2023-2024 NC SHIP Community Council Scorecard

Structure of the NC SHIP Community Council

The NC SHIP Community Council provides oversight on policy initiatives for the 21 HNC 2030 indicators throughout the decade (2020-2030):  

• Convenes annually in July.
• Comprised of 18 working groups (two clusters of similar HNC 2030 indicators and 16 stand-alone indicators).
• Each working group has a minimum of three co-leads.
• Co-leads must include at least one DHHS representative, one or more community advocates, and one or more partnering agency, institution, or non-DHHS representatives.
• All designated co-leads constitute the NC SHIP Community Council.

Calendar of Events

• October 2023: First work group meetings held.
• September 2023: Co-leaders review priorities and plan for work group meetings. 
• August 2023: Co-Leader Process Review Meetings
• July 12, 2023: NC SHIP Community Council Annual Meeting
• May to June 2023: Co-Leader Listening Sessions
• August 2022 to June 2023: Work group meetings held, priorities identified, and action planning began.
• July 19, 2022: Inaugural NC SHIP Community Council Annual Meeting 
• July 2022:  NC SHIP Community Council Program Manager hired.
• June 7, 2022: DHHS co-leads review the proposed policy initiatives in the 2022 NC SHIP in preparation for the annual NC SHIP Community Council meeting.
• May 2022: NC DHHS designated co-leads leads for each indicator.

The NC SHIP Community Council met on July 12, 2023, to:

• Share the journey from Healthy North Carolina 2030 (HNC 2030) to now.
• Provide an opportunity for co-leaders and work group members to reflect on their experiences over the past year.
• Recognize the NC SHIP Community Council as a Social Sector Hero. 
• Launch the Year of Action. 
• Invite new members to join and current members to continue. 
• (Slides from the meeting are available at: https://schs.dph.ncdhhs.gov/units/ldas/hnc.htm)

HNC 2030 Priorities

Healthy North Carolina (HNC 2030) provides the foundation for the NC State Health Improvement Plan.  Using the Robert Wood Johnson-County Health Ranking's Population Health Framework,  planners apportioned the number and type of indicators used in the model. 

The quality of our life and how long we live is dependent upon four types of factors: 

• Health Behaviors (about 40%),
• Clinical Care (about 20%),
• Physical Envionment (about 10%), and
• Social and Economic factors (about 40%).

HNC 2030 addresses 21 wicked problems based upon the above allocation:

• 6 Indicators for Health Behaviors
• 4 Indicators for Clinicare Care
• 3 Indicators for Physical Environment
• 6 Indicators for Social and Economic 
• 2 Overarching Indicators

This Scorecard tracks priorities specific to the 21 headline indicators highlighted in HNC 2030 and the NC State Health Improvement Plan.

Healthy People 2030 Priorities

Healthy People 2030 is our nation's plan that focuses on eight global outcome measures that impact overall health and well-being. In addition to the global measures, there are 355 core objectives that have 10 year targets.

Healthy North Carolina 2030 tracks 21 indicators with 10 year targets. NC's 21 indicators are aligned with Healthy People 2030, with two exceptions that were of specific interest to North Carolinians (Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption and Short-term School Suspensions),

Learn more at: https://health.gov/healthypeople 

2023-2024 Meeting Schedules

There are 18 work groups across the 21 indicators. Meeting schedules are included as available under each work group below. To join a work group completed the NC SHIP Community Council Interest Form. For more information on how to attend the work group meetings, contact Ashley Rink, Program Manager, NC SHIP Community Council, at ashley.rink@dhhs.nc.gov.

New Members

New members to the NC SHIP Community Council (which includes the work groups) should recieve the following as part of their orientation. If the following has not been received, contact Ashley Rink, ashley.rink@dhhs.nc.gov.

• Community Council 101 (Slide Deck and/or Live Orientation; includes review of work group's priorities and action plans)
• Invite to NC SHIP Community Council Teams Channel (Access to additional meeting notes, slide decks, action plans, and contact list)
• Calendar invites to work group meetings

Included below are links frequently referred to by the Community Council.

• Healthy North Carolina 2030 (HNC 2030) and NC SHIP
• NC SHIP Full Report (2023) 
• 2023-2024 NC SHIP Community Council Scorecard

Frequently Used Acronyms

AAP: American Academy of Pediatrics

ACC: Accountable Care Community

ACEs: Adverse Childhood Experiences

ACOG: American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

BRFSS: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System

CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

CNW: certified nurse midwife

CSPAC: Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Advisory Council

EBCI: Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians

FHLI: The Foundation for Health Leadership & Innovation

FPL: Federal Poverty Level

HIV: Human Immunodeficiency Virus

HNC: Healthy North Carolina

HPV: human papillomavirus

IUD: intrauterine device

KEA: Kindergarten Entry Assessment

LARC: long-acting reversible contraceptives

LE: life expectancy

LEA: Local Education Agency

LGBTQ: lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer

MSM: men who have sex with men

NC AHEC: NC Area Health Education Centers

NC DHHS or NCDHHS: North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services

NC DPH: North Carolina Division of Public Health

NC DPI: North Carolina Department of Public Instruction

NC EDSS: North Carolina Electronic Disease Surveillance System

NC SEAAC: North Carolina State Excessive Alcohol Advisory Committee (NCSEAAC)

NCHA: North Carolina Healthcare Association

NCIOM: North Carolina Institute of Medicine

OPDAAC: North Carolina Opioid and Prescription Drug Abuse Advisory Committee

PA: physician assistant

PHEC: Perinatal Health Equity Collective

PHSP: Perinatal Health Strategic Plan

PrEP: pre-exposure prophylaxis

SBIRT: Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment

SDOH: Social determinants of health

SHA: State Health Assessment

SHIP: State Health Improvement Plan

SNAP/EBT: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program/Electronic Benefits Transfer

SSB: sugar-sweetened beverage

STI: sexually transmitted infection

SUD: substance use disorder

VA: Veterans Affairs

YRBS: Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance

Co-Leaders and Members

Joining a Work Group: To join a work group or work groups, please complete the NC SHIP Community Council Interest Form. For additional information about the NC SHIP Community Council, contact Ashley Rink, Program Manager, at ashley.rink@dhhs.nc.gov.

Priorities

Priorities are the policies and/or programs identified by the work group to take action on over the course of the next year.

Priority Development Agenda

The Priority Development Agenda is a list of policies and/or programs the work group considers important for future consideration and is not taking action on during this next year.

Potential reasons why a priority would be added to the priority development agenda:

• Lack of resources (Specify the type of resources, such as materials, money/funding, staff, and/or other assets)
• Lack of political support and/or viability
• Other: Describe the reason the priority is not currently feasible and/or is being added to the priority development agenda.

Action Plan

The purpose of a work group's action plan is to describe what the work group plans to act on until June 2024 to advance the identified priorities. The timeframes for the work group’s action plans may extend past June 2024 to 2030. The indicators identified in Healthy North Carolina 2030 are in place until 2030. Action plans are fluid and will be updated throughout the year.

While work groups can use the format that works best for them for action planning, the recommendation is that at minimum the following be included for the action plan for each priority.

• What will be done?
• How will it be done?
  • (For example, describe how the action step or strategy will be implemented.)
• Who will be involved in implementing the action step or strategy?
  • (For example, partners and/or who will be doing this.)
• When will it take place?
  • (For example, what time period.)
• How will success be measured?
  • (For example, how much did we do, how well did we do, and/or is anyone better off.)

Meeting Schedule

Work group meeting schedules vary and may be monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly depending on the work group. Refer to each indicator and work group for current meeting schedules. 

Meeting Notes

Notes from work group meetings throughout the year will be available in the section for Meeting Notes.

Readings/Listenings

The Readings/Listenings include websites, articles, videos, and other relevant resources from the indicator pages in the 2023 NC SHIP report. 

Related Statewide Plans

Related plans include and are not limited to the following:

2021-2025 N.C. Falls Prevention Coalition Action Plan    

2021-2025 North Carolina Suicide Prevention Action Plan  

2022 Update- Dementia-Capable North Carolina: A Strategic Plan for Addressing Alzheimer's Disease & Related Dementia

2022-2026 Perinatal Health Strategic Plan 

NC Ending HIV: A Plan to End HIV Together Community-by-Community Hand-in-Hand 

North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Strategic Housing Plan 

North Carolina Opioid and Substance Use Action Plan

North Carolina’s Olmstead Plan   

North Carolina’s Plan to Address Overweight and Obesity    

Co-Leaders and Members

Co-Leaders:

Work Group Members:

Updated 3/21/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities

• Create and expand legislation and advocate with employers to provide paid family medical leave, earned paid sick leave, kin care, and safe days for all caregivers 
• Expand access to higher educational opportunities
• Expand Medicaid eligibility
• Expand the availability and amount of childcare subsidies to reflect the cost of care more adequately. 
• Support people with disabilities and those in recovery, veterans, and reentry populations to live their lives as fully included members of the community implementing key employment initiatives like CIE and Employment First.
• Support early college while in high school — pipeline programs

Priority Development Agenda

2022 Proposed Policy Initiatives

The following are the proposed policy initiatives from the 2022 NC SHIP report.

Poverty:

• Create and expand legislation and advocate with employers to provide paid family medical leave, earned paid sick leave, kin care, and safe days for all caregivers
• Ease negative impact of “benefits cliffs” caused by reductions in benefits, by lengthening phase-out periods
• Eliminate taxation on sanitary products including menstrual supplies, diapers, and breastfeeding supplies
• Expand Medicaid eligibility
• Expand the availability and amount of childcare subsidies to reflect the cost of care more adequately
• Raise the minimum wage to $15.00 per hour
• Restore the North Carolina Earned Income Tax Credit
• Support “early college while in high school” programs, such as REaCH and SEarCH

Unemployment:

• Create and expand legislation and advocate with employers to provide paid family medical leave, earned paid sick leave, kin care, and safe days for all caregivers
• Expand access to higher educational opportunities
• Expand Medicaid eligibility
• Expand transit options in rural and low-income communities
• Improve access to personal finance credit scores
• Expand the availability and amount of childcare subsidies to reflect the cost of care more adequately
• Increase access to broadband internet
• Pass fair chance hiring policies for county and local employees, and work with employers to adopt fair chance hiring policies for themselves
• Shift funding from industrial recruitment to support small businesses and social enterprises
• Support people with disabilities and those in recovery, veterans, and reentry populations to live their lives as fully included members of the community by implementing key employment initiatives like Competitive Integrated Employment and Employment First

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Poverty & Unemployment Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Friday, October 13, 2023, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Friday, November 17, 2023, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Friday, December 8, 2023, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Thursday, January 25, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, February 13, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, March 12, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, April 9, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, May 14, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday,  June 11, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Tuesday, February 13, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Fenaba Addo, Hope Bryant, Sue Lynn Ledford, Jessica Maas, Yas Shepard, Staff: Ashley Rink

• Updates: The following updates were shared during the meeting.
  • Yas Shepard:
  • There is a public facing data dashboard for Medicaid Expansion that includes enrollment by race, ethnicity, age, and other metrics. The Medicaid Expansion Dashboard is available at https://medicaid.ncdhhs.gov/reports/medicaid-expansion-dashboard. Working with them to find data on income levels for those being enrolled at the state and/or local level.
  • There is not any legislation in the General Assembly’s Short Session on paid parental leave. The proposed bills related to paid parental leave are still available for review at https://www.ncleg.gov/Legislation/Bills/ByKeyword/2023/All. To view those bills, search “Paid.”
  • NCDHHS Veteran’s Services does provide support for employment services and education. Additional information is available at https://www.ncdhhs.gov/assistance/veterans-services.
  • Hope Bryant:
    • Contacted the Director of Accessibility Services of her local community college. She is working with her on data at the local level and how to access the data statewide. They are still working on the grant for employment for those with disabilities.
    • Will continue to work on getting data for the local communities and the state community colleges.
  • Jessica Maas:
  • Community health worker employment is varied across the state; some community health workers are employed by providers, health plans, and health departments. The certification program is in place. Currently, fourteen community colleges offer certification training.
  • Sue Lynn Ledford:
    • The NCCARE360 portal can be utilized across the state for referrals and referral tracking.
    • Impact Health in western North Carolina is part of the Healthy Opportunities Pilot. As part of the pilot, they can work with their Medicaid clients that have health and safety issues, including food, housing repair and remediation of homes, transportation, safety/ violence, etc. They have covered about 1,300 clients in western North Carolina since March 2023. Healthy Opportunities Pilots: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/department-initiatives/healthy-opportunities/healthy-opportunities-pilots
    • Impact Health- Network Leads: https://impacthealth.org/who-we-are/our-team/
    • The Healthy Opportunities Pilot (HOP) will be expanding to a statewide system- What are the projected number of beneficiaries the HOP expansion would impact?
    • There are opportunities to review numbers around Numbers around housing remediation, supplemental food boxes, transportation, etc.; there are a lot of tracking within the Healthy Opportunities Pilots that could lend voice to what the issues of poverty and unemployment are.
    • From the lens of poverty, HOP is a mechanism for families that have been hopeless and unable to address their needs to begin to address their needs.
    • NCWorks provides employment assistance through reentry programs for people involved in the justice system. The state is expanding reentry services.
    • NCDHHS Expands Investment in Reentry Services for People Involved in the Justice System: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/news/press-releases/2024/02/12/ncdhhs-expands-investment-reentry-services-people-involved-justice-system
• Additional Discussion:
  • There is flexibility in the work group’s focus related to poverty and unemployment. The group has been reviewing programs and policies to move the needle on poverty and unemployment.
  • The group initially reviewed policies from Healthy North Carolina 2030 and narrowed the list to focus on Medicaid Expansion, paid family leave, reentry, and unhoused populations.
  • The group continues to make connections with stakeholders to track how those programs and policies are impacting poverty and unemployment across the state.
  • Previously there was a policy in the list related to broadband that was not prioritized. The group discussed potentially adding, “Increase access to broadband internet,” as a priority. Housing is another issue in rural and urban areas. Stabilizing drivers of health, such as affordable for housing needs, broadband, and healthcare, etc.
• Next Steps:
  • Yas- Confirm if contact is still working with HOP. Explore HOP data.
  • Sue Lynn- Share HOP contacts; will sharing that contact information with Yas.
  • All- Consider:
    • What is the next actionable thing the group could do?
    • What is moving the needle for families being served?
  • All- Share if you have a conflict with the next meeting that is scheduled for Tuesday, March 12, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm via Microsoft Teams.

Thursday, January 25, 2024, 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Yas Shepard, Fenaba Addo, Hope Bryant, Diannee Carden-Glenn, Jessica Maas, Melanie Osborne; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Introductions
  • Yas Shepard and Fenaba Addo welcomed everyone and asked for introductions.
  • The co-leaders for the work group are Yas Shepard, Fenaba Addo, and Nakiya Smith.
• Priority Review
  • The work group reviewed the priorities the group had identified previously.
    1. Create and expand legislation and advocate with employers to provide paid family medical leave, earned paid sick leave, kin care, and safe days for all caregivers
    2. Expand access to higher educational opportunities
    3. Expand Medicaid eligibility
    4. Expand the availability and amount of childcare subsidies to reflect the cost of care
    5. Support people with disabilities and those in recovery, veterans, and reentry populations to live their lives as fully included members of the community implementing key employment initiatives like CIE and Employment First
    6. Support early college while in high school — pipeline programs
    7. Support education, awareness, and outreach for services for people who are in poverty, unemployed, and/or are unhoused (added)
  • The group has made some progress on data available related to the priorities and track progress to address poverty and unemployment. The priorities are not prioritized over the others.
  • #3 With Medicaid, some of the data is not tracked at a state level about poverty and unemployment and is not readily accessible.
  • #3: There has been a focus on finding data to assess whether poverty and unemployment has been or not been improving.
  • #5: Hope Bryant- Her local community college has written a grant to support individuals with disabilities and connect them with jobs. There should be data from the colleges. Bring additional information to the next meeting.
  • #1: With the growing work group, there are more opportunities to explore different avenues to support this work.
  • #5: There are not enough social workers in the prisons to prepare for reentry. There are some pilots to encourage linkage with MCOs and may need additional support.
  • #5: Efforts to increase and encourage use of the NCCare360 system.
  • #5:  NC Serves- veterans services of the Carolinas, Veterans Bridge Home- link to resources, huge advocate; ABCCM.
    • https://nc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=def612b7025b44eaa1e0d7af43f4702b
    • https://veteransbridgehome.org/
    • https://www.abccm-vsc.org/
  • Have DSS offices been tracking the number of people are unemployed? Does Medicaid have that data about employment/ income level?
  • Hope- Connect to services.
  • #1: Is there any legislation being drafted? Where do things stand related to this kind of legislation?- Yas- can ask Matt Gross. Parental and family leave- Build Back Better efforts, any current movement?
  • Changes will have to be made related to Medicaid, related to behavioral health.
  • Bills related to paid parental leave- https://www.ncleg.gov/Legislation/Bills/ByKeyword/2023/All
  • NC is among the worst states for working parents, study finds. Here’s why (yahoo.com)
  • Support and buy-in related to parental leave policies.
  • Work with people in poverty and are unemployment- be advocate for those people to educate those people that don’t qualify for Medicaid
    • Support education, awareness, and outreach for services for people who are in poverty, unemployed, and/or are unhoused
• Next Steps:
  • All- Consider data and partners related to each of the priorities in preparation for the February meeting.
  • All- Review the proposed bills related to paid parental leave.
  • Ashley- Send out Doodle Poll for February. (Not 3:00 pm)- Monthly recurrence
  • Yas- Will resend the link to parental bills.
  • Yas- Ask Matt Gross about bills related to parental leave in the short session.
  • Yas- Will reshare priorities with the group.

