Nestled high in the mountains of western North Carolina on the banks of the French Broad River, Hot Springs is emblematic of many of the state’s small communities.

Founded more than 200 years ago and home to 528 year-round residents, the town punches above its weight as a summer vacation hotspot thanks to its proximity to the river, the Appalachian Trail, Pisgah National Forest, and restorative natural mineral hot springs.

The School of Government is inviting interested parties to submit community revitalization projects for free analysis by students.

In early 2018, the School of Government’s Development Finance Initiative received a call from the City of Lenoir, the county seat of Caldwell County in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

In Roxboro, North Carolina, employees of Person County work hard to address the challenges facing their community. For the past year, Keshav Javvadi, a Carolina alum, has been serving alongside them as a fellow for Lead for North Carolina.

The Lead for North Carolina (LFNC) program increases government capacity in local communities in North Carolina by placing young people in high-impact fellowships across the state.

In 2003, the city of Kannapolis, North Carolina, dealt with the worst permanent lay-off in state history when the textile giant Cannon Mills closed down. Consequently, Kannapolis’s downtown district suffered as many businesses shuttered. By 2015, over half of the downtown was vacant and many of its historic structures were in disrepair.