The University of Washington’s New Student and Transfer Programs (NSTP), in partnership with the Population Health Initiative, leads the Communities & Research (CoRe) project—an annual opportunity for incoming first-year students to explore real-world issues through the lens of population health. Since 2018, CoRe has been integrated into the First-year Interest Group (FIG) program, guiding students to examine the health and well-being of Seattle neighborhoods through research, site visits, and collaborative final projects. These projects analyze community assets and challenges and reflect interdisciplinary collaboration involving NSTP, the UW Libraries, and Population Health faculty and staff.

A standout voice in the program, Brandon Spooner, a three-time FIG leader and Student Assisstant at First Year Programs for the past two years, emphasized the project's value: “Each and every one of us has been influenced by population health in profound ways... This combo of collaboration and exploration is what makes the CoRe project a FIG-favorite!” His quote highlights how CoRe fosters student engagement by encouraging both individual curiosity and teamwork. To celebrate outstanding work, NSTP and the Population Health Initiative annually recognize the top 20 CoRe projects out of over 100 submissions, showcasing them on the Top CoRe Awards webpage and awarding participants with certificates for their exceptional contributions to community-based research.

Review the Population Health CoRe article to learn more about the CoRe project and the outstanding student contributions it highlights.