Friday, December 15, 2023, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Yas Shepard and Volker Frank; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Notes:
  • Yas Shepard shared updates from her discussions with Nakiya Smith on parental leave and the General Assembly. Attached is additional information about the modifications from June 2023.
  • Yas has contacted Medicaid about poverty and unemployment data they may have available. They are rolling out a data dashboard. She is also contacting Honey Estrada with the North Carolina Community Health Worker Association about if there has been or will be expansion of community health workers hired by health plans with the changes to Medicaid.
  • A Doodle Poll will be shared in early January 2024 to assist with setting the new meeting schedule.
  • Continue to consider others to invite to join the work group.
  • The work group’s current priorities are included below. The co-leaders (Yas, Nakiya, and Fenaba) have been reviewing the priorities using an equity lens They also wanted to choose policies that could connect with agencies, groups, and people that could provide data.
    • Create and expand legislation and advocate with employers to provide paid family medical leave, earned paid sick leave, kin care, and safe days for all caregivers
    • Expand access to higher educational opportunities
    • Expand Medicaid eligibility
    • Expand the availability and amount of childcare subsidies to reflect the cost of care.
    • Support people with disabilities and those in recovery, veterans, and reentry populations to live their lives as fully included members of the community implementing key employment initiatives like CIE and Employment First.
    • Support early college while in high school — pipeline programs
  • There is potential momentum and opportunities around employment with Medicaid Expansion and with leave policies. The group will continue discussions at the next work group meeting.
  • The next steps are to continue to learn about the priorities regarding policies at the state level and the landscape and then to develop action plans as a work group for the priorities.

Friday, November 17, 2023, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Fenaba Addo and Yas Shepard; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Notes:
  • Discussed the following next steps related to the identified priorities and how to find out where there are bottlenecks and missing pieces related to how the priority areas are impacting unemployment and poverty.
  • Priority: Create and expand legislation and advocate with employers to provide paid family medical leave, earned paid sick leave, kin care, and safe days for all caregivers 
    • Identify what is currently in place or progress related to paid family medical leave. 
    • Review family leave policies for public institutions and state government.
      • Yas to contact OSHR.
      • Fenaba to reach out to human resources for UNC. 
  • Priority: Expand Medicaid eligibility
    • Learn about current initiatives related to Medicaid Expansion. 
    • Explore how Medicaid Expansion will directly and indirectly impact poverty. 
      • Data may be available through the Care Share Alliance, Justice Center, Department of Commerce, Census tract, etc.
      • Yas to contact Medicaid about related data that may be available.

Friday, October 13, 2023, from 2:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Fenaba Addo and Yas Shepard; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Notes:
  • Discussed which policies to work on this year; first and foremost, the work group wanted to look at policies using an equity lens and examine policies to address closing the gap. Additional considerations included choosing policies that could easily connect with agencies, groups, and people that could provide data. The identified priorities for 2023-2024 are:

1. Create and expand legislation and advocate with employers to provide paid family medical leave, earned paid sick leave, kin care, and safe days for all caregivers 
2. Expand access to higher educational opportunities
3. Expand Medicaid eligibility
4. Expand the availability and amount of childcare subsidies to reflect the cost of care more adequately. 
5. Support people with disabilities and those in recovery, veterans, and reentry populations to live their lives as fully included members of the community implementing key employment initiatives like CIE and Employment First.
6. Support early college while in high school — pipeline programs

• Planned to meet on November 17, 2023, in the afternoon; the time is to be confirmed. 

Readings/Listenings

• Assessing the Impact of COVID-19 on Low-income Households and Communities in North Carolina, The North Carolina Community Action Association (NCCAA), (March 2021): https://www.womenadvancenc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/assessing-the-impact-of-covid-19-final.pdf
• The ARC of Justice: From Here to Equality (2021), Duke Sanford School of Public Policy Ways and Means Podcast Series. https://waysandmeansshow.org/2021/02/24/new-season-arc-justice/

Co-Leaders and Members

Work Group Members:

Updated 4/9/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline, beginning with early childhood programs by reducing the use of school suspensions and expulsions and increasing the use of counseling services and community-based programs and initiatives
• Increase racial, ethnic, gender, and disability status diversity among school and childcare leadership and staff and the institutions that train them

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Short-Term Suspensions Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Friday, October 27, 2023, from 11:00 to 12:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Friday, December 8, 2023, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Friday, February 16, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Friday, April 12, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Friday, June 14, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Friday, February 16, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Rev. Paul Robeson Ford, Kelvin Bullock, Devonya Govan-Hunt, Hayley Lampkin-Blyth, Gerri Mattson, Veronica McLaurin-Brown , Dawn Mendonca Meskil, Amy B. Petersen, Karita Pimentel, Carlton Powell, Peter Rawitsch, Jerry J. Wilson, Val Young; Staff: Ashley Rink; Others: Katie Andress

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Rev. Paul Robeson Ford welcomed the group. Work group members were asked to introduce themselves and share one word on how they were feeling.
• Case Study: Love Our Children in New Hanover County- K-3 Suspensions Campaign
  • Veronica McLaurin-Brown and Peter Rawitsch shared the strategies Love Our Children utilized to end suspensions for young students in New Hanover County.
  • At the March 2021 meeting of the New Hanover Board of Education, members from the New Hanover County NAACP Parents Council presented a petition with 400 signatures calling for the end of K-5 suspensions. At that time the Board of Education voted 7 to 0 to keep the policy as it was written and add a sentence stating suspensions would only be used as a last resort. Following the March 2021 Board meeting Love Our Children began and started advocating for the end of out of school suspensions for their youngest learners. 
  • Love Our Children utilized research to support their proposal acknowledging that suspensions do not work and that there are effective alternatives to suspensions. Suspended students experience more academic failure and grade retention and are as much as 10 times more likely to drop out of high school and are more likely to end up in the juvenile justice system.
  • Their campaign strategies for mobilizing the community and gaining support for ending out-of-school suspensions for 4, 5, 6, and 7-year-old children included:
    • Educating the public as their primary strategy,
    • Organizing neighborhoods and engaging parents to attend School Board meetings,
    • Participating in community events, such as Pride Day at the Arboretum and back to school bookbag events,
    • Partnering with other organizations, such as Sokoto House, Speak Ya Peace, and a local black church,
    • Hosting two community forums in partnership with Sokoto House,
    • Distributing postcards to community members in partnership with a local minister,
    • Using poetry with Speak Ya Peace to speak about out-of-school suspensions,
    • Posting videos of the school board meetings on their YouTube Channel,
    • Engaging young parents through their Facebook page,
    • Using store, lawn, and car signs to encourage signing their petition,
    • Using digital billboards,
    • Encouraging an online letter writing campaign to their Board of Education,
    • Holding a press conference,
    • Engaging their local TV news station and newspaper,
    • Identifying key phrases and concepts for their team members to use when communicating with the media, including TV news, newspapers, and radio interviews,
    • Providing an opportunity to sign the petition online on their website, and
    • Having community organizations sign a resolution to help spotlight and publicize their support for ending out of school suspensions.
  • At the February 2021 meeting of the New Hanover Board of Education, the Board voted three to four for the proposal. In the following months, a Board member that had voted against the proposal made a motion for a new vote and the three remaining Board members flipped their votes and voted 7 to 0 in favor of the proposal. Overall, it took thirteen months for the proposal to be approved.
  • The link to the Love Our Children music video is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBBtJy5XrdQ.
• Emerging Work in Forsyth County
  • Rev. Paul Robeson Ford shared how in Forsyth County they are organizing institutional partners by:
    • Identifying key institutional stakeholders,
    • Establishing and sustaining communication, and
    • Understanding the policy making process in Forsyth County with the full School Board as the last stop and learning about the internal policy committees led by district staff and how those committees operate.
• Shifting/ Expanding Work Group Structure
  • Rev. Paul Robeson Ford and Letha Muhammad have discussed the possibility expanding this work group by pulling in other people working in similar areas, so this group can become a reactivated school discipline group to ensure all the insights and resources are involved.
  • Ashley Rink shared across the Community Council there are other groups that have aligned with existing groups to leverage resources and members to move their work forward. There are opportunities for this work group to grow and consider different directions the group can go in.
  • Outside of the Community Council, this group could continue as a community-based group that has a central space and platform to work on issues surrounding the reduction and end of exclusionary discipline.
  • Work group members are asked to consider their thoughts on this expanding the work group.
• Closing
  • The following meeting dates were set by those present.
    • Friday, April 12, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
    • Friday, June 14, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams

Friday, December 8, 2023, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees:  Rev. Paul Robeson Ford; Hayley Lampkin-Blyth; Veronica McLaurin-Brown; Gerri Mattson; Peggy D. Nicholson; Amy B. Petersen; Carlton Powell; Peter Rawitsch; Val Young; Staff: Ashley Rink; Others: Katie Andress

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Rev. Paul Robeson Ford welcomed the group. Rev. Ford shared Letha Muhammad and one of the presenters was under the weather and were unable to attend the meeting.
  • The grounding question was, “What burning question do you have in your heart, mind, and spirit about the work of this group as you enter this meeting today?” A summary of responses is included below.
    • How do we push forward?
    • What is the policy agenda for the group?
    • What are we going to do with the information being gathered?
    • What is the outcome and the product? What are we going to do with the product?
    • Who are the decision makers within DHHS/ affect change and what is the level of influence?
    • How can we assist in our roles in supporting the work?
    • How do we as an organization get policy paths that support the health, welfare, and education of our youth?
    • How do we make the standard of care for the health and wellbeing of black and brown children in early care and classroom settings?
    • How do we educate policymakers and increase enough awareness about the fact that suspensions and expulsions are happening in childcare settings?
    • Where are the pressure points with decision makers that we can influence and promote policy that loves all of our black and brown children?
• Determine/ Consensus on 2023-2024 Priority or Priorities
  • In 2022-2023, the Short-Term Suspensions Work Group identified the following priorities.
    • Disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline, beginning with early childhood programs by reducing the use of school suspensions and expulsions and increasing the use of counseling services and community-based programs and initiatives
    • Increase racial, ethnic, gender, and disability status diversity among school and childcare leadership and staff and the institutions that train them
  • Rev. Ford reviewed this year would be the year of action and the policy agenda for this year are the two above policies. This work group will work on implementing actions that will disrupt the school to prison pipeline and increase racial, ethnic, gender, and disability status diversity among school and childcare leadership. One of the root cause issues of the school to prison pipeline is the lack of culturally affirming environments and inability to engage in a way that creates a deep sense of belonging.
  • The work group will move forward with implementing actions that will advance these policies. There has been great work around the state to disrupt the school to prison pipeline with a focus on ending kindergarten to third grade suspensions.
  • Rev. Ford proposed learning from the experiences and challenges Love Our Children experienced in New Hanover County. These learnings could be used to establish a template for how to do similar work in local school districts around the state. Products could include a template of action, toolkit, and webinar content for other communities around the state, including school districts and school boards.
  • Love Our Children North Carolina secured a policy in New Hanover County to end suspensions for K-3 students, with exceptions for weapons and serious threats of violence. Similar work is being done in Forsyth County.
  • An analysis is needed of where K-3 suspension policies stand in each of the county school districts in North Carolina.
  • Due to the political climate at the state level, change can be focused on the work local communities can do locally. This would be taking a grassroots approach to adoption of a policy at the state level to ban suspensions for K-3, with the exceptions for weapons and other extreme circumstances.
  • Work group members present at the meeting were in favor of the approach Rev. Ford proposed.
  • Regarding the question, “how can I help,” the work group has connections to a wide base of networks that information, materials, and toolkit can be shared through. There will be opportunities to organize the work in the group’s various circles.  Funding requests may come in terms of resources to help facilitate this work.
  • Work group members can share resources and information through the Microsoft Teams Channel.
  • A question was asked about if there was an opportunity to expand the suspension and expulsion policies to include Pre-K. In New Hanover because of the conversation with Head Start the policy’s focus narrowed to five-, six-, and seven-year-olds and when the policy was written it took care of everybody under the age of eight. The Head Start Program has federal funding requirements that they may not receive out of school suspensions.
  • The North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education is the regulatory body for childcare facilities and the NC Pre-K program and in their roles, there is a section on preventing suspensions and expulsions. The rule set is available in their Early Childhood Suspension and Expulsion Policy.
• Closing
  • At the next work group meeting, Veronica McLaurin-Brown and Peter Rawitsch will share a case study and presentation on the work by Love Our Children in New Hanover County. Rev. Paul Ford will share about the emerging work being done in Forsyth County.
  • The group tentatively scheduled the next work group meeting for Friday, February 2, from 10:00 to 11:00 am via Microsoft Teams. Work group members not in attendance will be contacted to confirm their availability. A calendar invite to hold the meeting date was sent to work group members. 
  • The meeting was closed with the question, “How are you feeling leaving this space?”
    • Inspired, energized, and motivated to have everyone focusing on a targeted outcome that is doable and has already been accomplished in some areas.
    • Hopeful. Good and looking forward to the work in the new year.
    • The work ahead is challenging, implementing all these things across the state will be hard, and are up for the challenge.
    • Happy to know we have a path going forward.
    • Excited to have this vision and interaction.
    • Feel fellowship among people who are like minded and are part of team through this climb.
    • Glad there are willing workers to do something special that should be a given for our children.

Friday, October 27, 2023, 11:00 to 12:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees:  Will Boone, Reighlah Collins, Rev. Paul Robeson Ford, Hayley Lampkin-Blyth, Gerri Mattson, Veronica McLaurin-Brown, Letha Muhammad, Peggy D. Nicholson, Amy B. Petersen, Peter Rawitsch, Val Young; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • The Co-Leaders, Letha Muhammad, Paul Ford, and Gerri Mattson welcomed the work group and thanked them for their involvement. 
  • The purpose of the meeting was to provide grounding and leveling setting for the Year of Action, review indicator and priorities, and identify next steps for work group.
  • Work group members present introduced themselves and shared what concerns about young people brought them to the work of this group.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • The following were reviewed: group agreements, common language, Indicator 3: Short-Term Suspensions, Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, and timeline. Refer to the slides for information on these topics.
  • The 2023 NC SHIP report is available at https://schs.dph.ncdhhs.gov/units/ldas/docs/NCSHIP-2023-101723.pdf. The pages for Indicator 3: Short-Term Suspensions are available at https://schs.dph.ncdhhs.gov/units/ldas/docs/3-ShortTermSuspensions-SHIP2023-101723.pdf.
  • Discussed ability to influence legislators to change statutes related to out of school suspensions or exclusionary discipline. Discussion included the following:
    • Last year was the first year of the current structure for the NC SHIP Community Council. After the work groups identified their priorities, the priorities were shared with Division of Public Health leadership for review.
    • House Bill 188 was introduced during this legislative session; https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UHjmkfRuVkiQFbk2n59qvjL9_o_sEWHc/view. The work is connected to legislative realities at the state level.
    • The recommendations will be shared through the NC SHIP to the appropriate people at the state level, acknowledging that does not mean they will act on them.
    • There is an opportunity to leverage the work being done locally to end suspensions for kindergarten to third grade students for statewide campaigns.
• Priority Review
  • The 2022-2023 Short-Term Suspensions Work Group identified the following priorities:
    • Disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline, beginning with early childhood programs by reducing the use of school suspensions and expulsions and increasing the use of counseling services and community-based programs and initiatives
    • Increase racial, ethnic, gender, and disability status diversity among school and childcare leadership and staff and the institutions that train them
  • Discussion related to each of the priorities is included below each priority. Disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline, beginning with early childhood programs by reducing the use of school suspensions and expulsions and increasing the use of counseling services and community-based programs and initiatives
    • Consider if the group is willing to provide the intensity and extensiveness to advocate and support the ending and reduction of school suspensions.
    • Data is not available for exclusionary discipline practices in private childcare settings. A recommendation could be about how to capture data in private settings.
    • There may be opportunities to leverage investments in NC Pre-Ks for available data.
    • There is data on public school suspensions and expulsions available for kindergarten to third grade students that could be used to look back on early childcare settings.
  • Increase racial, ethnic, gender, and disability status diversity among school and childcare leadership and staff and the institutions that train them
    • Culturally affirming environments are important for children in schools for consensus and connection. The classification of disciplinary practices is subjective as to what constitutes disruptive behaviors.
    • This priority has many moving parts and is long-term as well as politically controlled. Different approaches and strategies are needed to achieve this priority.
    • The group should consider where the group has the possibility to influence or not.
    • There may be an opportunity to connect with the Dudley Flood Center about the Governor’s DRIVE Task Force. An action item could be to support and amplify the work happening at Dudley Flood Center through the DRIVE Task Force.
• Action Steps
  • At the next work group meeting, the group will:
    • Plan to decide as a work group which priorities the group will focus on going forward for action planning.
    • Set work group meeting schedule for 2024.
  • Work group members are encouraged to share any additional information and/or resources about how to make the priorities actionable. This information can be shared with the co-leaders.
• Closing
  • The group scheduled the next work group meeting for Friday, December 8, 2023, from 10:00 to 11:00 am via Microsoft Teams.

