"Harnessing the power of research to advance social justice in the District of Columbia"
The Community Research and Learning (CoRAL) Network is a consortium of community-based organizations and higher education institutions in the Washington DC metro area engaged in community-based learning and research to promote positive social change and advance their social justice missions in the national capital region.
CoRAL's programmatic focus is on professional development of university faculty, civic engagement and leadership development among undergraduates, and capacity-building for non-profit service agencies to effectively utilize CBR results to improve service delivery and broaden public awareness.
The CoRAL Network started off as a project at Georgetown University with a five-year grant awarded by the Bonner Foundation in 1997 to the university's Volunteer and Public Service Center (which is now the Center for Social Justice, Research, Teaching, and Service). The project goal was to help encourage the use of Georgetown's resources and research abilities to further the social change efforts of local community-based organizations and thus strenghthening university-community ties.
This initiative is supported by a three-year grant from the Corporation for National Service 
