tips, and Tools to Leverage a Powerful Social Media Strategy

Social media expert Madalyn Sklar discusses social media strategies such as branding, content curation, engagement, analytics, and live video.

KT 101: An Introduction to Knowledge Translation (or How to Become Impactastic)

David Phipps, Research & Innovation Services at York University, presents practices that help move research to impact and introduces the co-produced Pathway to Impact framework.

An Overview of Effect Sizes and Meta-Analysis

Josh Polanin and Ryan Williams, American Institutes for Research (AIR) researchers who are active with the Campbell Collaboration, give an overview of the foundation and basics of meta-analysis and described effect size, a quantitative indicator of a treatment effect or relation between two variables.

Multifaceted Interventions for Supporting Community Participation Among Adults With Disabilities: A Systematic Review (Co-sponsored with University of Kansas’ Research and Training Center on Promoting Interventions for Community Living)

Judith Gross (review team leader), Amalia Monroe-Gulick (information retrieval), and Chad Nye (data analysis) discuss the process and findings of a systematic review supported by NIDILRR and soon to be published in the library of the Campbell Collaboration.


2018 Online KT Conference Overview

Earlier this month, the Center on KTDRR hosted its 6th annual Online KT Conference. More than 250 people participated in the three-day virtual conference, which took place the week of November 5, 2018.

This year’s theme was “Engaging Ways to Engage Stakeholders.” Global experts presented on several exciting topics and KT innovations. On the first day of the conference, Dr. Sarah Bowen kicked things off with a presentation about approaches to health research partnerships; benefits, challenges, and “costs” of partnering; and strategies for determining appropriate knowledge users for specific research activities. She was followed by Mark Bayer, who highlighted proven and actionable stakeholder management techniques, and NIDILRR grantee Dr. Katherine McDonald, who reviewed theory, evidence, and actionable strategies related to engaging people with disabilities as equal members on research teams.

Dr. Anne Bergen began day two of the conference by providing an overview of how evaluation tools and methods can be used to support KT stakeholder engagement and implementation. She was followed by Dr. Deborah Bowen and Dr. Melody Goodman, who highlighted the results of a systematic review of stakeholder engagement measures. NIDILRR grantees Tracy Boehm Barrett and Tannis Hargrove closed out the day with a presentation on stakeholder engagement approaches used over the past three years as part of the Healthy Community Living development project.

Dr. Thomas Concannon started off the final day of the conference by offering practical guidance for designing a multistakeholder engagement approach for a given project or study. He was followed by NIDILRR grantee Dr. Mark Harniss, who discussed supporting a change process within a project that is supporting systemic changes that address the needs of incarcerated individuals with traumatic brain injury. Dr. Tamika Heiden closed the conference by exploring the “how to” of engagement for successful outcomes and the measures you can use to evaluate your impact.

Do you want to relive this year’s conference, or were you unable to attend? Make sure to check our website in early 2019 for the archived presentations and information on how to obtain continuing education credit. Also make sure to save the date for the 2019 Online KT Conference, taking place the week of October 28, 2019.


Center on KTDRR Staff Attend the Global Evidence and Implementation Summit, Melbourne, Australia

Using funds from AIR that have been set aside to support the activities of the Campbell Collaboration’s Disability Coordinating Group (DCG), co-chair of the DCG and KTDRR training lead Joann Starks traveled to Melbourne, Australia, for the Global Evidence and Implementation Summit, sponsored by Center on KTDRR partners the Campbell Collaboration and the Centre for Evidence and Implementation. Starks and DCG co-chair Oliver Wendt gave a podium presentation updating attendees at the Summit about the activities of the DCG. Presentation materials are available at this link.

Kathleen Murphy also attended and had an opportunity to network with Campbell Collaboration-affiliated researchers and Center on KTDRR partners at the EPPI-Centre and the Centre for Evidence and Implementation. Stay tuned in the coming months and years for jointly produced resources from these collaborations.

  • The Center on KTDRR provides TA to NIDILRR grantees who are authoring DCG systematic reviews.
  • To learn more about the DCG, please contact Co-Chair Joann Starks: jstarks@air.org

Photo of Oliver Wendt, Howard White, and Joann Starks at the Global Evidence and Implementation Summit. Left to right, Oliver Wendt, Howard White, and Joann Starks
at the Global Evidence and Implementation Summit.


The Center on KTDRR’s Poster for NIDILRR’s 40th Anniversary Celebration: Highlighting KTDRR’s Contributions to the Campbell Collaboration’s Disability Coordinating Group

Kathleen Murphy shared updates about the DCG with the NIDILRR community gathered for the celebration of NIDILRR’s 40th anniversary on October 18, 2018, in Washington, DC.

Photo of Kathleen Murphy with the Center on KTDRR poster presentation at NIDILRR’s 40th Anniversary Celebration.


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Center on Knowledge Translation for Disability and Rehabilitation Research (KTDRR)

The contents of this newsletter were developed under grant number 90DPKT0001 from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR). NIDILRR is a Center within the Administration for Community Living (ACL), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The contents of this newsletter do not necessarily represent the policy of NIDILRR, ACL, HHS, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. Copyright © 2018 by American Institutes for Research