Readings/Listenings

• Dudley Flood Center for Educational Equity and Opportunity. (October 2023). Dudley Flood Center to take up work of the governor’s DRIVE Task Force. https://floodcenter.org/2023/dudley-flood-center-to-take-up-work-of-the-governors-drive-task-force/
• North Carolina General Assembly. (April 2023). House Bill 188- Standards of Student Conduct. https://www.ncleg.gov/BillLookUp/2023/H188

• EducationNC. (August 2022). Pre-K suspensions and expulsions can have dire effects- but we don’t know how common they are. https://www.ednc.org/pre-k-suspensions-expulsions-dire-effects-how-common/
• Governor’s DRIVE Task Force: https://governor.nc.gov/issues/education/drive-task-force
• North Carolina Department of Instruction. (2023). Educational Equity and Significant Disproportionality. https://www.dpi.nc.gov/districts-schools/classroom-resources/exceptional-children/educational-equity-and-significant-disproportionality
• North Carolina Department of Instruction. (2023). NC Social and Emotional Learning: https://www.dpi.nc.gov/districts-schools/districts-schools-support/nc-social-and-emotional-learning
• The Education Trust. (July 2022). Educator Diversity State Profile: North Carolina. https://edtrust.org/resource/educator-diversity-state-profile-north-carolina/
• The National Center for Pyramid Model Innovations. (2023). https://challengingbehavior.org

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 3/21/2024

Priorities

2022-2023 Priorities:

• Ensure access to behavioral health treatment, adequate medical care, and stable housing for those returning from incarceration
• Expand existing or create community Medication Assisted Treatment programs for people with substance use disorder detained in prisons and jails or transitioning to and from prison
• Improve access to treatment for substance use disorders, physical illnesses, and mental illnesses
• Improve resources and legislation pertaining to jails and prisons to reduce harmful impact of incarceration and foster successful reintegration into the community
• Increase access to multisystemic therapy for juvenile offenders
• Invest in public health alternatives to traditional law enforcement and sentencing, particularly for behavioral health issues

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2024 Incarceration Work Group Meeting Schedule

• Wednesday, February 21, 2024, from 9:00 to 10:00 am, Microsoft Teams (Cancelled; to be rescheduled.)

Meeting Notes

Readings/Listenings

• Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. (2021). Using Federal Relief Funds to Invest in Non-Police Approaches to Public Safety. https://www.cbpp.org/research/state-budget-and-tax/using-federal-relief-funds-to-invest-in-non-police-approaches-to
• County Health Rankings & Roadmaps. (2018). Multisystemic Therapy (MST) for juvenile offenders, https://www.countyhealthrankings.org/take-action-to-improve-health/what-works-for-health/strategies/multisystemic-therapy-mst-for-juvenile-offenders
• Kang-Brown, J., Montagnet, C., and Heiss, J. (2021, January). People in jail and prisons. https://www.vera.org/downloads/publications/people-in-jail-and-prison-in-2020.pdf
• North Carolina Department of Justice. (2021, December). North Carolina task force for racial equity in criminal justice: End of year report 2021. https://ncdoj.gov/trec/reports/
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (n.d.). Evidence-based practice resource center. People in the criminal justice system. https://www.samhsa.gov/resource-search/ebp
• Vera Institute of Justice. Ending mass incarceration. https://www.vera.org/downloads/pdfdownloads/state-incarceration-trends-north-carolina.pdf

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 3/21/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Improve data available on trauma and ACEs at the local level
• Increase funding for and embed community-rooted, culturally affirming family and community support programs into existing initiatives

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Adverse Childhood Experiences Meeting Schedule:

• Friday, October 27, 2023, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams  
• Monday, November 27, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, January 29, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, February 26, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, March 25, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, April 29, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, May 20, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Monday, January 29, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Wanda Boone, Brian Boyd, Mebane Boyd, Ellen Carroll, Daniel Gitterman, Sharon Hirsch, Micha James, Catherine Joyner, Stacie Kinlaw, Sue Lynn Ledford, Gerri Mattson, Sara McCartney, Ivey Parks, Nancy Rosales, Trina Stephens, Melea Rose Waters; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Wanda Boone welcomed everyone and reviewed the meeting agenda.
• Review of Jamboard and Themes
  • Sharon Hirsch shared that going forward the group would focus on a different priority every other month. The focus of this meeting was on the data priority, “Improve data available on trauma and ACEs at the local level.”
  • The group reviewed the following themes from the previous meeting on November 27, 2023, related to the priority on data at the local level.
    • Focus on protective factors.
    • Data about all four levels of ACEs
    • Other committees are working on similar efforts.
    • There are opportunities around mapping on funding.
    • Commitment to share data.
    • To convene at the local level.
    • Telling the stories around the data to move from awareness to action.
    • Other partners to engage at the state and local level.
    • Importance of collaboration and establishing trust.
    • The state does collect data on child protective services (CPS) reports; the data is available, but not timely. CPS data is available by county and race and is available through UNC’s School of Social Work.
• Identifying statewide data needs
  • The work group discussed the following questions. 
    • Who do we know that is measuring this data locally?
    • How do we define and measure Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)?
    • How do we define and measure Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs)?
• Identify Next Steps and Adjourn
  • For the next steps, work group members are asked to continue to add responses to the Jamboard. The co-leaders will meet to synthesize the responses prior to the next meeting.
  • The next work group meeting will be on Monday, February 26 , 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm via Microsoft Teams. This meeting will focus on the priority, “Increase funding for and embed community-rooted, culturally affirming family and community support programs into existing initiatives.”

Monday, November 27, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees:  Wanda Boone, Jess Bousquette, Ellen Carroll, Terri Grant, Micha James, Sharon Hirsch, Gerri Mattson, Melissa Radcliff, Trina Stephens, Melea Rose Waters; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Sharon Hirsch welcomed everyone and reviewed the meeting agenda.
• Clarifying our role and charge
  • Wanda Boone reviewed the targets and baselines for Adverse Childhood Experiences from Healthy North Carolina 2030.
  • The charge is to consider how the work group could advance the priorities related to advocacy, implementation, etc.
• Identifying action steps to advance our two priorities
  • The work group reviewed the planning survey results, discussed themes from the results, and where there were opportunities. The planning survey included the following questions. Refer to Jamboard for additional information. 
    • What do you recommend as next steps to advance this priority, "Improve data available on trauma and ACEs at the local level"?
    • What do you recommend as next steps to advance this priority, "Increase funding for and embed community-rooted, culturally affirming family and community support programs into existing initiatives"?
    • What strengths do you and your organization bring to this work group?
    • What work is your organization interested in doing to help advance these priority areas?
    • What do you think are the most impactful things we could do in the next year?
    • Who else should be invited to participate in this work?
• Identify Next Steps and Adjourn
  • The next work group meeting will be on Monday, January 29, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm via Microsoft Teams.

Readings/Listenings

• Building Better Childhoods Toolkit: https://buildingbetterchildhoods.org/
• Building Healthy & Resilient Communities Across North Carolina: One Community at a Time: https://indd.adobe.com/view/f9cca8b9-d326-4666-99d0-afe7ea06bd73
• Community-Rooted Organizations : Enhanced Accountability and Capacity Building for Community Development: https://metropolitiques.eu/Community-Rooted-Organizations-Enhanced-Accountability-and-Capacity-Building.html
• Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA): Background and Funding: https://sgp.fas.org/crs/misc/R42838.pdf
• Healthy & Resilient Communities Dashboard: https://www.smartstart.org/healthy-resilient-communities-dashboard-launched/

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 4/9/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

The two priorities of focus for additional discussion are:

• Training and professional development related to literacy
• Increase access to evidence-based home-visiting, parent education, and early literacy programs 

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Third Grade Reading Proficiency Work Group Meeting Schedule

• Thursday, October 26, 2023, 11:00 to 12:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, November 28, 2023, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, January 23, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, February 27, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, March 26, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, April 23, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, May 28, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, June 25, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Tuesday, Januayr 23, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Angela Burch-Octetree, Coretta Walker, Micere Keels, Gerri Mattson, Jessica Lowery Clark, Heather Gray, Mary Mathew, Kristi Snuggs, Dan Tetreault; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Gerri Mattson welcomed everyone and reviewed the agenda. The icebreaker question was what people did or did not like about the cold.  
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • At the previous work group meeting, the group had identified the following priorities for this year.
    • Training and professional development related to literacy.
    • Increase access to evidence-based home-visiting, parent education, and early literacy programs.
  • The purpose of the meeting was to provide grounding and leveling setting for the Year of Action, discuss priorities and action planning questions, and identify next steps for the work group.
  • Group agreements, common language, Indicator 6: Third Grade Reading Proficiency, and the Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, and timeline were reviewed. Refer to the slides for additional information on these topics.
• Discussion of 2023-2024 Priorities
  • The group began discussing the following questions related to the priorities.
  • Which priority would the group like to start with to make more specific?
    • The group decided to start discussing the priority on training and professional development related to literacy.
    • The group discussed having a dual approach for training and professional development related to literacy for teachers and families, including family, friend, and neighbor care providers and families with children not in any type of care.
    • The group agreed to focus on the early years (birth to 3)/ Pre-K age group.
    • The group acknowledged that there are still gaps with 4- to 5-year-olds.
  • What do you and your organization bring related to the priority or priorities?
    • Ready Ready: Currently piloting A2i in 10 Pre-K classrooms in our Head Start provider. https://www.learningovations.com/a2i. Meck Pre-K is also piloting A2i in 30 classrooms this year.
    • Ready Ready: Piloting Raising A Reader and Motheread/Fatheread
    • NC DPI: Literacy at Home: Digital Children's Reading Initiative https://www.dpi.nc.gov/students-families/parents-corner/literacy-home-digital-childrens-reading-initiative
    • NC DPI: Have ongoing support for educators as they receive LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling) training. The training has been provided to all NC Pre-K teachers, site administrators, and other public school Pre-K teachers.
    • Book Harvest: Book Babies: https://www.bookharvest.org/book-babies
    • Guilford County: Resource use to support families with children ages 0 to 5- The Guilford Basics- https://guilfordbasics.org
    • Reach Out and Read: Health care providers are working to reach the younger age group.
  • Who are the other players?
    • Family voice- NCECF (North Carolina Early Childhood Foundation) completed a parent voice report a couple years ago around their thoughts related to barriers and supports for reading- Not About Me Without Me. https://buildthefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/ncecf_reports-parents-121017-digital.pdf
    • Providers
    • NC Partnership for children
    • Book Babies parent
  • What is available related to the priority?
    • LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling)
    • Mentoring
    • Science of reading related resources
    • Basics
    • Raising a Reader
    • Local libraries have lots of resources (digital and in person) that often goes underutilized.
• Next Steps for Work Group
  • All work group members were asked to add responses to the discussion questions related to the two priorities to the Jamboard.
    • Which priority would the group like to start with to make more specific?
    • What do you and your organization bring related to the priority or priorities?
    • Who are the other players?
    • What is available related to the priority?
    • What are realistic actions?
    • What are the gaps and how could they be addressed?
• Closing
• The next work group meeting is scheduled for:
• Tuesday, February 27, 2024, 10:00 to 11:00 am

Tuesday, November 28, 2023, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Angela Burch-Octetree, Mary Mathew, Gerri Mattson, Amber Pierce, Dan Tetreault; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Gerri Mattson welcomed everyone and asked them to share their memories of their kindergarten experience.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • The purpose of the meeting was to provide grounding and leveling setting for the Year of Action, discuss priorities and engaging partners working on third grade reading proficiency, and identify next steps for work group.
  • Group agreements, common language, Indicator 6: Third Grade Reading Proficiency, and the Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, and timeline were reviewed.  Refer to the slides for additional information on these topics.
  • Gerri Mattson shared examples of actions from the Adverse Childhood Experiences and Short-Term Suspensions work groups related to their priorities. Examples of actions included mapping available resources, educating funders about adverse and positive childhood experiences, and exploring how to expand policies about removing suspensions for kindergarten to third graders.
  • Actions and action plans can vary and depend on the identified priorities.
• Discussion of Priorities
  • The 2022-2023 priority was: Reinforce the talent pipeline for early educators for children from birth through third grade by increasing compensation through dedicated funding, ensuring pay parity, and sustaining investments in training and professional development. The action taken included participation in an advocacy day with the Early Education Coalition and other partners at the legislature.
  • The following priorities rose to the top in 2022-2023 that were not prioritized included:
    • Increase access to evidence-based home-visiting, parent education, and early literacy programs
    • Expand statewide access to NC Pre-K, 4-, and 5-star early learning programs and other high-quality early childhood programs
    • Increase funding to public schools and early learning programs that serve those children with the highest barriers to success, including children from low-income families and people of color
  • Updates and discussion related to the priority from 2022-2023 included the following. (Priority: Reinforce the talent pipeline for early educators for children from birth through third grade by increasing compensation through dedicated funding, ensuring pay parity, and sustaining investments in training and professional development.
    • The work group needs to learn about work happening within this space with early care and education providers to help understand where to best narrow this priority.
    • The priority should focus on training and professional development related to literacy for the area the group chooses to focus on.
    • This priority should be narrowed down and be more specific in some way, such as with NC Pre-K or another area.
    • This priority was still important and relevant,
  • The group discussed the following related to the three additional priorities that rose to the top the previous year.
    • All were important.
    • All the priorities would need to be narrowed to one direction if they were prioritized, such as choosing one, home-visiting, parent education, early literacy programs, etc.
    • Consider other initiatives happening throughout the state related to these areas.
    • Focus on training and professional development across the areas in the priorities.
    • Consider how to infuse best practices on early literacy in professional development.
    • Consider what the continuum of training and professional development from birth looks like and help people understand how to support language development.
    • Funders love the idea of working together more efficiently across the sectors. This could lead to increased funding by breaking down silos. A focus could be on cross-sector professional development and training related to early literacy.
    • An understanding of the gaps in services across the state is needed to determine whether the priorities should include increasing and/or expanding; including what areas need more energy behind them.
  • The two priorities of focus for additional discussion are:
    • Training and professional development related to literacy
    • Increase access to evidence-based home-visiting, parent education, and early literacy programs (cross-sector; find out where the action is)
• Discussion about Engaging Partners Working on Third Grade Reading Proficiency  
  • The North Carolina Early Education Coalition is operating under a co-directorship with Angela Burch-Octetree and Susan Butler-Staub.
  • Lisa Finaldi with the NC Early Childhood Foundation was asked to share the opportunity to participate with this work group with the thirteen communities involved in the North Carolina Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. Mary will connect with Lisa about her joining the work group and share what the Campaign communities are prioritizing around grade level reading.
  • The group discussed engaging Read Charlotte about their efforts around children’s literacy.
  • Work group members were asked to continue to invite others to participate.
• Next Steps for Work Group
  • Action steps identified during the meeting included the following.
    • Gerri Mattson will contact Michelle Ries about an update from the breakout session during NCIOM’s Annual Meeting and who is leading the work discussed.
    • Mary Mathew will connect with Lisa Finaldi about her joining the work group and share what the Campaign communities are prioritizing around grade level reading.
    • Gerri Mattson will reach out to work group members about the next steps related to the priority areas and the agenda for the next meeting.
    • All work group members are asked to continue to invite others to join the group.
    • Continue to narrow the priorities.
• Closing
  • The next work group meetings were scheduled for:
    • Tuesday, January 23, 2023, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams
    • Tuesday, February 27, 2023, 10:00 to 11:00 am, Microsoft Teams

Thursday, October 26, 2023, 11:00 to 12:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Jessica Lowery Clark, Muffy Grant, Mary Mathew, Gerri Mattson, Amber Pierce, and Dan Tetreault; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • The purpose of the meeting was to provide grounding and leveling setting for the Year of Action, review indicator and priorities and identify next steps for work group.
  • Work group members present introduced themselves and shared their favorite genre of books to read.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • Group agreements, common language, Indicator 6: Third Grade Reading Proficiency, Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, and timeline were reviewed. 
  • The 2023 NC SHIP report has been released.
  • Gerri Mattson is continuing as the DHHS Co-Lead for this work group. Mary Mathew and Jessica Lowery Clark have stepped down as the Community and Organization Co-Leads for this year. Both of those co-leader positions are open. 
• Priority Review
  • The work group determines the number of priorities the work group will take action on/ develop action plans for the next year. Priority review includes consideration of if the priorities are clearly stated, are actionable, are resourced, and if the priority will continue to be a priority. 
  • The 2022-2023 Third Grade Reading Proficiency Work Group identified the following priority:
    • Reinforce the talent pipeline for early educators for children from birth through third grade by increasing compensation through dedicated funding, ensuring pay parity, and sustaining investments in training and professional development
• Next Steps for Work Group Discussion
  • Across the NC SHIP Community Council there are 18 work groups; of the 18 work groups 14 were newly formed last year and 4 were existing groups that aligned and/or their priorities were incorporated with the NC SHIP. 
  • The group began discussing what the work group would look like for this year, including if the work group would continue as the Third Grade Reading Proficiency Work Group or align with another existing group. If the work group decided to align with another existing group, that group would be approached to have a conversation about if they were willing to align with the current priority or if their priorities would or could be incorporated into the NC SHIP related to third grade reading proficiency.
  • Other groups with similar focus and priority areas related to third grade reading proficiency discussed and other considerations included:
    • NC Campaign for Third Grade Level Reading
    • Reach Out and Read
    • EarlyWell Initiative
    • Think Babies NC
    • County grade level reading groups, such as Ready Ready,  Read Charlotte, WAKE Up and Read. There are efforts to align those groups across the state with the national grade level reading initiatives.
    • Alignment with other groups may vary based on the priority identified. The policy fit depends on if the policy work is around third grade reading/early literacy or work force. Work is being done across the state in both areas. Childcare continues to impact early literacy. Another priority that was considered last year was around home visiting, there are other groups focusing on this.
    • The NC Early Childhood Foundation has developed a policy and practice crosswalk of related other state-level initiatives. They are also hosting a fellowship/ community of practice around the science of reading.
• Closing
  • The group discussed intentionally inviting others to join the Third Grade Reading Proficiency Work Group. The recommendation was for work group members to commit to inviting at least one agency and to brainstorm about who some of those agencies and/or individuals could be. Additional recommendations were to include more perspectives from across the state, such as rural and other communities.
  • The next steps identified included:
    • Complete the Doodle Poll to assist with scheduling the next work group meeting.
    • Commit to reaching out to at least 1 agency to ask for recommendations for someone from their agency to be involved with this work group.
    • Add the information for agencies and/or individuals being contacted about being involved with the Third Grade Reading Proficiency Work Group to the shared document.

