Carolina Across 100 launches final program
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Carolina Across 100 initiative (CX100) has announced its final program, Our State, Our Future, which will celebrate the accomplished goal of engaging with all 100 counties in North Carolina.
“Carolina Across 100 has provided communities with the campus expertise, funding and peer support needed to make real, lasting progress on the issues that matter most to their communities,” said Anita Brown-Graham, lead coordinator of Carolina Across 100, ncIMPACT director, and professor at the School of Government. “While this initiative is coming to a close, the commitment of our campus to the State of North Carolina remains steadfast.”
Since 2022, CX100 has worked with local leaders in all 100 counties to promote economic prosperity through community-driven solutions on topics including youth workforce participation, mental health improvements and housing affordability. CX100 has spearheaded seven programs over the course of the initiative, working with campus partners to help communities make major impacts addressing challenges across the state:
● 246 faculty and staff engaged in CX100
● 105,706 services provided locally by CX100 collaborative teams
● 99% of CX100 program participants reported a positive impact on their community
● 2,271 new partnerships formed by CX100 collaborative teams
Programs directly addressed the needs of communities and helped build the relationships, skills, and structures that support effective collaboration and adapted them to local contexts. CX100 is committed to sharing program resources and findings to help all North Carolina communities benefit from the work of these programs.
Our State, Our Work
Our State, Our Work is the first CX100 collaborative program. Through this two-year initiative, 13 teams representing 37 counties collaborated to connect young adults to living wage employment opportunities. Teams served 15,848 Opportunity Youth by 2025, surpassing their original goal of 6,400. Teams continue to collaborate and deliver services locally, with nearly $1 million in financial assistance for education, 44,380 educational and employment services delivered, and over 1,400 partnerships formed.
Our State, Our Wellbeing
Our State, Our Wellbeing is the second CX100 collaborative program. Through this 12-month initiative, led in partnership with the UNC Suicide Prevention Institute, 15 teams from 24 counties partnered to identify and implement strategies to improve mental health and reduce the number of suicides in North Carolina. During the program, teams delivered more than 1,600 mental health services, distributed more than 5,000 gun locks, and held 661 trainings on mental health and suicide prevention reaching more than 19,000 people. The program culminated in a Statewide Summit on Suicide Prevention in June 2024.
Tar Heel Bus Tour Grants
The Tar Heel Bus Tour Grants program is the third CX100 collaborative program, encouraging University participants to build and maintain connections across North Carolina by developing projects that address issues and needs in partnership with communities throughout the state. In 2023, CX100 partnered with UNC Rural to offer $100,000 in funding, awarded to 14 campus-community partnerships. In 2024, an additional $20,000 in funding was awarded. Campus-community partnerships continue in 21 counties across the state.
Rural Pharmacy Health Initiative
The Rural Pharmacy Health Initiative is the fourth CX100 collaborative program. Through grant funding to the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Carolina Across 100 helped launch a rural pharmacy hub at the Roanoke Chowan Community Health Center in Ahoskie, North Carolina. The grant enabled the School to extend its reach to people in medically underserved communities across North Carolina in collaboration with community partners, as the School’s Rural Pharmacy Health Initiative reached 18 counties.
Our State, Our Homes
Our State, Our Homes is the fifth CX100 collaborative program. Through this 18-month initiative, led in partnership with the Development Finance Initiative and other campus partners, 14 teams from 22 counties are partnering to develop capacity, analyze challenges, and implement strategies to address affordable housing and related issues in North Carolina.
CARE4Youth
CARE4Youth is the sixth CX100 program. Throughout this three-year program, led in partnership with the UNC Child and Adolescent Anxiety and Mood Disorders Program (CHAAMP) at the UNC School of Medicine, 10 teams from 18 counties implement evidence-based interventions to improve youth and young adult mental health in their communities.
Our State, Our Future
As the final CX100 program, Our State, Our Future will support a cohort of 10 teams from 19 counties as they develop supportive systems to address challenges related to Opportunity Youth (education and workforce participation), suicide prevention (mental and behavioral health) and housing.
Our State, Our Future communities have committed to a year-long capacity-building initiative with three in-person forums, monthly webinars, and additional engagement opportunities with Carolina faculty, staff, and students. The activities will familiarize teams with principles of effective community collaboration and strategies for addressing community challenges. Participating communities’ increased civic capacity will lay the foundation for improved youth employment outcomes, stronger mental health, and greater housing stability.
Learn more about the Our State, Our Future.