Welcome and thank you for your interest in the CARE Project!

Learn about the CARE Project’s journey since 2021 — and find ways to participate in current projects and local events.

About CARE

This project is a collaboration between Washington, DC community members and researchers at the University of Maryland, College Park. Together, we’re exploring how neighborhood environments shape health and well-being across all stages of life. We’re also getting ready to launch a new study created in partnership with our youth and adult advisory boards — stay tuned for updates! And in the meantime … 

Check out the different parts of the CARE Project below!

CARE Project

Over the Years
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2025-ongoing
Phase VI: Teen Neurodevelopment Study

We will start recruiting 9- 11-year-olds and their families to participate in the Teen Neurodevelopment Study in January 2026! This study was developed with the youth and adult community advisory boards from 2024 – 2025.

^
2024-2025
Phase V: Develop Teen Brain Study with Second Community Advisory

In 2024, we welcomed a new community advisory board — this time including eight adult and eight youth residents from Wards 4 and 5. Over the course of a year, we shared and refined our ideas for a study on teen brain, behavior, and cognitive development.

With full decision-making power, advisory board members strengthened the study’s design, reshaped how we talk about it, and ensured it would have a positive impact on participating families and the broader community.

We plan to begin recruiting families for the study in Spring 2026. Below, you can explore some of the key elements of the study that came directly from our advisory board members!

Changes made by community members

MRI Feedback Report 

Ensure that participating in the study is educational … all teens who participate in the MRI portion of the study (which is optional) can also receive a personalized report with their own brain images annotated. See below for an example using Dr. Gard’s MRI images!

Strengths-Based Feedback Reports

Based on feedback from the community advisory board, all participating families will receive a persoalized report that outlines some of their strengths and potential areas for growth. Teen reports are based on their responses to surveys and their performance on computer tasks. Caregiver reports are based on their responses to surveys. All families can set up a meeting with Dr. Gard to review their reports.

Greater Transparency

We worked with the advisory board to design a study infographic that more clearly describes what the study is about and what will happen with the information gathered after the study is complete. At the suggestion of both youth and adult advisory board members, we also plan to host several family-focused “science nights” in the community where potential participating families can come meet us, grab dinner, and learn more about the study. Stay tuned!

 

^
2022-2023
Phase IV: Household Survey with Community Advisory Board 1

To begin exploring our research questions, we worked with a community advisory board of seven adult residents from Wards 4 and 5 to design a household survey. The survey, offered in English, Spanish, and Amharic, took about 30–35 minutes to complete.

It covered a wide range of topics to understand health and well-being more holistically — including social support, coping, neighborhood resources, religiosity, mental health, and household experiences.

To ensure everyone had a fair chance to participate, we randomly selected 2,500 addresses across Wards 4 and 5 — almost like picking them out of a hat! In total, 367 shared their perspectives, helping us better understand how neighborhood life shapes community well-being.

Research Using Data

In an undergraduate research project, former GARD Lab team member Jalan Walker found that the more neighbors with whom you share your racial-ethnic identity, the stronger the perception of your own ethnic-racial identity. Stronger ethnic-racial identity is linked to higher self-esteem, lower mental health challenges, and greater resiliency. Jalan is now a masters student in the Couple and Family MS Program at Maryland.

Alex Robey, undergraduate research assistant in the GARD Lab, shows how resident’s perception of greenspace accessibility and belonging alongside satellite-based data of greenery. These results were featured at our recent Data Walk at the Woodridge Library on November 1, 2025

Copy of the Survey

Click here for a copy of the adult survey that was sent to 2500 households in Wards 4 and 5 of Washington DC.

Click here for a copy of the survey that youth ages 10-17 of adult respondents could complete.

All questions in the survey were optional and residents received $20 for completing it.

^
2022-2023
Phase III: Youth Participatory Action Research Internship

In response to community calls to include DC youth in our research, we welcomed six middle- and high-school students to join our STEM Youth Internship Program. During the program, interns learned how to collect data on neighborhood quality, develop their own research questions, and analyze data alongside our research team. 

At the end of the program, interns shared their findings with family members and community leaders, highlighting how environmental quality affects health and well-being – and helping us learn what worked well and what we can improve in future programs

Intern Projects

Check out some of the interns’ projects that they worked on during the program!