Readings/Listenings

• Child Care for NC: United for Change: https://childcarefornc.org/
• Early childhood caucus shares priorities, including $300 million childcare request: https://www.ednc.org/2023-03-09-nc-early-childhood-caucus-shares-priorities-300-million-child-care-teacher-pay-subsidy/
• General Assembly of NC- House Bill 483- Auto Subsidy Eligibility/Childcare Teacher/Pilot: https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2023/Bills/House/PDF/H483v0.pdf
• Pathways Action Framework: FINAL_NCECF_report-pathways-actionframework_digital-spreads-020519.pdf (https://buildthefoundation.org/)

Co-Leaders and Members

Work Group Members:

Updated on 3/21/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Increase, promote, improve, and maintain the number of safe and well-lit sidewalks, bike trails and lanes, walking trails, and greenways to improve connectivity and accessibility 

• Planning healthier communities and places through transportation options that connect key destinations (e.g. schools, medical facilities, food sources, parks, retail) 

   

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Access to Exercise Opportunities Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Tuesday, October 24, 2023, from 12:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, December 19, 2023, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, February 27, 2024, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, April 9, 2024, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, June 11, 2024, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Tuesday, December 19, 2023, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Alice Ammerman, Sabrina Golling, Kelly Kavanaugh, Leah Mayo, Michelle Nance, Rachel Pohlman, Alex Rotenberry, Tish Singletary; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Rachel Pohlman welcomed everyone and asked for introductions.
• Review Meeting Notes from October 24, 2023
  • Rachel Pohlman provided a high-level overview of the work group meeting on October 24, 2023. The purpose of the work group for this year was to review the priorities and identify how to move forward with the priorities identified. The work group began action planning at the previous meeting.
• Review Homework Suggestions
  • The homework from the previous meeting included:
    • Suggestions for refining wording of priorities and action plan items
    • Suggestions for who needs to be invited to work group meeting
  • Suggestions for refining the wording of priorities were discussed. The discussion included:
    • Inclusion of planning products that are more tangible and can be quantified.
    • Acknowledging who has control to make changes and influence changes.
    • Being specific such as more than safety in general, saying increases in four-way stops, average speed limits, etc. If the priority is general, there could be specific action steps that are measurable and tangible.
    • The funding sources for increasing are different than those to promote, improve, and maintain the number of safe and well-lit sidewalks, bike trails and lanes, walking trails, and greenways to improve connectivity and accessibility.
    • Education and encouragement were not included in the priority as they are more the method than the objective and would be measuring the policy, systems, or environmental changes.
    • Recommended keeping the language for active mobility versus alternative transportation consistent with other state plans and groups, such as the Bike/Ped Work Group under the Governor’s Highway.
    • The first priority’s focus is more about land use planning and the second priority’s focus is on transportation. Considerations for land use planning should reflect equity and social determinants of health. In rural communities there may be no destinations; when improving connectivity there must be something to connect to and acknowledging those connections support healthful living.
• Clarify Second Priority
  • Those present were in favor of adopting the new wording for the second priority:  
    • Planning healthier communities and places through transportation options that connect key destinations (e.g. schools, medical facilities, food sources, parks, retail)
• Discuss Optional Third Priority
  • At the previous work group meeting, the group discussed potentially adding a third priority, “Increase opportunities for physical activity through the natural and built environment supported through multimodal mobility options.”     
  • Those present were agreement of not adding the third priority because it was redundant of the first two priorities.
• Action Planning
  • At the previous work group meeting, the group focused on the first priority (Increase, promote, improve, and maintain the number of safe and well-lit sidewalks, bike trails and lanes, walking trails, and greenways to improve connectivity and accessibility) about connectivity and having walkways and trails.
  • The action plans are where the group can include some of those very specific measures and measures that would be addressing social determinants of health and equity. The action plans are for the work group and implementing, directing recommendations, and/or connecting with others doing the work is up to the work group. The action plans should include what the group is working on and resources, connecting and/or obtaining, could be included as action steps.
  • The group discussed action planning for the second priority (Planning healthier communities and places through transportation options that connect key destinations (e.g. schools, medical facilities, food sources, parks, retail)) and added action steps to the action planning document. Additional information shared by work group members for future consideration is included after the action plans.
  • The next step for the action plans is for work group members is to review the action steps and consider what is missing, realistic, and/or should be fine-tuned.  
• Suggestions for who needs to be invited to work group meeting
  • Another homework assignment from the previous meeting was to consider who was missing from the work group. The group reviewed and added to the document, Who Needs to be Invited to Work Group Meetings.
  • Work group members are asked to invite others to join the work group. Sample language for work group members to use for inviting work group members will be shared.
• Closing
  • The group discussed potential dates for the next work group meetings and potentially changing the meeting times from 1:00 to 3:00 pm to 2:00 to 4:00 pm. A Doodle Poll will be sent to the work group to determine the next meeting dates and times.
  • The next steps for the work group are to :
    • Complete Doodle Poll for next work group meetings in February, April, and June 2024.
    • Review action plan suggestions.
    • Invite work group members.

Tuesday, October 24, 2023, from 12:00 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Alice Ammerman, Pamela Cook, Sabrina Golling, Katie Harmon, Irene Ivie, Kelly Kavanaugh, Leah Mayo, Rachel Pohlman, Alex Rotenberry, Tish Singletary; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Rachel Pohlman welcomed everyone and asked for introductions. The icebreaker question was what their fall activity was.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • The purpose of the meeting was to provide grounding and level setting, review the priorities identified this past year, and identify how to move forward with the priorities identified. Group agreements, common language, the Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, and timeline were also reviewed.  
  • The 2023 NC SHIP report is now available. The pages for Indicator 7: Access to Exercise Opportunities are also available in a standalone document.
  • The headline indicator is the percent of people with access to exercise opportunities; for the result statement the term physical activity opportunities was used to be more inclusive.
• Priority Review
  • The purpose of the priority review was to determine if the priorities were clearly stated, were actionable, were resourced, and if they would continue to be a priority.
  • The 2022-2023 Priorities from the 2023 NC SHIP report were:
    • Increase, promote, improve, and maintain the number of safe and well-lit sidewalks, bike trails and lanes, walking trails, and greenways to improve connectivity and accessibility
    • Promote, sustain, and expand multimodal transportation options to increase access to places for physical activity
• Action Planning
  • The short and long-term strategies discussed during previous asset mapping were reviewed and are available on the 2022 NC SHIP Scorecard.
  • The work group began action planning during the meeting. 
  • The work group discussed potentially adding the following as an additional priority.
    • Increase opportunities for physical activity through the natural and built environment supported through multimodal mobility options
• Closing
  • The next steps for the work group are to :
    • Complete a Doodle Poll for a work group meeting date in December.
    • Share suggestions to refine the wording for priorities.
    • Share suggestions to fill in action plan items.
    • Consider and share who needs to be invited to these meetings. (Some groups that are not represented include aging, differing abilities, and the Department of Public Instruction (DPI).)

Readings/Listenings

• America Walks- How to Conduct a Walk Audit in Your Community: https://americawalks.org/how-to-conduct-a-walk-audit-in-your-community-quick-video-guide-for-assessing-your-neighborhood-walkability/
• CDC Active People Healthy Nation: https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/activepeoplehealthynation/index.html
• CDC Moving Matters Communication Campaign: https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/activepeoplehealthynation/moving-matters.html
• CDC Priority Strategy: Increasing Physical Activity Through Community Design: https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/community-strategies/activity-friendly-routes-to-everyday-destinations.html
• ChangeLab Solutions - The Planner’s Playbook: a community-centered approach to improving health and equity: https://www.changelabsolutions.org/product/planners-playbook
• Connect Beyond- A Regional Mobility Initiative: https://www.connect-beyond.com/
• Creating Active Community Environments in South Carolina: A Grassroots Guide: https://scdhec.gov/sites/default/files/Library/CR-012013.pdf
• Eat Smart, Move More North Carolina. 2020. North Carolina’s Plan to Address Overweight and Obesity. www.eatsmartmovemorenc.com
• Move More Walk Now: Engage Your Community: https://movemorewalknownc.com/engage-your-community/
• North Carolina Department of Transportation- Complete Streets Policy: https://www.ncdot.gov/divisions/integrated-mobility/multimodal-planning/
• North Carolina Department of Transportation- Integrated Mobility Division: https://www.ncdot.gov/divisions/integrated-mobility

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 3/21/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Enhance how children and families access programs supporting their well-being, including SNAP, WIC, CACFP, school and summer nutrition programs, Medicaid, and NCCARE360 through better data and analysis, infrastructure, and integration
• Provide financial incentives such as “Double Up Food Bucks” and Produce Prescriptions for SNAP/ FNS recipients for purchasing fresh fruit and vegetables from grocery stores and farmers markets AND Support farmers markets and enable Electronic Benefit Transfer payment at farmers markets
• Collaborate with community partners to provide nutritious and culturally responsive options at food banks and pantries and soup kitchens

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Limited Access to Healthy Foods Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Tuesday, November 7, 2023, from 12:00 to 1:30 pm, Zoom
• Tuesday, January 30, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm, Zoom
• Tuesday, March 19, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm, Zoom
• Tuesday, May 21, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm, Zoom

Meeting Notes

Tuesday, November 7, 2023, from 12:00 to 1:30 pm, Zoom

Attendance: Alice S. Ammerman, Tracey Bates, Jennifer Bedrosian, Diane Beth, Sara Clement, Pam Cook, Morgan Cooper, Maggie Funkhouser, JéWana Grier-McEachin, Amanda S. Hege, Jan Jones, Jayne L. McBurney, Allison Nelson, Courtney Ramsey-Coleman, Gayle Simmons, Tish Singletary, Karen Stanley, Julie Sunderman, Crystal E. Taylor, Konnie Khánh Tran; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Alice Ammerman welcomed everyone and asked for introductions. The icebreaker question was what their favorite Thanksgiving dish was.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • The purpose of the meeting was to provide grounding and level setting, and review the priorities identified this past year.
    • Group agreements, common language, Indicator 8: Limited Access to Healthy Foods, and the Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, and timeline were reviewed.  Refer to the slides for additional information on these topics.
• Priority Review
  • The 2022-2023 priorities from the 2023 NC SHIP report were:
    • Enhance how children and families access programs supporting their well-being, including SNAP, WIC, CACFP, Medicaid, and NCCARE360 through better data and analysis, infrastructure, and integration
    • Provide financial incentives such as “Double Up Food Bucks” and Produce Prescriptions for SNAP/ FNS recipients for purchasing fresh fruit and vegetables from grocery stores and farmers markets
    • Continue, expand, and institutionalize the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) online purchasing pilot
    • Support equitable, food-oriented development that drives economic growth in low-income and historically marginalized communities
    • Support regional food hubs connecting local farmers, growers, producers, and ranchers with expanded market opportunities and the community to improved access to local, nutritious food
    • Implement competitive pricing for healthy foods
    • Collaborate with community partners to provide nutritious options at food banks and pantries and soup kitchens
    • Support farmers markets and enable Electronic Benefit Transfer payment at farmers markets
    • Support, promote, and encourage participation in the School Breakfast and National School Lunch Programs
  • Updates and discussion on each of the 2022-2023 priorities included the following. The priorities are highlighted in yellow.
• Next Steps
  • The co-leaders will meet to discuss the next steps to identify the top 3 to 4 priorities. Additional information will be shared before the next meeting.
  • The co-leaders, Alice Ammerman, Tish Singletary, and Jennifer Bedrosian, thanked everyone for their participation and continued involvement.

Readings/Listenings

• Cape Fear Collective- Food Hardship Index: https://healthycommunitiesnc.org/profile/geo/cape-fear#limited-access-to-healthy-foods
• County Health Rankings & Roadmaps- Competitive pricing for healthy foods (2021): https://www.countyhealthrankings.org/take-action-to-improve-health/what-works-for-health/strategies/competitive-pricing-for-healthy-foods
• County Health Rankings & Roadmaps- Healthy food initiatives in food pantries (2020): https://www.countyhealthrankings.org/take-action-to-improve-health/what-works-for-health/strategies/healthy-food-initiatives-in-food-pantries
• NCDHHS Healthy Opportunities Pilots: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/department-initiatives/healthy-opportunities/healthy-opportunities-pilots
• NCDHHS State Action Plan for Nutrition Security: 2023-2024: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/ncdhhs-state-action-plan-nutrition-security-2023-2024
• PolicyLink- Equitable Food Systems Resource Guide (2023): https://www.policylink.org/food-systems/equitable-food-systems-resource-guide
• USDA- SNAP Online Purchasing Pilot: https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/online-purchasing-pilot

Co-Leaders and Members

Co-Leaders:

Work Group Members:

Updated 3/21/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Remove legal barriers, institute enabling legislation, and facilitate lending to promote Community Land Trusts and other shared equity models of homeownership
• Support programs designed to increase home ownership for historically disenfranchised communities
• Increase measures and funding to provide tenants with access to mediation, legal representation, and legal education to secure and protect housing
• Simplify and expand the Weatherization Assistance Program, Low-Income Energy Assistance Programs, and other healthy homes and utility assistance programs by affirmatively engaging low-income communities through targeted outreach to help families meet their energy needs

Priority Development Agenda

• Support funding, loans, and other resources for housing providers in agricultural areas to improve safe and healthy home environments for migrant workers

Action Plan

The work group will break into small groups around the following priorities. Work group members are asked to consider  which small group they would like to join for action planning. 

• Group 1:
  • Remove legal barriers, institute enabling legislation, and facilitate lending to promote Community Land Trusts and other shared equity models of homeownership
  • Support programs designed to increase home ownership for historically disenfranchised communities
• Group 2 (2A):
  • Increase measures and funding to provide tenants with access to mediation, legal representation, and legal education to secure and protect housing
• Group 3 (2B):
  • Simplify and expand the Weatherization Assistance Program, Low-Income Energy Assistance Programs, and other healthy homes and utility assistance programs by affirmatively engaging low-income communities through targeted outreach to help families meet their energy needs

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Severe Housing Problems Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Monday, October 16, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, January 22, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm via Microsoft Teams
• Monday, March 18, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm via Microsoft Teams
• Monday, June 17, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm via Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Monday, January 22, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Melanie Ahlstrand-Osborne, Patrice Brown, Diannee Carden-Glenn, Ken Edminster, Lea Henry, Shoneca Kent, Stefanie Ledwell, Pat Macfoy, Brian O’Donnell, Bill Rowe, Betty Vines, Josh Walker, Vantoinette Savage; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Lea Henry welcomed everyone and reviewed the agenda.
  • The group welcomed Shoneca Kent, the new Director of Housing Equity Programs with the National Institute of Minority Economic Development, and Betty Vines, the new IDD Housing Specialist with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • Define Affordable Housing: The group discussed the following regarding affordable housing:
  • Affordable housing can be as broad as housing being affordable at every income level.
  • Focusing on low to moderate income persons.
  • Using HUD and local government definition: housing that is no more than 30% of people that are 80% or less of area median income (AMI).
  • Including a spectrum of possible solutions and not limiting it to 80% or less of AMI.
  • Concern about people on social security, disability, between jobs, and at the minimum wage level of income.
  • Overlap of severe income issues and ways that overlap with health issues.
  • The group is focused primarily on housing problems for people at 50% or below of area median income and lack of housing across the state at those income levels.
  • At 50% AMI or below, there are limited opportunities for housing ownership and may relate to keeping people in their homes. There are difficulties to scaling efforts for homeownership.
• Review Priorities: The priorities identified at the previous meeting were divided into three small groups to work on different aspects of the severe housing issues.
  • Group 1: Lea Henry
    • Remove legal barriers, institute enabling legislation, and facilitate lending to promote Community Land Trusts and other shared equity models of homeownership
    • Support programs designed to increase home ownership for historically disenfranchised communities
  • Group 2: Josh Walker
    • 2A. Increase measures and funding to provide tenants with access to mediation, legal representation, and legal education to secure and protect housing
    • 2B. Simplify and expand the Weatherization Assistance Program, Low-Income Energy Assistance Programs, and other healthy homes and utility assistance programs by affirmatively engaging low-income communities through targeted outreach to help families meet their energy needs
  • Group 3: Pat Macfoy:
    • Support funding, loans, and other resources for housing providers in agricultural areas to improve safe and healthy home environments for migrant workers
• Small Groups
  • Asks for Small Group:
    • The co-leaders shared they want to make good use of members’ expertise and time and have concrete outputs and outcomes this year.
    • The group could report progress and information in a policy paper at the end of the year that could be shared with the group and the Department of Health and Human Services about what was found and what the group recommends.
  • The group discussed the following as potential action steps (part of the “bucket list” of actions).
    • Group 1: Facilitating Homeownership- Remove legal barriers, institute enabling legislation, and facilitate lending to promote Community Land Trusts and other shared equity models of homeownership AND Support programs designed to increase home ownership for historically disenfranchised communities
      • Explore what are the homeownership mechanisms that would increase homeownership opportunities for low to moderate income people.
    • Group 2A: Tenant Issues- Increase measures and funding to provide tenants with access to mediation, legal representation, and legal education to secure and protect housing
      • Identify what resources are available and how people connect with those resources. (Fair housing 101 + money)
      • Engage Housing Finance Agency regarding what they have done with some of their properties with accessing fair housing and ways to expand that to North Carolina housing as a whole.
      • Review of fair housing across North Carolina, different measures that are in place, funding opportunities, and work could correlate with such as with the Healthy Opportunities Pilot.
    • Group 2B: Assistance Programs- Simplify and expand the Weatherization Assistance Program, Low-Income Energy Assistance Programs, and other healthy homes and utility assistance programs by affirmatively engaging low-income communities through targeted outreach to help families meet their energy needs
      • Identify where the following programs live and how they are funded: Weatherization Assistance Program, Low-Income Energy Assistance Programs, and other healthy homes and utility assistance programs.
      • Create a comprehensive list of what assistance programs are available and are not available.
      • Identify opportunities to increase the number of approved contractors.
      • (Lea Henry would be happy to provide input.)
    • Group 3: Migrant Workers- Support funding, loans, and other resources for housing providers in agricultural areas to improve safe and healthy home environments for migrant workers
      • Understand and identify the largest problems and needs for migrant workers related to housing.
      • Find and engage others who specialize in farmworker/ migrant worker housing issues.
      • Identify someone to co-lead group 3 with Pat Macfoy.
      • Engage someone in public health that has worked in rural areas and with farmworkers. (The Center for Housing may be able to provide contacts.)
  • Next Steps and Closing
    • Work group members are asked to share which small priority group they would like to be involved in prior to the next meeting.
    • The next Severe Housing Problems Work Group will be on Monday, March 18, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm via Microsoft Teams.

