Whole Community Connection (WCC) is a leadership program for community-academic partners.
WCC invites applications from existing community-academic partnerships advancing health and well-being in Edgecombe or Robeson County. Selected teams participate in leadership development and receive funding to implement community-led solutions. The call for applications closes Oct. 18. Visit https://wcc.unc.edu/apply to learn more and apply as a team.
Selected teams participate in one year of leadership development focused on building relationships for collective and community-led action and receive $45,000 in funding to improve community health. The opportunity is open to teams of four partners including two Edgecombe or Robeson County community members and two University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty or researchers from any of UNC's 13 schools.
"The vision of WCC is a healthy, thriving North Carolina for all," said Giselle Corbie, MD, MSc, WCC co-director and director of UNC Rural and the Center for Health Equity Research at the UNC School of Medicine. "Our approach is to support leaders to advance rural health equity by increasing local power to focus on priorities by and at the community level. Simultaneously, we are co-creating a model of relationship centered engagement that can be used by community-academic partners throughout the state."
Selected teams start the program in January 2023. During the year-long program, teams benefit from:
- Enhanced leadership skills and tools for advancing health equity
- New, diverse, and growing connections to improve health and further systems change
- $45,000 to implement their community work in Edgecombe or Robeson County
The four team members participate in leadership development during four in-person convenings, monthly webinars, individual and team coaching, mentoring, and independent learning. There is also the opportunity to receive additional support for the community projects from UNC-Chapel Hill interprofessional students. The leadership development curriculum blends two proven models, relational leadership and equity-centered leadership, in order to:
- Support leaders to advance health equity in rural North Carolina
- Increase local power to focus on priorities by and at the community level
- Co-create a model of relationship centered engagement
"Leadership isn't one person, it's about building relationships for collective and community-led action," said Meg Zomorodi PhD, RN, ANEF, FAAN, assistant provost for Office of Interprofessional Education and Practice. "Together, we grow in our understanding of oneself and others, expand collaborations that improve health equity, and develop collective action for systems change."
Corbie and Zomorodi lead WCC. The program is supported by the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust in alignment with the strategic plan for the University, Carolina Next: Innovations for Public Good. Specifically, the initiative to Serve to Benefit Society reinforces the University's commitment to direct innovation towards economic and social development across the state.
Visit wcc.unc.edu to learn more about WCC and awarded teams.
