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MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
| April 2025 | | |
Dear Friends,
In March the ROI team was on the move, sharing our community’s insights and building connections across the country. We’ve got lots of exciting updates for you as we sew seeds of resilience this Spring.
Despite all the hustle and bustle, we’re making time for the people and places that mean the most to us. Vichi grabbed dinner with Seth’s mom in Iowa City. Naomi’s father and nephew visited her for the annual Plant City, F.L. Strawberry Festival, the largest strawberry festival in the country! Who is helping you stay grounded?
Read ahead to learn more about the places our work has taken us in the last month. You’ll also find exciting opportunities to build community connections and strengthen your skills, like the upcoming Edgecombe Resilience Community Meeting and free Trauma & Resilience 101 Training offerings. As always, thanks for taking the time to catch up with us.
Onward! Vichi and Seth |
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Engineering Resilient Futures for Rural Communities
| Vichi attended the National Science Foundation Engineering Research Visioning Alliance (NSF erVa) event in Iowa. This two day convening brought together experts across engineering, research, nonprofit, government, and more for a collaborative visioning session on what resilient futures for rural communities could look like in 20-30 years, and what key engineering research directions could enable these futures. Keep an eye out for an upcoming report to inform national research priorities and funding as we imagine innovative and resilient rural community possibilities. | |
| More Details
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SXSW EDU in Austin |
Vichi and Ethan said ‘Howdy!’ to Austin, T.X. for SXSW EDU. This conference brought together visionary educators, entrepreneurs, policymakers, creatives, and more to explore innovative solutions to challenges in education. Their highlights were attending New Schools Venture Fund CEO, Frances Messano’s session on funding models for research and development in education and meeting with founders and funders of color at the Equitech Breakfast. They celebrated connecting with new partners and old friends including Camelback Ventures, New Profit, Walton Family Foundation, and Imaginable Futures. We’re grateful to have been a part of this opportunity for discovery and community building.
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| Learn More
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NC Rural Summit
| Graham attended the NC Rural Summit, which featured speakers including Governor Josh Stein and Lieutenant Governor Rachel Hunt. This convening brought together hundreds of rural leaders and advocates from across the state for intentional dialogue and collaboration on how we can meet the needs of rural communities. This year they focused on securing rural futures by highlighting four key policy issues; education and workforce training; infrastructure; healthcare; and small business. We’re grateful to be in partnership with organizations with deep knowledge of our community’s strengths and opportunities for growth. |
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| NC Rural Center
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New Community Accountability Board Members |
We had our monthly Community Accountability Board (CAB) meeting at NC Wesleyan University. We welcomed 2 new board members (Michael and Sarah) who are current high school and college students, bringing us the perspective of young people that we were previously missing on the board. This exciting progress towards a multigenerational board is essential to our work, especially as we engage young people in programs like the Young Civic Leaders Initiative and On the Edgecombe (OTE), our upcoming trauma-informed youth program. We’re eager to see what new possibilities will emerge from this growth. |
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| How We Use CAB
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Community Impact Spotlight
Meet Jeannie Kerr, Director of Project AWARE at Nash County Schools & ROI Medicaid Learning Collaborative Member |
We’re thrilled to share that Project AWARE was selected as the 2025 East Carolina University School of Social Work Outstanding Field Agency of the Year. They were awarded this prestigious recognition due to their exceptional dedication, leadership, and commitment to providing an outstanding learning environment for ECU School of Social Work students. Congratulations to Jeannie Kerr, Director of Project AWARE at Nash County Schools, for earning this award for her program with her thoughtful and supportive leadership.
Jeannie is also a member of our Medicaid Learning Collaborative (MLC), and exemplifies the impact that members of our program facilitate in their communities. N.C public and charter school leaders, you can build community connections with local change-makers like Jeannie and receive free technical support with expanding mental healthcare access at your school using the Medicaid reimbursement process by applying to join our upcoming cohort.
Learn more about the MLC 2025-26 Cohort and apply here.
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Edgecombe Resilience Community Meeting | Join us on May 2, 2025 for an opportunity to connect with your neighbors and imagine visionary strategies to generate community power. You’ll get the latest updates on how we’re building community resilience over a free lunch. Edgecombe is stronger when we stand together as a community. We can’t wait to see you there; RSVP today!
Register to Attend
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Young Civic Leaders Recruitment |
We’re in the home stretch of recruitment for our Young Civic Leaders (YCL) initiative, our summer internship program for eastern N.C. youth. Building community resilience means engaging our youth and creating communities they are excited to be part of and return to. This year, we’re adding new learning opportunities, like a Career and Technical Education (CTE) certification, and seeking new employment sites for interns across the non-profit, public, and private sectors of eastern N.C. Support our work by nominating an employer or a young leader in our community using the links below.
Submit an Employer or Youth Nomination
| | Trauma Informed Communities Project |
Duke University’s Trauma Informed Communities Project is a resource to support community members, coalitions, and service providers to practice change to bring a trauma-informed, equity-focused, and healing-centered approach to their N.C. Communities. They are offering several opportunities for community connections and workshops throughout the Spring.
Learn More and Register | | |
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RSVP for April Policy Listening Session |
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For anyone local to Nash, Edgecombe, and Wilson counties here in North Carolina: Join us virtually on Thursday, April 10, 2025 from 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. EST to discuss important policy matters that affect our community. This session is open to all who are interested in sharing their thoughts and ideas. Let's come together to listen, learn, and collaborate on ways to make a positive impact. Don't miss this opportunity to have your voice heard!
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| RSVP for the 4/10 session
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Rural Opportunity Institute supports youth, organizations and communities to interrupt the cycle of generational trauma and design innovative solutions for healing and resilience.
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