Monday, October 16, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Ken Edminster, Lea Henry, Stefanie Ledwell, Pat Macfoy, Lindsay Rosenfeld, Bill Rowe, Stephen Sills, Josh Walker; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid

Notes:

• The 2022-2023 priorities were:
  • Increase measures and funding to provide tenants with access to mediation, legal representation, and legal education to secure and protect housing
  • Remove legal barriers, institute enabling legislation, and facilitate lending to promote Community Land Trusts and other shared equity models of homeownership
  • Simplify and expand the Weatherization Assistance Program, Low-Income Energy Assistance Programs, and other healthy homes and utility assistance programs by affirmatively engaging low-income communities through targeted outreach to help families meet their energy needs
  • Support funding, loans, and other resources for housing providers in agricultural areas to improve safe and healthy home environments for migrant workers
  • Support programs designed to increase home ownership for historically disenfranchised communities
• Topics Discussed:
  • Add policy for seniors (affordable and aging in place), unhoused, supportive housing, reentry population, at-risk of homelessness, etc.
  • Broaden the definition of supportive housing services to encompass various forms of housing assistance, including preventative measures such as foreclosure assistance.
  • Focus on community land trusts was from measures to increase homeownership as an important component of achieving stable housing.
  • Influence on the 2022-2023 priorities was across the continuum of housing need. Prioritization should consider either increasing housing supply or stabilizing people who are housed so that they do not become unhoused, such as through mediation and upstream efforts.
  • Emphasize the importance of prioritizing policies that aim to stabilize individuals who already have housing, preventing them from becoming homeless. This includes affordability, offering support like foreclosure prevention and aging in place assistance, and legal resources to prevent evictions.
  • Recognize undocumented families and migrant workers as part of the vulnerable population.
• There were no changes to the 2022-2023 priority areas.
• Legal Aid, Housing Collaborative, AARP, Rural Center, ICCHP (Interagency Council on Coordinating Homeless Programs), and HUD were added to the list of potential partners to engage.
• Next steps were to:
  • Schedule quarterly work group meetings.
  • Ask work group members to share if they are interested in serving as a subgroup leader for the priorities.
  • Ask work group members to share which subgroup they would like to be involved with.
  • Schedule small subgroup meetings as needed.

Readings/Listenings

• Center for Community Progress. (2021, December). Land Banks and Community Land Trusts: Partnering to Provide Equitable Housing Opportunities Now and for Future Generations. https://communityprogress.org/publications/land-banks-and-community-land-trusts-2/
• North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. (2021, December). North Carolina’s Olmstead Plan. https://www.ncdhhs.gov/508-compliant-north-carolina-olmstead-plan/download?attachment
• North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. (2023, March). Strategic Housing Plan. https://www.ncdhhs.gov/ncdhhs-strategic-housing-plan-final-22723/open 

Co-Leaders and Members

Members:

The Opioid and Prescription Drug Abuse Advisory Committee (OPDAAC) is a legislatively mandated statewide coalition tasked to increase coordination, communication, surveillance, and policy efforts surrounding the overdose epidemic in NC. Since 2010, NCDHHS has convened a wide network of partners quarterly to address prevention of overdoses. OPDAAC has evolved from its initial role of implementing the state’s opioid strategic plan to a community of practice to share emerging trends and impactful intervention programs. Anyone working to address the overdose epidemic is welcome to attend, such as those from harm reduction, treatment, recovery, community groups, families who have lost loved ones to overdose, first responders, healthcare partners, and academics. Meetings are designed to focus on priorities of the NC Opioid and Substance Use Action Plan (OSUAP); expert speakers and panelists present their work; participants have the opportunity meet and network with content experts and learn diverse perspectives. OPDAAC’s membership has grown from 80 participants to over 1,200 members representing a diverse network of partners working to address the overdose epidemic.

Priorities

The following priority areas are from North Carolina’s Opioid and Substance Use Action Plan (OSUAP). For additional information refer to the current OSUAP and data dashboard at https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/department-initiatives/overdose-epidemic/north-carolinas-opioid-and-substance-use-action-plan/.

• Center Equity and Lived Experiences by acknowledging systems that have disproportionately harmed historically marginalized people (HMP), implementing programs that reorient those systems, and increasing access to comprehensive, culturally competent, and linguistically appropriate drug user health services for HMPs
• Prevent future addiction and address trauma by supporting children and families
• Reduce Harm by moving beyond just opioids to address polysubstance use
• Connect to Care by increasing treatment access for justice-involved people and expanding access to housing and employment supports to recover from the pandemic together

Action Plan

The Opioid and Substance Use Action Plan broadens its focus to include polysubstance use and centers equity and lived experience (OSUAP, 2021). Strategies included in the action plan are available at https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/department-initiatives/overdose-epidemic/north-carolinas-opioid-and-substance-use-action-plan.   

The a data dashboard provides integration and visualization of state, regional, and county-level metrics for partners across North Carolina to track progress toward reaching the goals outlined in the NC Opioid and Substance Use Action Plan at https://www.ncdhhs.gov/opioid-and-substance-use-action-plan-data-dashboard.

Meeting Schedule

For information about future OPDAAC meetings, visit https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/department-initiatives/overdose-epidemic/nc-opioid-and-prescription-drug-abuse-advisory-committee

Meeting Notes

Meeting agendas, slides, and recordings are available online at https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/department-initiatives/overdose-epidemic/nc-opioid-and-prescription-drug-abuse-advisory-committee/opdaac-meetings-agendas-and-presentations.

Readings/Listenings

• Injury and Violence Prevention Branch Overdose Data: https://injuryfreenc.dph.ncdhhs.gov/DataSurveillance/Overdose.htm
• Injury and Violence Prevention Branch Overdose Prevention Team Technical Assistance Resource Guide: https://injuryfreenc.dph.ncdhhs.gov/resources/docs/IVP_TAGuide_8.23.21_web.pdf
• Naloxone Saves: http://www.naloxonesaves.org/
• NC Opioid and Substance Use Action Plan (OSUAP) 3.0, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. (2021, May). North Carolina’s opioid and substance use action plan, version 3.0. https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/department-initiatives/overdose-epidemic/north-carolinas-opioid-and-substance-use-action-plan
• NC Opioid Settlements CORE-NC: Community Opioid Resources Engine for North Carolina: https://ncopioidsettlement.org/
• NC Safer Syringe Initiative: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/public-health/north-carolina-safer-syringe-initiative
• North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition: https://www.nchrc.org/
• OSUAP Data Dashboard: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/opioid-and-substance-use-action-plan-data-dashboard
• Stop the Stigma Resource Guide: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/media/8589/download

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 3/21/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Raise the state minimum sales age of tobacco products from 18 to 21 and establish a tobacco retailer permitting system to protect NC young people.
• Ensure that all Medicaid and Uninsured populations have barrier-free access to evidence-based, standard of care tobacco treatment which includes coaching/ counseling and FDA approved medications.
• Implement state and local tobacco-free and smoke-free air policies; continue to monitor and track progress and promote quality, effective implementation.
• Promote increased and recurring appropriations for robust and evidence-based tobacco prevention and cessation programs and services.

Priority Development Agenda

• Explore seeking reimbursement for Certified Tobacco Treatment Specialists (CTTS) for their work in providing standard of care tobacco treatment, including counseling and access to FDA approved tobacco treatment medications under the supervision of a prescriber.
• Recommend an electronic cigarette policy for restaurants and bars.
• Increase the price of tobacco products by raising the current state tax on cigarettes and increase other tobacco product taxes to parallel levels.

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 SHIP Tobacco Committee Meeting Schedule:

• Thursday, October 12, 2023, from 12:30 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Thursday, December 21, 2023, from 12:30 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Thursday, February 8, 2024, from 12:30 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Thursday, April 11, 2024, from 12:30 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Thursday, June 13, 2024, from 12:30 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Thursday, December 21, 2023, from 12:30 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Sarah Arthur, Teresa Beardsley, Ann Boonn, John Broome, Anna Bess Brown, Lani Callison , Kim Canady     , Carleen Crawford, Ashley Curtice, Lisa Dalton, Kaycee Deen, Ronda Doward, Sanquis Graham, Sharon Greer, Doreen Harris, Sally Herndon, Shamika Howell, Kearston Ingraham, Kristin Jimison, Jeffrey LaForge, Noxxie Malinga, Jim Martin, Viviana Martinez, Lu McCraw, Beth McDermott, Kimberly McDonald, Molly Monath, Michelle Mulvihill, Sherrie Parish, Richard Peters, Marina Pieretti, Marisa Ramos, Vera Reinstein, Ray Riordan, Delton Russell, Charlene Sampson, Jasmine Simmons, Lou Ann Simmons, Kyle Smith, Ann Staples, Gregg Stave, Deidre Sully, Joyce Swetlick, Danna Thompson, Natalie Thompson, Mary Ward, Marianne Hedrick Weant, David Willard, Mary Williams-Stover, Juliana Wilson; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Welcome, Introductions and Icebreaker in the Chat                                                       
  • Sally Herndon welcomed everyone and shared the Surgeon General Vivek Murthy invited the nation to build and strengthen our relationships, both personal and professional, as there is growing evidence that these connections keep us healthy. Everyone present was asked to share in the chat their name, agency, and what connections they will make over the winter holidays.
• Priority Settings of this Committee and Key Stakeholders 
  • Survey Results – This Committee
    • Ashley Rink, Program Manager with the NC SHIP Community Council, reviewed the results of the SHIP Tobacco Committee Priority Setting 2023-24 Survey.
  • Priority Setting Complete for 2024 – NCAH
    • Marianne Hedrick Weant, Program Manager with North Carolina Alliance for Health (NCAH), shared policy wins and 2024 policy priorities and goals. Additional information about their priorities is available at https://www.ncallianceforhealth.org/tobacco-use-prevention/.
    • For additional information and/or to become involved with NCAH visit their website at https://www.ncallianceforhealth.org/.
  • Priority Setting in Process – NCALHDs
    • Sally Herndon shared the North Carolina Association of Local Health Directors’ (NCALHDs) priority setting process was currently underway and was not finished as of the meeting.
    • NCALHD has had Tobacco 21 on their priority list in the past. Many health directors are passing resolutions about an effective Tobacco 21 law.
  • Priority Setting in Process – Tobacco Prevention and Control in DPH/DHHS
    • Jim Martin, Director of Policy and Programs with the Tobacco Prevention and Control Branch, shared updates on special provisions and Tobacco 21.
      • Special Provision to exempt NC YTS survey from Parents bill of rights requirement to have parents opt in for their child to participate
      • Special Provision to allow TPC Branch to continue serving the young adult population with Juul Settlement funds programs and services
      • T21 – building support/possible incremental steps without closing doors on future progress 
    • Others? 
      • The American Lung Association is in line with the priorities that had been shared and would like to support them. There are opportunities to connect with champions and work together across the state. 
      • There may be opportunities to align the work with Breathe Easy North Carolina and Change for Life with the Opioid Settlement work that is occurring throughout the state.
      • The Justus-Warren Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Task Force’s action agenda supports tobacco cessation and tobacco use prevention. Additional information and their action agenda is available at https://www.startwithyourheart.com/.
• Brief Updates on Youth Access to Tobacco in NC Data from DMH/DD/SAS
  • Ronda Doward, Director of Tobacco Prevention with the Division of Mental Health Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Services, reviewed the unofficial results of the Annual Synar Report. The report is available at https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/mental-health-developmental-disabilities-and-substance-use-services/reports/annual-synar-report.
  • The Synar survey is done annually to demonstrate compliance in North Carolina. The unofficial retail violation rate was 21.9% due partly because of a decline in the number of retailers able to be counted in the survey sample design. Reasons retailers were not included they were not selling tobacco products, out of business, or were not located. The sample included a total of 549 retailers. In previous years, the violation rate was under 20%.
  • The report will become official once SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) approves the report.
• Overview - Updated Research on the Impact of Tobacco Control Policies on Convenience Stores
  • Ann Boonn, Director, Research, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, provided an overview of a research report released in October 2023 on the alliance between big tobacco and convenience stores. Additional information is available at https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/what-we-do/industry-watch/deadly-alliance.
  • The tobacco industry invests heavily at the point-of-sale. The objective of point-of-sale marketing is to promote price and place tobacco products that are appealing to consumers and boost sales. Price discounts make up about 99% of the tobacco marketing at the point of sale and 97% of marketing spending. Research shows tobacco marketing works and more exposure to tobacco marketing translates to more tobacco use.
  • At the national level, corrective statements at the point of sale went into effect. The signs must be displayed from now until the of June 2025. The Department of Justice has set up a portal  to report stores suspected of not complying with the federal court order requiring certain stores to display signs containing corrective statements.
• Partner Updates, Announcements and Wrap Up
  • The next SHIP Tobacco Committee meeting will be on Thursday, February 8, 2024, from 12:30 to 2:00 pm via Microsoft Teams.
  • Danna Thompson, American Lung Association, shared their State of Tobacco Control report will be coming out on January 24, 2024. This may be a topic for the SHIP Tobacco Committee’s February meeting.
  • Kearston Ingraham, Duke Cancer Institute, shared the MaryAnn Black Health Equity Symposium will be on Friday, February 9, 2024, from 3:00 to 6:30 pm. The event will be in-person. Registration is open at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/maryann-black-health-equity-symposium-2024-tickets-704872120487?aff=oddtdtcreator. The keynote may be recorded and information from the abstracts and posters will be shared after the symposium.
  • The North Carolina General Assembly 2024 Short Session is scheduled to begin late April and expected to last until the end of June.
  • Sally Herndon shared a new  Medicaid Expansion Dashboard tracking the number of people enrolled is now available at https://medicaid.ncdhhs.gov/reports/medicaid-expansion-dashboard.