^
2022
Phase II: Qualitative Interviews

Twenty-nine community leaders, caregivers, and teens shared their perspectives with us on what it means for young people to be healthy and happy. They spoke about how their neighborhoods support their families — and where challenges make it harder to thrive. These conversations helped shape the next phases of the CARE Project, guiding our research on how violence exposure, social connection, and gentrification influence health and well-being across DC communities.

Graduate student Joelle Fuchs published the project’s first academic paper using insights from these interviews. You can read that paper below!

Facilitators and barriers to neighborhood social integration

Author: Joelle Fuchs

Social isolation has reached concerning rates, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Social integration is critical to combatting social isolation and loneliness by promoting a sense of community and belonging. Yet, most existing research centers on fostering close personal relationships within family and friend networks. Social integration within the neighborhood context (e.g., chatting with neighbors, participating in local organizations) is another tool that can be used to combat loneliness, but less is known about the process of social integration for residents situated in different sociodemographic groups. The current study examines variability in the process of neighborhood social integration across sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., social role, racial-ethnic identity, and housing tenure). Thematic analyses were conducted on semi-structured interviews with 29 residents of Wards 4 and 5 of Washington, D.C. Results suggested that relative to caregivers and community leaders, youth reported fewer opportunities for neighborhood social integration; frequently noted barriers were lack of shared identity, the transient nature of D.C., and school location. Despite sociodemographic heterogeneity in facilitators and barriers to neighborhood social integration, many residents called for more community programming and ‘third places’ to facilitate neighborhood connections.

READ MORE >>

^
2021-Ongoing
Phase I: Building Partnerships and Community Outreach

The CARE Project began by building partnerships with local leaders, youth-serving organizations, and nonprofit groups across Washington, DC. We take part in community events by bringing family-friendly science activities — like Neuro-Trivia and creating wellness wheels — to spark curiosity and connection.

We also share our skills in data analysis and grant writing to support local organizations in achieving their missions.

In addition, we collaborate on community-led projects. One recent example is the “Our Neighborhoods, Our Stories” event series, which celebrates resident voices through art, conversation, and reflection. This series was created in partnership with the Brookland Intergenerational Village, Commissioner Ra Amin (SMD 5B04), and the DC Public Library’s Woodridge Branch.

Click here to learn more about all our community outreach efforts!

Organizations

Some of the organizations we have worked with include:

    2025-ongoing
    Phase VI: Teen Neurodevelopment Study

    We will start recruiting 9- 11-year-olds and their families to participate in the Teen Neurodevelopment Study in January 2026! This study was developed with the youth and adult community advisory boards from 2024 – 2025.

    2024-2025
    Phase V: Develop Teen Brain Study with Second Community Advisory

    In 2024, we welcomed a new community advisory board — this time including eight adult and eight youth residents from Wards 4 and 5. Over the course of a year, we shared and refined our ideas for a study on teen brain, behavior, and cognitive development.

    With full decision-making power, advisory board members strengthened the study’s design, reshaped how we talk about it, and ensured it would have a positive impact on participating families and the broader community.

    We plan to begin recruiting families for the study in Spring 2026. Below, you can explore some of the key elements of the study that came directly from our advisory board members!

    Changes made by community members

    MRI Feedback Report 

    Ensure that participating in the study is educational … all teens who participate in the MRI portion of the study (which is optional) can also receive a personalized report with their own brain images annotated. See below for an example using Dr. Gard’s MRI images!

    Strengths-Based Feedback Reports

    Based on feedback from the community advisory board, all participating families will receive a persoalized report that outlines some of their strengths and potential areas for growth. Teen reports are based on their responses to surveys and their performance on computer tasks. Caregiver reports are based on their responses to surveys. All families can set up a meeting with Dr. Gard to review their reports.

    Greater Transparency

    We worked with the advisory board to design a study infographic that more clearly describes what the study is about and what will happen with the information gathered after the study is complete. At the suggestion of both youth and adult advisory board members, we also plan to host several family-focused “science nights” in the community where potential participating families can come meet us, grab dinner, and learn more about the study. Stay tuned!

     

    2022-2023
    Phase IV: Household Survey with Community Advisory Board 1

    To begin exploring our research questions, we worked with a community advisory board of seven adult residents from Wards 4 and 5 to design a household survey. The survey, offered in English, Spanish, and Amharic, took about 30–35 minutes to complete.

