Initiative

NC Healthy and Resilient Communities Initiative

The NC Healthy & Resilient Communities Initiative supports local multi-sector coalitions in North Carolina who are working to address adversity and trauma at multiple levels (individual, organizational, and community) and who are working to build resilient and healthy communities by increasing protective factors and positive childhood experiences. Peer support, relevant trainings, and connections to other statewide and local resources are provided, including a theory of change model, to encourage cross-agency/system collaborations with a shared understanding of community resilience and adversity and to align the work happening in many counties and communities.

Through this work, this initiative aims to reduce multiple forms of childhood adversity, including negative social and environmental drivers of health; increase protective factors and positive childhood experiences for children, families, and communities and promote systems change, through community infrastructure and cross-sector collaborations, for preventing, responding to, and learning from exposure to toxic stress and trauma.

Home Pathways Action Map NC Healthy and Resilient Communities Initiative

Fast Facts

Relevant Actions Action 4.8, Action 4.7, Action 1.3
State or Local?

State
Counties

Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Bladen, Brunswick, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Carteret, Caswell, Chatham, Cherokee, Clay, Columbus, Cumberland, Dare, Durham, Edgecombe, Forsyth, Gaston, Graham, Greene, Guilford, Harnett, Haywood, Jackson, Jones, Lee, Lenoir, McDowell, Macon, Madison, Mecklenburg, Mitchell, Montgomery, Moore, New Hanover, Onslow, Orange, Pender, Pitt, Randolph, Richmond, Robeson, Rockingham, Rutherford, Stokes, Swain, Transylvania, Wake, Watauga, Wilkes, Wilson, Yancey
Lead Agency

The North Carolina Partnership for Children
Type of Agency

Non-profit
Racial Equity Lens
  • The initiative’s data dashboard has a section on structural racism, and as many data indicators as possible were chosen that were able to be disaggregated by race and ethnicity for a clearer picture of how racism affects any and all health outcomes.
  • Collaboratives are encouraged to consider the Four Realms of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) including: Adverse Childhood Experiences, Adverse Community Environments, Adverse Climate Events, and Atrocious Cultural Events.
  • Workshops and trainings focusing on centering racial equity as contributing to and exacerbating ACEs have been held, and we encourage this idea to be lifted up at every opportunity.
Community Voice
  • Local collaboratives are encouraged to have all voices at the table in decision making, especially those historically marginalized and under-represented.
Impact
  • Provided a Landscape Analysis to local collaboratives to use which includes data, graphics, definitions (for shared language), and a Theory of Change Model.
  • Connecting approximately 30 individuals from across the state each month to share challenges, resources, ideas and wins in their work with one another.
  • Brought numerous training opportunities guided by what local coalitions are saying they need to NC communities.
Next Steps
  • The initiative has currently identified 45 counties with active multi-sector resilience/ACEs coalitions/collaboratives. As others are formed or identified, we hope to increase the list of counties with whom this initiative is working.
  • A need for additional funding to hire coordinators to facilitate local coalition meetings in communities has been identified.
Primary Partners
  • Prevent Child Abuse NC
  • NC Child
  • NC Department of Health & Human Services/Division of Mental Health
  • AHEC (Area Health Education Centers)
  • Resources for Resilience, Community Resiliency Model
Primary Funders
  • Kate B. Reynolds Foundation
  • NC DHHS/Division of Mental Health Block Grants
Contact

Mebane Boyd

Active Counties