Thursday, October 12, 2023, from 12:30 to 2:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Peter Adamowsky, Alana Austin, Kim Bayha, Terri Bell, Stella Blankenship, Lani Callison, Megan Canady, Carleen Crawford, Lisa Dalton, Kaycee Deen, Stephanie Gans, Sanquis Graham, Morgan Wittman Gramann, Jen Greene, Sally Herndon, Mona Hood, Sarah Jacobson, Amy Jones, Jeffrey LaForge, Robyn Lane, Tobin Lee, Danya MacDonald, Jim D. Martin, Erin McClain, Kimberly McDonald, Al Milak, Molly Monath, Tamra Morris, Michelle Mulvihill, Tiffany Munday, Dana Painter, Sherrie Parish, Richard Peters, Vera Reinstein, Ray Riordan, Delton Russell, Charlene Sampson, Jasmine Simmons, Lou Ann Simmons, Les Spell, Gregg Stave, Deidre Sully, Erin Sutfin, Joyce Swetlick, Tiffany Thigpen, Natalie Thompson, Tenika Walker, Mary Ward, Ernest Watts, Tori Whitley, David Willard; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Welcome, Introductions, and Icebreaker in the Chat         
  • The 2023-2024 SHIP Tobacco Committee Co-leaders are Delton Russell is the Community Co-Lead, Jen Greene is the Organization Co-Lead, and Sally Herndon is the NCDHHS Co-Lead.
  • Everyone present was asked to share in the chat their name, title, organization, and favorite thing about fall.
• North Carolina General Assembly Budget Update & Impacts on Tobacco Control Landscape in NC, including but not limited to:  
  • JUUL Funding
    • For the JUUL funding, 11.25 million dollars was appropriated for each year of the biennium for commercial tobacco use prevention programming.
    • The JUUL funding is ending; there will be a need to seek additional funding from the General Assembly for continuity of those programs.
    • The 11.25 million dollars goes into a special fund that is overseen by the Tobacco Prevention and Control Branch. Of the 11.25 million dollars, $750,000 goes towards evaluation and the remainder of the dollars would be targeted to fourth through twelfth graders.
  • Parents Bill of Rights
    • There was a restriction pertaining to the administration of surveys in North Carolina, previously Senate Bill 49. With the new law, all children would be opted out unless their  parents specifically opted them into taking those surveys.
    • There has been successful work with the General Assembly to exempt the National Youth Tobacco Survey. Additional work is being done for an exception for the state surveys as well.
    • The North Carolina Youth Tobacco Survey is on hold this fall until the language is changed.
  • Other Changes
    • The method of taxing snuff and added alternative nicotine products was changed from being cost-based to weight-based. This is problematic for the parity of taxing tobacco products; snuff is a very light product, and the tax would be significantly smaller when based on weight. This change will have an impact on revenue and reduce revenue in North Carolina.
    • Increasing the price of tobacco products is an evidence-based way to prevent use. For every 10% increase in the price of cigarettes and other tobacco products there is about a 7% reduction in youth tobacco consumption and 4% reduction in adult tobacco consumption.
  • North Carolina General Assembly Budget
    • North Carolina’s budget was approved at the beginning of October. A technical corrections bill has not been confirmed at this point. The Division of Public Health has been working on several technical corrections to put forward to the General Assembly.
• Review Priorities and Feedback from Survey
  • The priority setting survey responses and comments were reviewed and discussed. There were 19 responses submitted before the meeting. Refer to the slide deck for the results reviewed and additional responses discussed on pages 4 to 12.
  • The Co-Leaders shared that the priority setting survey would remain open until Friday, October 20, 2023. 
• Potential topics shared for future meetings included:
  • Sample resolutions for decision makers in communities- Jen Greene can share a sample resolution.
  • Research from Deadly Alliance: How Big Tobacco and Convenience Stores Partner to Hook Kids and Fight Life-Saving Policies
  • The work being done with Fort Liberty.
  • Ideas for topics can be shared with Sally Herndon, Delton Russell, Jen Greene, and/or Ashley Rink.

Readings/Listenings

• Davis J, Clark S, et al. Comparison of Virtual and In-Person Tobacco Treatment Specialist Training. Telehealth and Medicine Today. 2023; 8(432). doi: https://doi.org/10.30953/thmt.v8.432
• Tanz LJ, Heck C, Herzig CTA, et al. Assessment of School Staff Knowledge and Perceptions of Student E-cigarette Use and Resource Needs, and E-cigarettes Confiscated at 12 North Carolina High Schools — 2019. North Carolina Medical Journal. 2023;84(6). doi:10.18043/001c.83954 

• American Cancer Society- Nicotine Replacement Therapy to Help You Quit Tobacco (2021): https://www.cancer.org/cancer/risk-prevention/tobacco/guide-quitting-smoking/nicotine-replacement-therapy.html
• American Lung Association- Smokefree Policies in Multi-Unit Housing (2022): https://www.lung.org/policy-advocacy/tobacco/smokefree-environments/multi-unit-housing
• American Lung Association State of Tobacco Control- North Carolina Highlights (2023): https://www.lung.org/research/sotc/state-grades/highlights/north-carolina
• Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids- New Revenues, Public Health Benefits, & Cost Savings from a $1.00 Cigarette Tax Increase in North Carolina (2020). https://tobaccopreventionandcontrol.dph.ncdhhs.gov/youth/Documents/NC-TaxIncreaseBenefits.pdf
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention- Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs (2014): https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/stateandcommunity/guides/pdfs/2014/comprehensive.pdf
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention- North Carolina: Improving Access to Medicaid Tobacco Cessation Benefits (2022): https://www.cdc.gov/sixeighteen/state-collaborations/nc-medicaid-tobacco-cessation/north-carolina_-improving-access-to-medicaid-tobacco-cessation-benefits.pdf
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention- Secondhand Smoke (2022): https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/secondhand-smoke/
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention- Smoking Cessation- The Role of Healthcare Professionals and Health Systems (2020): https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/sgr/2020-smoking-cessation/fact-sheets/healthcare-professionals-health-systems/
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention- STATE System Preemption Fact Sheet (2023): https://www.cdc.gov/statesystem/factsheets/preemption/Preemption.html
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention- Tobacco 21: Policy Evaluation for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs. https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/stateandcommunity/tobacco-control/pdfs/t21-policy-evaluation-guide-508.pdf
• Counter Tools- Licensing, Zoning, and Retailer Density (2023): https://countertobacco.org/policy/licensing-and-zoning/
• NCDHHS- North Carolina Standard Plan, Tailored Plan and LME/MCO Tobacco-Free Policy Requirement (2023): https://medicaid.ncdhhs.gov/blog/2023/03/15/north-carolina-standard-plan-tailored-plan-and-lmemco-tobacco-free-policy-requirement
• North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Tobacco Prevention and Control Branch- Sample Resolution- Protecting Our Kids from Vaping and Nicotine Addiction (September 26, 2022) North Carolina Medical Journal- Advancing Commercial Tobacco Control and Health Equity Through Policy, Systems, and Environmental Change (2022): https://ncmedicaljournal.com/article/55430
• QuitlineNC- Tobacco Treatment Standard of Care: https://quitlinenc.dph.ncdhhs.gov/health-professionals/tobacco-treatment-standard-of-care.html
• Truth Initiative- Tobacco & Pharmacies Report (2019): https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/tobacco-industry-marketing/action-needed-tobacco-and-pharmacies
• Truth Initiative- Vaping in the Workplace (2021): https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/emerging-tobacco-products/vaping-workplace

Co-Leaders and Members

The North Carolina State Excessive Alcohol Advisory Committee (NC SEAAC) is composed of North Carolina partners that work in the prevention, treatment and recovery, policy and advocacy, and research of excessive alcohol use and its related harms. To learn more about NC SEAAC and/or if interested in joining, contact SubstanceUseData@dhhs.nc.gov. 

(Revised 09/25/2023)

Priorities

2022-2023 Priorities:

• Consider local ordinances related to the sale and consumption of alcohol at local events, including adoption, implementation, and regulation of alcohol social districts

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 NC SEAAC Meeting Schedule:

• Thursday, November 9, 2023, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm, virtual
• Thursday, April 25, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm, virtual

Meeting Notes

Thursday, November 9, 2023, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm, virtual- NC SEAAC Meeting

Notes:

• Reviewed main focus areas for draft action plan. Version one of the plan will focus on access to alcohol (state control, price, place, promotions, and products). The plan is continuing to be drafted. 
• Discussed excessive alcohol use data and ways to utilize it in prevention work.
• The North Carolina Division of Public Health (DPH) presented some of the alcohol-related harms trends in North Carolina. The presentation included information on statewide alcohol consumption, alcohol-related mortality, and key prevention strategies for excessive alcohol use and its related harms. More alcohol-related data and resources from NC DPH can be found here.
• Dr. Melinda Pankratz, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, presented the findings of the North Carolina Youth and Young Adult Prevention Survey. The findings covered a wide variety of topics, including alcohol misuse prevalence, disparities, and risk and protective factors.
• More of the findings can be found in the North Carolina Substance Misuse Prevention Data Dashboard. The dashboard is still being built and is subject to change. An official version of the dashboard will be housed at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

Readings/Listenings

Guide to Community Preventive Services, Excessive Alcohol Consumption: https://www.thecommunityguide.org/topics/excessive-alcohol-consumption.html

NC Injury and Violence Prevention Branch, Alcohol Data Dashboard: https://dashboards.ncdhhs.gov/t/DPH/views/AlcoholDashboard_2020Update_04042021/Story

NC Injury and Violence Prevention Branch, Alcohol Use and Related Harms Website: https://injuryfreenc.dph.ncdhhs.gov/DataSurveillance/alcohol.htm

NC Injury and Violence Prevention Branch, North Carolina Alcohol Social Districts, July 2023: https://injuryfreenc.dph.ncdhhs.gov/DataSurveillance/pdf/SocialDistrictsActionSummary-FINAL.pdf

NC Injury and Violence Prevention Branch, The Excessive Alcohol Use in North Carolina Fact Sheet, June 2023: https://injuryfreenc.dph.ncdhhs.gov/DataSurveillance/pdf/ExcessiveAlcoholUseinNC-FactSheet.pdf

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Alcohol Program: https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/about.htm

The Societal Cost of Excessive Drinking in North Carolina, 2017: https://ncmedicaljournal.com/article/55455

Co-Leaders and Members

Co-Leaders:

Updated 3/21/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Integrate “Rethink Your Drink” toolkit into school curricula, promoting water as a healthy alternative to sweetened beverages
• Promote healthy procurement policies to support public and private investment to increase the availability of healthy alternatives to sugary drinks and limit “default beverage” options for all meals served to people of all ages  at food venues to include only milk, 100% fruit juice, or water
• Ensure access to safe and clean water in schools at water-filling stations that have been tested for safety
• Implement healthy choice beverage in vending machines at schools, community colleges, universities, and parks

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Friday, November 3, 2023, from 9:30 to 11:00 am, Zoom
• Friday, January 12, 2024, from 9:30 to 11:00 am, Zoom
• Friday, April 19, 2024, from 9:30 to 11:00 am, Zoom

Meeting Notes

Friday, January 12, 2024, from 9:30 to 11:00 am, Zoom- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Tracey Bates, Mary Anne Burghardt, Jayne McBurney, Courtney Ramsey-Coleman, Rhonda Stephens, Sarah Tomlinson; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Jayne McBurney welcomed everyone and asked for introductions. The icebreaker question was what key word defines them for 2024.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • The purpose of the meeting was to wordsmith the identified priorities and discuss action planning.
  • The following were identified at the previous meeting as the work group’s 2023-2024 priorities:
    • Integrate “Rethink Your Drink” toolkit into school curricula, promoting water as a healthy alternative to sweetened beverages.
    • Promote healthy procurement policies to support public and private investment to increase the availability of healthy alternatives to sugary drinks and limit “default beverage” options for children’s meals at food venues to include only milk, 100% fruit juice, or water.
    • Ensure access to safe and clean water in schools at water-filling stations that have been tested for safety.
    • Implement healthy choice beverage in vending machines at schools, community colleges, universities, and parks.
• Wordsmithing the priorities
  • Included below are the updated priorities and related discussions.
  • Priority A: Integrate “Rethink Your Drink” toolkit into school curricula, promoting water as a healthy alternative to sweetened beverages.The following taglines were discussed as potential updates for refreshing “Rethink Your Drink.”
    • Make the clear choice...water (for a healthy body and smile)
    • Say Yes to Water (Used by Durham Health Department)- has leverage already.
  • Priority B: Promote healthy procurement policies to support public and private investment to increase the availability of healthy alternatives to sugary drinks and limit “default beverage” options for all meals served to people of all ages children’s meals at food venues to include only milk, 100% fruit juice, or water.
    • The group discussed updating children’s meals at food venues to all meals served to people of all ages.
    • What ages drink the most sugar-sweetened beverages?- Considering buying power and rural/ urban- quality of water.
    • Targeting this message to places that impact these audiences.
    • Including community colleges to support this in strategic plans: https://archive.nccommunitycolleges.edu/strategic-plan
  • Priority C: Ensure access to safe and clean water in schools at water-filling stations that have been tested for safety.
    • Les Spell had shared a document from NCDPI about water policies allowing students to have water at their desks.
    • Funding water filling stations- get more information on water quality in schools, assuming filling stations have a filtration system.
  • Priority D: Implement healthy choice beverage in vending machines at schools, community colleges, universities, and parks.
    • Including community colleges to support this in strategic plans: https://archive.nccommunitycolleges.edu/strategic-plan
    • The community colleges do not have a say what is placed in their vending machines, the vending machine owners determine the inventory in the machines.Would vending machine companies be interested in “healthy retail designation”?
    • Driving demand
• Action Planning
  • The group discussed the following related to action planning for each of the priorities.
  • Priority A (Rethink Your Drink): Who will update the toolkit and create/run a campaign with a new tagline?
    • The SNAP-Ed Statewide Social Marketing Committee will work on a new toolkit that can be added to the Eat Smart, Move More website and shared broadly. They are working on a social marketing campaign about drinking water targeting those who are SNAP eligible.
    • Are there funds available to develop messaging and promotional materials? The target audience is not only SNAP-Ed.
  • Priority B (Healthy Procurement): Who leads the recommendations for policies being put in place?  Who has influence?
    • Local Health Department, local government, Council of governments
    • Finds events where these organizations are, such as NC Association of County Commissioners.
    • Integrating students, interns, fellows, NC Public Health Association, student group (Leah Mayo), ESMMNC (Eat Smart Move More North Carolina)
    • Association for college presidents/ administrators; the NC Community College Association is responsible for their strategic planning.
  • Priority C (Safe and Clean Water in Schools): Water stations and water bottles are allowed in school (information from Les Spell); water safety (more information on water quality data needed)
    • Environmental health-  DPH, DEQ, what % of households are on well water
    • Healthy Environments Collaborative (Tish Singletary has information on this.)
    • Number of municipalities with fluoridated water, availability of bottled fluoridated water.
    • NC Environmental Working Group- healthy lives/ healthy environment:
    • Jayne McBurney to contact NCSU Extension.
    • Clean Water for NC
    • Advocating is good, but also need to encourage/ work past barriers (for example, computers and water, also equity for those who may not be able to afford a reusable bottle), cost of water filling stations, teachers/ educators as models, student ambassadors.
  • Overcoming regression of COVID behaviors around water stations.
  • Priority D (Healthy Vending) Who leads the healthy vending work? 
    • Vending for rest stops is done by the Division of Services for the Blind, connecting to learn policies/guidelines.
    • Can some of the community college healthy pantry work expand to vending/food service guidelines?
    • North Carolina Vending Association
    • Can NCCE/Health Departments/ others provide services to help vendors provide healthy options that consumers like.
    • Taste testing options in high vending spaces.
    • Association for college presidents/ administrators; the NC Community College Association is responsible for their strategic planning.
    • Ask Tish Singletary if she has a contact.
    • Alice Ammerman/ Basheerah Enahora- Healthy food bowls work.
    • NC Beverage Association?
    • NC Restaurant and Loding Association
    • Healthy Vending Foods List
• Closing
  • The co-leaders, Jayne McBurney, Alice Ammerman, and Tish Singletary will meet to review action steps and brief for the meeting in April. Next steps will be shared with the work group over email.
  • The group discussed creating a wish list of materials and funding needed to support the work.
  • Wish list: Social media, graphic design, printing, factsheets for different stakeholders, website to host resources, mini grants to implement strategies
• Next Meeting Dates:
  • The next work group meeting will be on Friday, April 19, 2024, from 9:30 to 11:00 am via Zoom.

Friday, November 3, 2023, from 9:30 to 11:00 am, Zoom- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Crystal Adams, Alice S. Ammerman, Tracey Bates, Mary Anne Burghardt, Jayne McBurney, Lisa Shock, Tish Singletary, Les Spell, Rhonda Stephens, Sarah Tomlinson; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Jayne McBurney welcomed everyone and asked for introductions. The icebreaker question was what their favorite fall beverage was.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • The purpose of the meeting was to provide grounding and level setting, and review the priorities identified this past year.
  • Group agreements, common language, Indicator 13: Sugar-Sweetened Beverages, and the Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, and timeline were reviewed.  Refer to the slides for additional information on these topics.
• Priority Review
  • The purpose of the priority review was to determine if the priorities were clearly stated, were actionable, were resourced, and if they would continue to be a priority.
  • The 2022-2023 Priorities from the 2023 NC SHIP report were:
    • Integrate “Rethink Your Drink” toolkit into school curricula, promoting water as a healthy alternative to sweetened beverages
    • Establish healthy food procurement policies that support public and private investment in healthy food, and increase availability of healthy alternatives to sugary drinks
    • Recommend NC Department of Public Instruction (DPI) adopt a statewide policy permitting students to bring water bottles to school (containing only water)
    • Ensure access to safe and clean water in schools at water-filling stations that have been tested for safety
    • Limit “default beverage” options for children’s meals at food venues to include only milk, 100% fruit juice, or water
    • Implement healthy choice beverage in vending machines at schools and parks
  • The work group reviewed each of the 2022-2023 Priorities. The work group discussed the following being the priorities for 2023-2024.
    • Promote “Rethink Your Drink” messaging and availability of nutritious beverage choices (To potentially be reworded.)
    • Promote healthy procurement policies to support public and private investment to increase the availability of healthy alternatives to sugary drinks (To be combined with Limit “default beverage” options for children’s meals at food venues to include only milk, 100% fruit juice, or water.)
    • Ensure access to safe and clean water in schools at water-filling stations that have been tested for safety
    • Implement healthy choice beverage in vending machines (Expand beyond schools and parks.)
• Action Planning
  • The co-leaders will meet in December to discuss the next steps.
• Closing
  • The next work group meeting will be on Friday, January 12, 2024, from 9:30 to 11:00 am via Zoom.