    It covered a wide range of topics to understand health and well-being more holistically — including social support, coping, neighborhood resources, religiosity, mental health, and household experiences.

    To ensure everyone had a fair chance to participate, we randomly selected 2,500 addresses across Wards 4 and 5 — almost like picking them out of a hat! In total, 367 shared their perspectives, helping us better understand how neighborhood life shapes community well-being.

    Research Using Data

    In an undergraduate research project, former GARD Lab team member Jalan Walker found that the more neighbors with whom you share your racial-ethnic identity, the stronger the perception of your own ethnic-racial identity. Stronger ethnic-racial identity is linked to higher self-esteem, lower mental health challenges, and greater resiliency. Jalan is now a masters student in the Couple and Family MS Program at Maryland.

    Alex Robey, undergraduate research assistant in the GARD Lab, shows how resident’s perception of greenspace accessibility and belonging alongside satellite-based data of greenery. These results were featured at our recent Data Walk at the Woodridge Library on November 1, 2025

    Copy of the Survey

    Click here for a copy of the adult survey that was sent to 2500 households in Wards 4 and 5 of Washington DC.

    Click here for a copy of the survey that youth ages 10-17 of adult respondents could complete.

    All questions in the survey were optional and residents received $20 for completing it.

    2022-2023
    Phase III: Youth Participatory Action Research Internship

    In response to community calls to include DC youth in our research, we welcomed six middle- and high-school students to join our STEM Youth Internship Program. During the program, interns learned how to collect data on neighborhood quality, develop their own research questions, and analyze data alongside our research team. 

    At the end of the program, interns shared their findings with family members and community leaders, highlighting how environmental quality affects health and well-being – and helping us learn what worked well and what we can improve in future programs

    Intern Projects

    Check out some of the interns’ projects that they worked on during the program!

    2022
    Phase II: Qualitative Interviews

    Twenty-nine community leaders, caregivers, and teens shared their perspectives with us on what it means for young people to be healthy and happy. They spoke about how their neighborhoods support their families — and where challenges make it harder to thrive. These conversations helped shape the next phases of the CARE Project, guiding our research on how violence exposure, social connection, and gentrification influence health and well-being across DC communities.

    Graduate student Joelle Fuchs published the project’s first academic paper using insights from these interviews. You can read that paper below!

    Facilitators and barriers to neighborhood social integration

    Author: Joelle Fuchs

    Social isolation has reached concerning rates, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Social integration is critical to combatting social isolation and loneliness by promoting a sense of community and belonging. Yet, most existing research centers on fostering close personal relationships within family and friend networks. Social integration within the neighborhood context (e.g., chatting with neighbors, participating in local organizations) is another tool that can be used to combat loneliness, but less is known about the process of social integration for residents situated in different sociodemographic groups. The current study examines variability in the process of neighborhood social integration across sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., social role, racial-ethnic identity, and housing tenure). Thematic analyses were conducted on semi-structured interviews with 29 residents of Wards 4 and 5 of Washington, D.C. Results suggested that relative to caregivers and community leaders, youth reported fewer opportunities for neighborhood social integration; frequently noted barriers were lack of shared identity, the transient nature of D.C., and school location. Despite sociodemographic heterogeneity in facilitators and barriers to neighborhood social integration, many residents called for more community programming and ‘third places’ to facilitate neighborhood connections.

    READ MORE >>

    2021-ongoing
    Phase I: Building Partnerships and Community Outreach

    The CARE Project began by building partnerships with local leaders, youth-serving organizations, and nonprofit groups across Washington, DC. We take part in community events by bringing family-friendly science activities — like Neuro-Trivia and creating wellness wheels — to spark curiosity and connection.

    We also share our skills in data analysis and grant writing to support local organizations in achieving their missions.

    In addition, we collaborate on community-led projects. One recent example is the “Our Neighborhoods, Our Stories” event series, which celebrates resident voices through art, conversation, and reflection. This series was created in partnership with the Brookland Intergenerational Village, Commissioner Ra Amin (SMD 5B04), and the DC Public Library’s Woodridge Branch.

    Click here to learn more about all our community outreach efforts!

    Organizations

    Some of the organizations we have worked with include: