Carolina Engagement Week brings together University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty, staff and students with community partners to learn about and celebrate engagement and collaboration with North Carolina communities. The Community Practice Lab team is contributing multiple sessions to Carolina Engagement Week 2024:
Weaving and Casting a NET for Organizational Development
February 27, 9:00-10:00 a.m., Dey Hall, Room 0209
Organizers: Sayoko Kawabata (CPL community engagement fellow) and Logan McVey (Habitat for Humanity of Orange County)
The staff of the Homeowner Services Department of Habitat for Humanity Orange County (HHOC) and the Community Engagement team of Community Practice Lab (CPL) at UNC’s Department of Health Sciences have been collaborating over the past two years to develop a Neighborhood Engagement Team (NET) to support community engagement efforts by HHOC. We will reflect on the processes of building this team through the partnership which has grown to gain the interest and trust of the whole organization and contributed to organizational change.
We hope to engage audiences in activities and group discussions that provoke thoughts about collaboration and approaches that align with organizational values.
Learn More & RegisterCommunity Collaboration for an Age-Friendly Orange County
February 29, 1:00-2:00 p.m., Carolina Hall, Room 321
Organizers: Leiha Edmonds (CPL housing fellow) and Janice Tyler (Orange County Department on Aging)
Join this discussion with the Executive Director of the Orange County Department on Aging about Orange County’s Master Aging Plan and on making the community more age–friendly. The conversation will focus on how the UNC community can connect with ongoing work in the region that supports intergenerational engagement, affordable housing preservation and development and expanding transportation supports, among other multi-partner initiatives supported by Orange County’s Master Aging Plan.
Learn More & RegisterLet’s Walk! Engaging Community Members in Walk Audits to Create Safer and More Accessible Communities
February 29, 3:00-4:00 p.m., meet in front of Graham Memorial
Organizers: Kevin Giff (CPL community programs specialist) and UNC FFORC staff members
Walk audits are an invaluable tool to engage community members to evaluate and advocate for improvements to their neighborhoods that foster safer and more accessible spaces for people of all ages and abilities to be active. In this workshop, organizers will share how passionate young people in the Fairview Youth in Action program, a summer high school internship sponsored by UNC FFORC, have leveraged walk audits to advocate for tangible changes such as sidewalks, crosswalks, shade trees and lighting, to their neighborhood in Hillsborough, NC. Attendees will then participate in an interactive walk audit around campus to gain firsthand experience in assessing walkability and learn strategies to improve active living in their own communities.
**Please note, the walk audit process will be accessible for attendees who are wheelchair users or use assisted mobility devices.
Learn More & RegisterAging in Community: Honoring the Vision for Elder Care in the Northside Community
February 29, 4:00-5:30 p.m., Marian Cheek Jackson Center, 512 West Rosemary Street, Chapel Hill
Organizers: Kendra Oliver-Derry (CPL aging fellow) and Aisha Booze-hall (Marian Cheek Jackson Center director of education)
The Marian Cheek Jackson Center is a hub of creative action dedicated to preserving the future of historically Black neighborhoods in Chapel Hill and Carrboro. In this presentation, we will discuss one of the Jackson Center’s latest projects, which seeks to develop a respite program for aging neighbors and their care partners in honor of the late Ms. Velma Perry. As this project is in its early stages, we will discuss the potential of this project and the future of elder care in the historically Black neighborhoods of Chapel Hill and Carrboro.
Learn More & RegisterIDEAL Communities: HOPE NC’s Collective Impact Approach to Creating Inclusive Housing in North Carolina
March 1, 9:00-10:00 a.m., Genome Science Building, Room G010
Organizers: Kevin Giff (CPL community programs specialist), Dania Khan (CPL HOPE NC intern), and Laura Wells (HOPE NC)
Collective impact is a structured approach to foster collaboration among diverse stakeholders to address complex social problems, through shared goals, measurement, coordinated activities, ongoing communication and dedicated support (Kania & Kramer 2011). In 2022, HOPE NC launched IDEAL Communities, a collective impact initiative that brings together community members, organizations and institutions to advocate for more inclusive and affordable housing options for older adults and adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities (I/DD) in North Carolina, with a focus on building a model inclusive community in the Triangle. In the presentation, attendees will learn about the collective impact framework by examining HOPE NC’s IDEAL Communities initiative as a case study. Through this, we will share initial outcomes, lessons learned and future opportunities of the initiative. Attendees will then have the opportunity to apply what they learn about collective impact to a social problem related to their own work or interests.
Learn More & RegisterAll 2024 Carolina Engagement Week events, including additional events hosted by the CPL’s community partners, are available on the Carolina Engagement Week website.