Readings/Listenings

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention- Increasing Access to Drinking Water in Schools (2014): https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/npao/pdf/water_access_in_schools_508.pdf
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention- Water Access in Schools (2022): https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/nutrition/wateraccess.htm
• Healthful Living Standards, https://www.dpi.nc.gov/districts-schools/classroom-resources/academic-standards/standard-course-study/healthful-living
• Healthy Drinks, Healthy Kids: https://healthydrinkshealthykids.org/ SNAP-Ed Toolkit: Obesity Prevention Interventions and Evaluation Framework (2023): https://snapedtoolkit.org/
• World Health Organization- Healthy public food procurement and service policies (2022): https://www.who.int/news/item/15-07-2022-the-untapped-potential-of-healthy-public-food-procurement-and-service-policies-to-support-therepurposing-of-food-and-agricultural-policies-for-delivery-of-affordable-healthy-diets

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 4/9/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Expand affordable housing programs for persons living with HIV
• Identify and address gaps in HIV healthcare access for formerly incarcerated populations
• Identify barriers to HIV post exposure prophylaxis being delivered by pharmacists
• Increase the number of harm reduction programs, including needle exchange programs
• Increase the number of people who know their HIV status and are linked to prevention or treatment services
• Understand the impact of NC’s Medicaid Managed Care Plans on health outcomes for CMS clients living with HIV

2022-2023 Priorities:

• Expand affordable housing programs for people living with HIV
• Expand North Carolina’s provider network for HIV care and prevention services
• Identify and address gaps in HIV healthcare access for formerly incarcerated populations
• Identify barriers to HIV post exposure prophylaxis being delivered by pharmacists
• Improve provider comfort with incorporating sexual health assessments into routine healthcare services
• Increase access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for individuals at high risk for HIV transmission
• Increase the number of harm reduction programs, including needle exchange programs
• Increase the number of people who know their HIV status and are linked to prevention or treatment services through high impact, coordinated interventions
• Understand the impact of NC’s Medicaid Managed Care Plans on health outcomes for CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) clients living with HIV

Priority Development Agenda

The following were not prioritized for 2023-2024:

• Expand North Carolina’s provider network for HIV care and prevention services 
• Improve provider comfort with incorporating sexual health assessments into routine healthcare services
• Increase access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for individuals at high risk for HIV transmission 

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2024 HIV Diagnosis Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Wednesday, February 14, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:30 am, Microsoft Teams
• Wednesday, March 13, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:30 am, Microsoft Teams
• Wednesday, March 27, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:30 am, Microsoft Teams
• Wednesday, April 17, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:30 am, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Wednesday, February 14, 2024, 10:00 to 11:30 am, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting 

Attendees: Hope Bryant, Alicia Diggs, Latoya Gardner, Chelsea Gulden , Veleria Levy, Matt Martin, Judith Montenegro, Tiffany Munday, JeaNelle Plummer,  Frankie Simmons; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • The HIV Diagnosis Work Group Co-Leaders, Chelsea Gulden, Veleria Levy, and JeaNelle Plummer, welcomed everyone and asked for introductions.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • The priorities identified by last year’s HIV Diagnosis Work Group were included in the 2023 North Carolina State Health Improvement Plan (NC SHIP) report. The updated indicator data is available in the 2023 NC SHIP report and the Healthy North Carolina 2030 Scorecard.
  • As part of the 2023-2024 NC SHIP Community Council’s Year of Action, the work group is asked to develop and begin to implement action plans related to their identified priorities.
  • The work group’s progress will be tracked in the 2023-2024 NC SHIP Community Council Scorecard.
• Priority Review
  • The work group reviewed the priorities the group will address and discussed current and potential priority group members. 
    • Expand affordable housing programs for persons living with HIV.
      • Hope Bryant
      • Alicia Diggs
      • Latoya Gardner (Lead)
    • Identify and address gaps in HIV healthcare access for formerly incarcerated populations.
      • Victoria Mobley may help to identify someone for this group.
      • JeaNelle Plummer (Lead)
      • Alicia Diggs may have a name.
      • Douglas Meardon
    • Identify barriers to HIV post exposure prophylaxis being delivered by pharmacists.
      • Veleria Levy (Lead)
      • Matt Martin
      • Dr. Carolina Mejia 
      • Victoria Mobley
      • Judith Montenegro
    • Increase the number of harm reduction programs, including needle exchange programs.
      • Leslie from CCP? Chelsea
      • NCAAN harm reduction group? (Veleria)
      • Someone from ALPHA or WNCAP? 
    • Increase the number of people who know their HIV status and are linked to prevention or treatment services.
      • Alicia Diggs
      • Chelsea Gulden (Lead)
      • Matt Jenkins
      • Victoria Mobley
      • Frankie Simmons
    • Understand the impact of NC’s Medicaid Managed Care Plans on health outcomes for CMS clients living with HIV.
      • Matt Martin (Lead)
      • Judith Montenegro
      • Tiffany Munday
• Meeting Schedule
  • The work group’s current meeting schedule is as follows.
    • Wednesday, March 13, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:30 am, Microsoft Teams
    • Wednesday, March 27, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:30 am, Microsoft Teams
    • Wednesday, April 17, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:30 am, Microsoft Teams
• Priority Breakout Groups
  • The following members agreed to be subgroup leads:
    • Expand affordable housing programs for persons living with HIV- Latoya Gardner
    • Identify and address gaps in HIV healthcare access for formerly incarcerated populations- JeaNelle Plummer
    • Identify barriers to HIV post exposure prophylaxis being delivered by pharmacists- Veleria Levy
    • Increase the number of harm reduction programs, including needle exchange programs- To be determined.
    • Increase the number of people who know their HIV status and are linked to prevention or treatment services- Chelsea Gulden
    • Understand the impact of NC’s Medicaid Managed Care Plans on health outcomes for CMS clients living with HIV- Matt Martin
  • The leads will be responsible for scribing during subgroup meetings.
  • Action planning templates will be shared with subgroup leads.
  • For members in two subgroups, there will be opportunities to jump between the breakout groups and/or review the subgroup meeting notes.
• Closing
  • Next steps included breaking into subgroups at the next meeting to begin action planning and sending invites to those highlighted in yellow. Names and contact information for potential subgroup members can be shared with Chelsea Gulden, Veleria Levy, JeaNelle Plummer, and/or Ashley Rink.
  • The meeting ended at 10:35 am.

Readings/Listenings

• NASTAD (National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors). (October 2023). Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP), and Other HIV Prevention Strategies: Billing and Coding Guide: https://nastad.org/sites/default/files/2023-10/PDF-HIV-Prevention-BillingAndCoding-101223.pdf

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - HIV Testing (2022): https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/testing/index.html
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC )- PrEP for HIV Prevention in the U.S. (2021): https://www.cdc.gov/nchhstp/newsroom/fact-sheets/hiv/PrEP-for-hiv-prevention-in-the-US-factsheet.html
• Health Justice- HIV treatment outcomes among formerly incarcerated transitions clinic patients in a high prevalence setting (2018): https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6755570/
• HRSA’s Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program- Addressing the HIV Care Needs of People with HIV in State Prisons and Local Jails (2020): https://ryanwhite.hrsa.gov/sites/default/files/ryanwhite/resources/hrsa-justice-tep.pdf
• National Coalition for Sexual Health- Sexual Health and Your Patients: A Provider’s Guide (2022): https://nationalcoalitionforsexualhealth.org/tools/for-healthcare-providers/asset/Provider-Guide_May-2022.pdf
• NC Ending HIV: A Plan to End HIV Together Community-by-Community Hand-in-Hand: https://epi.dph.ncdhhs.gov/cd/hiv/docs/NC-Ending-HIV-Brochure-English-Web.pdf
• NCDHHS- HIV Care: https://epi.dph.ncdhhs.gov/cd/hiv/program.html
• NCDHHS- North Carolina State Health Director’s Standing Order for Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) (2022): https://www.dph.ncdhhs.gov/docs/PEP-StandingOrder-March2022.pdf
• SAMHSA- Harm Reduction (2023): https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/harm-reduction
• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HOPWA)- Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS Program (2023): https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/comm_planning/hopwa

Co-Leaders and Members

The purpose of the Perinatal Health Equity Collective (PHEC) Policy Workgroup is to advocate for and promote policies found in the 2022-2026 North Carolina Perinatal Health Strategic Plan through education
and information sharing.

The Perinatal Health Equity Collective’s partner organizations include:

• Alamance Achieves
• Alamance County Health Department
• AmeriHealth Caritas
• AppHealthCare
• Atrium HealthCare
• Birth Sisters Doula
• Blue Cross Blue Shield NC
• Carolina Complete Health
• Carolina Global Breastfeeding Institute
• Chatham County Public Health Department
• Cone Health
• Dogwood Health Trust
• The Duke Endowment
• Duke University
• Durham County Public Health
• Durham Children’s Initiative
• East Carolina University
• Elon University
• Equity Before Birth
• Equity for Moms and Babies Realized Across Chatham (EMBRACe)
• Every Baby Guilford
• Family Connects International
• Forsyth County Health Department
• Foundation for Health Leadership and Innovation
• Greensboro Health Disparities Collaborative
• Healthy Start
• Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
• Jacaranda Health
• Jace’s Journey
• Kate B. Reynolds Foundation
• MAAME
• March of Dimes
• Mecklenburg County Public Health
• Meredith College
• MomsRising
• Momma’s Village Fayetteville
• Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC)
• National Service Office for Nurse-Family Partnership
• North Carolina Academy of Family Physicians
• North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
• North Carolina Area Health Education Centers
• North Carolina Association of Certified Nurse Midwives
• North Carolina Black Alliance
• NC Child
• North Carolina Child Fatality Taskforce
• NC Counts Coalition
• North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence
• North Carolina Council of Churches
• North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health
• North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Child and Family WellBeing
• North Carolina Department of Health and
• Human Services, Office of Rural Health
• North Carolina Healthcare Association
• North Carolina Institute of Medicine
• North Carolina Medical Society
• North Carolina Partnership for Children
• Orange County Health Department
• Partnership for Children and Families
• Perinatal Quality Collaborative of North Carolina (PQCNC)
• Piedmont Health Services
• Points True North Consulting
• Racial Equity Institute
• Robeson Health Care Corporation
• Royal Family Ministries
• Sistas Caring 4 Sistas
• Triangle Doulas of Color
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Medicine
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Social Work
• UNC Collaborative for Maternal and Infant Health
• Upstream
• Vidant Health
• Village of Wisdom
• Wake Health
• WellCare
• Winer Family Foundation
• Individuals with lived experience

Priorities

2022-2023 Priorities:

The Perinatal Health Equity Collective Policy Workgroup prioritized the following NC Perinatal Health Strategic Plan (PHSP) strategy that aligns with the 2022 NC SHIP. The numbers included with the prioritized policies refer to the strategy numbers in the PHSP, https://wicws.dph.ncdhhs.gov/phsp/.

• Teen Births
  • 12F. Increase same-day access to all methods of contraception
• Early Prenatal Care
  • 1E. Perinatal health care providers should participate in training around health equity, implicit bias, and cultural competency
  • 7E. Increase the number of Prepaid Health Plans (PHPs) that cover doula services
  • 7G. Elevate the role of community health workers in addressing the social drivers of health
  • 9A. Expand Medicaid to provide affordable, comprehensive health, behavioral health, and dental insurance coverage, including mobile health and telehealth for all
  • 9I. Implement the NC Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) scholars program to recruit and train students of color and students from rural backgrounds to become providers in underserved areas
  • 10A. Expand the use of evidence-based and evidence-informed models of perinatal care highlighted in the Maternal Health Innovation Program, including doula services, group prenatal care, group child visits, and community health workers
• Infant Mortality
  • 1D. Provide training to all NCDHHS staff and ongoing professional development on equity that builds understanding of and competencies to advance health equity
  • 1E. Perinatal health care providers should participate in training around health equity, implicit bias, and cultural competency
  • 7E. Increase the number of Prepaid Health Plans (PHPs) that cover doula services
  • 7G. Elevate the role of community health workers in addressing the social drivers of health
  • 7J. Expand efforts to prevent infant deaths related to unsafe sleep environments
  • 9A. Expand Medicaid to provide affordable, comprehensive health, behavioral health, and dental insurance coverage, including mobile health and telehealth for all
  • 10A. Expand the use of evidence-based and evidence-informed models of perinatal care highlighted in the Maternal Health Innovation Program, including doula services, group prenatal care, group child visits, and community health workers
  • 10F. Adopt maternal and neonatal risk-appropriate levels of care that align with national standards
  • 10Q. Support the creation of a statewide 24-hour breastfeeding support hotline
  • 12F. Increase same-day access to all methods of contraception

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 PHEC Policy Workgroup Meeting Schedule:

• Monday, October 9, 2023, from 11:00 to 12:00 pm, Zoom

Meeting Notes

Readings/Listenings

• 2022-2026: NC Perinatal Health Strategic Plan: https://wicws.dph.ncdhhs.gov/phsp/
• Critical Term: Why Are Black Mothers and Babies Dying: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rN1vtYICJWM&t=4s
• NCDHHS- Community Health Workers (2018): https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/office-rural-health/community-health-workers
• NCDHHS- Perinatal Health Data (2023): https://wicws.dph.ncdhhs.gov/phsp/perinatalData.htm
• Improving Maternal Health Outcomes in North Carolina, NCMJ: https://ncmedicaljournal.com/issue/5393
• NC AHEC Scholars Program: https://www.ncahec.net/health-careers/ahec-scholars/
• North Carolina Early Childhood Action Plan: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/about/department-initiatives/early-childhood/early-childhood-action-plan
• North Carolina Maternal Health Innovation Program (2023): https://wicws.dph.ncdhhs.gov/indfam/innovation.htm

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 4/9/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Policy 1: Maximize eligible people who enroll in newly expanded Medicaid coverage 
• Policy 2: Determine the need for expanding and sustaining financial support to sustainably employ Community Health Workers
• Policy 3: Support and increase funding to health clinics for the uninsured

Priority Development Agenda

• Encourage action plans based on community health needs assessments to focus on access to services for the uninsured

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Uninsured Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Monday, October 16, 2023, from 10:00 to 11:45 am, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, January 22, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:45 am, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, April 15, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:45 am, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, June 17, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:45 am, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Monday, January 22, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:45 am, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Patrick Brown, Zenobia Edwards, Honey Yang Estrada, Sabrina Golling, Richard Hudspeth, Randy Jordan, Moneka Midgette, Alice Pollard, Kristen Spaduzzi, Gretchen Taylor, Sally Wilson, Kelsey Yokovich; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome
  • Alice Pollard welcomed everyone and asked for introductions.
• Review minutes from the last meeting
  • Alice Pollard provided a brief overview of Indicator: 16: Uninsured from the NC SHIP. 
  • During the work group meeting on October 16, 2023, the group discussed the priority policies and changes since the previous year, including Medicaid Expansion. The priorities were updated to the following for 2023-2024:
    • Policy 1: Maximize eligible people who enroll in newly expanded Medicaid coverage.
    • Policy 2: Determine the need for expanding and sustaining financial support to sustainably employ Community Health Workers.
    • Policy 3: Support and increase funding to health clinics for the uninsured.
    • Policy 4: Action plans to implement community health needs assessments should focus on access to services for the uninsured.
  • After the previous meeting, work group members were asked to select which policy group they would like to join to develop action steps to move forward those policies.
• Review Action Plan Steps for today                            
  •  The work group broke into the following policy groups.
    • Policy 1 Group: Kristen Spaduzzi, Sabrina Golling, Alice Pollard
    • Policy 2 Group: Kelsey Yokovich, Moneka Midgette, Honey Yang Estrada, Zenobia Edwards, Gretchen Taylor 
    • Policy 3 Group: Patrick Brown, Richard Hudspeth, Randy Jordan, Sally Wilson
    • Policy 4 Group: No attendees.
  • The groups were asked to discuss the following questions. (Refer to the notes for each policy group.)
    • What will be done? 
    • How will it be done? 
    • Who will be involved in implementing the action step or strategy? 
    • When will it take place? 
    • How will success be measured? 
  • Each group reported the following.
    • Policy 1 Group: Maximize eligible people who enroll in newly expanded Medicaid coverage.
      • Standardizing and maximizing outreach in different areas and identifying gaps.
      • Learning from other states about solutions to address expanding eligibility rules for workers and other populations that remain ineligible. California may have solutions to consider.
      • The Care Share Health Alliance will be invited to join this group. Others can be invited to join the groups.
    • Policy 2 Group: Determine the need for expanding and sustaining financial support to sustainably employ Community Health Workers.
      • The group wants to revive the conversation about the guidance document, North Carolina Medicaid’s Community Health Worker Strategy.
      • The purpose is to get community health workers (CHWs) ingrained and working with the CHW Association to ensure there is equity in pay and the work being done. With Medicaid Expansion, there was not funding to enact this plan. This work group is a big support for implementing this guidance.
      • Having a point person in each of the six Medicaid Regions that is trained on expansion efforts and could share back the information to the State.
      • There is not a CHW job description within OSHR ( Office of State Human Resources) that could be used consistently.
      • There may be opportunities to connect with local health directors on how to leverage Medicaid Expansion and reimbursement within their organization.
    • Policy 3 Group: Support and increase funding to health clinics for the uninsured.
      • Appeal to the five state associations that serve on the Primary Care Advisory Committee with the Office of Rural Health to identify the most significant funding needs for the clinics that they represent for the next 3-5 years.
      • Regarding future funding needs, there are cautions with understanding needs since Medicaid Expansion recently happened. There will still be about 700,000 people remaining uninsured.
      • Needs would be communicated by developing a 3-to-5-year funding needs document that could be made available to the General Assembly and other entities with reliable authentic suggestions of needs.        
      • There is still not a clear owner of the uninsured issue.
      • The question was posed of whether measuring the number of individuals in North Carolina who have a medical home is a better measure than simply their insured status.
    • Policy 4: Action plans to implement community health needs assessments should focus on access to services for the uninsured.
      • Discussed this would be difficult to talk about without health system representation on this work group.                                      
• Next Steps
  • The next Uninsured Work Group meeting will be on Monday, April 15, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:45 am via Microsoft Teams.
  • The policy groups are welcome to meet prior to the work group meeting in April.
  • Work group members with ideas for additional partners to involve in this group can share them with Alice, April, and Gretchen.

Monday, October 16, 2023, from 10:00 to 11:45 am, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: April Cook, Brandy Bynum Dawson, Zenobia Edwards, Abby Carter Emanuelson, Randy Jordan, Moneka Midgette, Alice Pollard, Hannah Preston, Alice Salthouse, Gretchen Taylor, Hugh Tilson, Jr., Sally Wilson

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Gretchen Taylor welcomed everyone and shared one of the objectives of the meeting was for the work group to get to know one another.
  • The icebreaker included a quote from Robin Wall Kimmerer, the author of Braiding Sweetgrass, on important ceremonies and traditions. Work group members were asked to share if there was any part of the quote that spoke to them or if there were any holiday or small ceremonies that they participated in
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • April Cook reviewed Health Indicator 16: Uninsured from the 2022 North Carolina State Health Improvement Plan (NC SHIP).
  • April also reviewed the Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, timeline, and common language, and action planning. Refer to the slides for additional information on these topics.
• Priority Review
  • Alice Pollard shared the purpose of the priority review was to determine if each priority is clearly stated, actionable, resourced, and still relevant. The Priority Development Agenda is a list of policies and/or programs the work group considers important for future consideration and is not taking action on during this next year.
  • The effort and work by the Uninsured Work Group to identify the following 2022-2023 priorities was acknowledged.
    • Expand Medicaid, including expanding recipient eligibility criteria
    • Determine the need for expanding and sustaining financial support for Community Health Workers
    • Determine the need for sustaining health clinics for the uninsured
    • Repurpose savings and surpluses created by Medicaid transformation and expansion and leverage the community benefit programs of health systems to fund programs for the uninsured
  • Discussion and updates to the priorities for 2023-2024 included the following.
    • Expand Medicaid, including expanding recipient eligibility criteria
      • The group discussed splitting this priority into the following two priorities: Enact Medicaid Expansion, including awareness and enrollment AND Explore what policy solutions may be available for people who continue to be uninsured with Medicaid Expansion
    • Determine the need for expanding and sustaining financial support for Community Health Workers
      • The group discussed updating this priority as follows: Determine the need for expanding and sustaining financial support to engage and continue to employ community health workers to build a sustainable workforce
    • Determine the need for sustaining health clinics for the uninsured
      • The group discussed updating this priority as follows: Sustain, support, and increase funding for health clinics for the uninsured
    • Repurpose savings and surpluses created by Medicaid transformation and expansion and leverage the community benefit programs of health systems to fund programs for the uninsured
      • The group discussed updating this priority as follows: Encourage action plans based on community health needs assessments to focus on access to services for the uninsured
• Action Planning
  • The next work group meeting will focus on action planning. The purpose of action planning is to describe what the work group plans to act on until June 2024 to advance the identified priorities. The number of action plans is up to the work group to decide. Refer to the slides for additional information on these topics.
• Review of Action Steps
  • April Cook, Alice Pollard, and Gretchen Taylor will wordsmith the updated priorities and share them via email to confirm the changes discussed during the meeting.
  • The work group will vote on the wording via email and prioritize the priorities for action planning.
• Adjourn
  • Work group members are welcome to invite others to join the work group.
  • There was an overall desire to learn more about the uninsured and data on the uninsured. There are a lot of unknowns related to numbers of the uninsured after Medicaid Expansion.
  • The next Uninsured Work Group meeting will be on Monday, January 22, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:45 am via Microsoft Teams.

Readings/Listenings

• NC DHHS Community Health Workers in North Carolina: Creating an Infrastructure for Sustainability (May 2018): https://www.ncdhhs.gov/dhhs-cwh-report-web-7-18-18/download
• North Carolina Justice Center- Expanding Medicaid in NC (2023): https://www.ncjustice.org/projects/health-advocacy-project/medicaid-expansion/expanding-medicaid-in-nc/
• The UCITY Family Zone: A Community Health Science Approach: https://www.ucityfamilyzone.com/

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 3/21/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities:

• Leverage Medicaid, including Medicaid Expansion, to support the viability of all primary care clinicians, especially in rural settings
• Increase funding and strategic deployment of loan repayment programs for providers
• Expand healthcare provider training onsite in rural communities

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

• Policy #1: Leverage Medicaid, including Medicaid Expansion, to support the viability of all primary care clinicians, especially in rural settings.
  • Strategies and Action Plans
    • Creating a conducive environment where current and prospective primary care providers and their family will thrive to be successful in primary care, including economic viability.
    • Examine the results from the study on minimum primary care spending commissioned by the General Assembly in fiscal year 2024.
    • Improving primary care reimbursement and simplifying related administrative burdens will result in healthcare students making rational choices to enter all forms of primary care practice while in school and residency programs.
    • Establish a Center on Workforce for Health to develop, coordinate and implement strategies to meet primary care workforce needs in targeted geographies of greatest need.
• Policy #2: Increase funding and strategic deployment of loan repayment programs for providers.
  • Strategies and Action Plans
    • Explore the growing number of conditional acceptance programs for primary care clinicians that align with and incentivize providing primary care in rural and underserved communities.
    • Be intentional about recruiting and retaining primary care clinician students that match the demographic of the communities where they will serve.
    • Consider how to simplify, enhance, and improve the current process for incentive and loan repayment programs currently administered in North Carolina that are based on HPSA (Health Professional Shortage Areas) scores.
    • In addition to loan repayment programs, support scholarship programs for primary care clinicians that are tied to service in rural and underserved communities.
• Policy #3: Expand healthcare provider training onsite in rural communities.
  • Strategies and Action Plans
    • Develop a plan to financially support rural preceptors in rural and underserved communities as primary care clinicians are more likely to practice in those areas if they are trained there and have exposure to rural settings.
    • More rural rotations are needed for all types of providers.
    • Consider creative uses of Medicaid and other funding sources to address health provider recruitment and retention in rural communities (e.g., New Mexico uses Medicaid dollars to pay for more Graduate Medical Education (GME) slots in rural communities).
    • Align community development, provider training and provider recruitment and retention programs in rural and underserved communities to increase primary care clinician retention.

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Primary Care Clinicians Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Monday, October 16, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, December 18, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, February 19, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, April 15, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Monday, June 17, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Monday, December 18, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Lavondia Alexander, Elizabeth Hudgins, Maggie Sauer, Chris Shank, Kristen Spaduzzi, Gretchen Taylor, Hugh Tilson, Jr., Christopher Vann, Adam Zolotor; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview​ 
  • Lavondia Alexander welcomed everyone and reviewed the agenda.  
• Grounding and Level Setting​ 
  • Lavondia Alexander reviewed the ground rules, Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, and timeline. (Refer to the slides for additional information on these topics.) 
  • At the previous work group meeting, the group reviewed the 2022-2023 priorities and updated the priorities for 2023-2024. The work group decided on three priorities. The work group will begin to develop and implement action plans and update progress throughout the next meetings.  
  • The Co-Leaders for the Primary Care Clinicians Work Group are Lavondia Alexander, Leslie Mason, and Gretchen Taylor. The co-leaders are meeting in the odd months.  
• Priority Review​ 
  • Gretchen Taylor reviewed the identified priorities and suggested revisions. The changes are highlighted in yellow.   
  • Work group members shared relevant updates related to each of the priorities. 
• Action Planning​ 
  • The work group broke into the following policy subgroups for asset mapping discussions. (For additional information refer to the notes for each policy subgroup.) 
    • Policy 1 Subgroup: Medicaid- Kristen Spaduzzi and Lavondia Alexander 
    • Policy 2 Subgroup: Loan and Scholarships- Maggie Sauer, Hugh Tilson, and Gretchen Taylor 
    • Policy 3 Subgroup: Provider training- Elizabeth Hudgins and Adam Zolotor; Notetaker- Ashley Rink  
  • The following asset mapping questions were shared to guide discussions.   
    • What lead agencies should be engaged and/or involved? 
    • What are recommended lead agencies? 
    • What are short-term action steps or strategies (1 to 2 years)? 
    • What are long-term action steps or strategies (5 years or more)?  
    • Decide as a work group what is considered short versus long-term. 
    • What partners should be engaged? 
    • What resources (materials, money, staff, and/or other assets) are needed? 
    • What are action steps to advance this priority based on the previous questions? 
• Review of Action Steps​ 
  • In February, the policy subgroups will continue to develop action plans, including mapping agencies to engage, strategies to accomplish these policies, and identify metrics of success.  
  • After action planning in February, the work group will try to implement pieces of the action plan between then and the Community Council’s Annual Meeting in July 2024.  
  • Subgroups are welcome to meet before the next meeting in February.   
  • Policy 1 Subgroup shared there was a need to align what several lead agencies are working on related to Medicaid and Medicaid Expansion and opportunities for them to share what they are doing and then go from there.  
  • Policy 2 Subgroup shared the most important step to start with was to do an inventory of what was going on with loans and scholarships and how those might align with existing programs, if at all.  
• Adjourn 
  • The next Primary Care Clinicians Work Group meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 19, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm via Microsoft Teams.  

Monday, October 16, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Lavondia Alexander, Patrick Brown, Elizabeth Hudgins, Leslie Mason, Lisa McKeithan, Stephanie Nantz, Alice Salthouse, Maggie Sauer, Kristen Spaduzzi, Gretchen Taylor, Hugh Tilson, Jr., Christopher Vann, Adam Zolotor

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Lavondia Alexander welcomed everyone and asked for introductions. The icebreaker question was what they were concerned and excited about for the work group for the year of action. (Refer to page 5.)
  • The Co-Leaders for the Primary Care Clinicians Work Group are Lavondia Alexander, Leslie Mason, and Gretchen Taylor.
• Grounding and Level Setting
  • Lavondia Alexander reviewed Health Indicator 17: Primary Care Clinicians from Healthy North Carolina 2030. Refer to the 2023 NC SHIP report for the updated indicator data and information at https://schs.dph.ncdhhs.gov/units/ldas/docs/NCSHIP-2023-101723.pdf or https://schs.dph.ncdhhs.gov/units/ldas/docs/17-PrimaryCareCliniciansIndicator2023NCSHIP.pdf.
  • The Year of Action asks, roles and expectations and timeline, were also reviewed. Refer to the slides for additional information on these topics.
• Priority Review
  • Leslie Mason shared the purpose of the priority review was to determine if each priority is clearly stated, actionable, resourced, and will continue to be a priority.
  • The 2022-2023 priorities were:
    • Leverage Medicaid, including Medicaid Expansion, to support the viability of all primary care clinicians in rural settings
    • Increase funding for provider loan repayment programs
    • Expand healthcare provider training onsite in rural communities
  • The revisions from the discussion will be shared back with the work group for review. 
• Action Planning
  • Lavondia Alexander shared action planning would include ensuring the work group has the support needed from the state, other outside groups, and interested parties.
  • The work group began action planning for, “Expand healthcare provider training onsite in rural communities.” 
• Review of Action Steps
  • For next steps, work group members were asked to:
    • Review the updated priority list.
    • Come prepared to the next meeting with ideas for action planning, including what agencies, programs, and/or current initiatives could support the priorities and actions.
• Adjourn
  • The next Primary Care Clinicians Work Group meeting is scheduled for Monday, December 18, 2023, from 3:00 to 4:45 pm via Microsoft Teams.

Readings/Listenings

• American Academy of Family Physicians: Primary Care Spend (October 2021): https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/payment/apms/BKG-PrimaryCareSpend.pdf
• Human Services Department: Graduate Medical Education Expansion in New Mexico Five Year Strategic Plan (January 2022): https://www.hsd.state.nm.us/gme-expansion/
• NCDHHS Office of Rural Health- Health Professional Shortage Area 2022 Profile (June 2023): https://www.ncdhhs.gov/nc-dhhs-orh-hpsa-one-pager/open

Co-Leaders and Members

Members:

The Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Advisory Council (CSPAC) convenes suicide prevention professionals (Division of Mental Health/ Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services [DMH/DD/SAS], Department of Public Instruction [DPI]), loss survivors, attempt survivors, people who have accessed mental health, substance use, and intellectual and developmental disabilities (MH/SU/IDD) services, veterans, and special populations including Black, Latino/Hispanic, those that identify as person of color (POC) and LGBTQ+ youth to guide action plan components and implementation of strategies.

The CSPAC is not currently accepting new members. 

(Revised 1/11/2024)

Priorities

The NC SHIP priorities were integrated into the existing Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Advisory Council (CSPAC). The North Carolina Suicide Prevention Action Plan (NC SPAP) acknowledges that suicide prevention is complex, and the plan is structured to implement comprehensive strategies in the following focus areas to reduce injury and death by suicide. Refer to the NC Suicide Prevention Action Plan for additional information about this plan, data and justification, strategies, and related actions. The policies included below are the focus areas for the NC SPAP. 

1. Create a coordinated infrastructure
2. Reduce access to lethal means
3. Increase community awareness and prevention
4. Identify populations at risk
5. Provide crisis intervention with a specific focus on people with increased risk
6. Provide access to and delivery of suicide care
7. Measure our impact and revise strategies based on results

Action Plan

The North Carolina Suicide Prevention Action Plan is available at https://injuryfreenc.dph.ncdhhs.gov/preventionResources/docs/CSP-ActionPlanFinal.pdf.

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Advisory Council (CSPAC) Meeting Schedule:

• Wednesday, August 9, 2023, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Zoom
• Wednesday, November 8, 2023, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Zoom
• Wednesday, February 14, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Zoom
• Wednesday, May 8, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, Zoom

Meeting Notes

May 1, 2024, Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Advisory Council (CSPAC) Meeting and Updates:

February 14, 2024, Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Advisory Council (CSPAC) Meeting and Updates:

November 8, 2023, Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Advisory Council (CSPAC) Meeting and Updates:

Readings/Listenings

• 2022 North Carolina Suicide Prevention Action Plan: https://injuryfreenc.dph.ncdhhs.gov/preventionResources/docs/CSP-ActionPlanFinal.pdf
• CALM Training: https://zerosuicide.edc.org/resources/resource-database/counseling-access-lethal-means-calm
• State-Level Action Plans: https://injuryfreenc.org/resources/state-injury-prevention-strategic-plan/
• Suicide Prevention Resource for Action: https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/resources/prevention.html
• Workplace Policies and Supports: https://injuryfreenc.org/resources/workplace-policies-and-supports/

Co-Leaders and Members

Updated 4/9/2024

Priorities

2023-2024 Priorities 

• Brain Health and Dementia Care
  • Utilize inclusive formats to educate individuals, caregivers, and healthcare providers, including direct care and community health workers, about cognitive decline risk factors, including screening for potential hearing loss and evidence-based interventions to support brain health
  • Encourage effective screening and diagnostic assessment to identify early signs of cognitive decline risk factors and dementia to reduce risk, slow decline and manage symptoms
  • Improve awareness and advocacy throughout North Carolina for services available for people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD), including financial implications and options across long term-care
• Radon Testing and Mitigation
  • Reduce exposure to radon including through increasing grant funds to eligible homeowners for mitigation, improving access to free radon test kits and education, and requiring public schools, licensed child and adult day care facilities, and long-term care facilities to test and mitigate for high levels of radon
• Falls Prevention
  • Foster partnerships with traditional and nontraditional agencies and organizations to advocate and increase awareness of shared risk and protective factors of falls
  • Promote the utilization of fall screenings, assessments, and appropriate interventions
  • Educate individuals, caregivers, and healthcare providers about falls and associated risk factors by providing consistent and quality falls prevention information and resources for providers across the continuum of care

Priority Development Agenda

Action Plan

Meeting Schedule

2023-2024 Life Expectancy Work Group Meeting Schedule:

• Tuesday, October 24, 2023, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, January 23, 2024, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, April 23, 2024, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams
• Tuesday, June 25, 2024, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams

Meeting Notes

Tuesday, January 23, 2024, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Heather Carter, Dr. Zenobia Edwards, Brandie Garner, Phillip Gibson, Scott Herrick, Amy Lanou, Laura Ward, Martha Zimmerman; Staff: Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Heather Carter welcomed everyone and asked for introductions.
• Priority Review
  • The group reviewed the priorities identified at the work group meeting on October 24, 2023. Additional revisions to the priorities are included in red.
  • Falls Prevention
    • Foster partnerships with traditional and nontraditional agencies and organizations to advocate and increase awareness of shared risk and protective factors of falls
    • Promote the utilization of fall screenings, assessments, and appropriate interventions
    • Educate individuals, caregivers, and healthcare providers about falls and associated risk factors by providing consistent and quality falls prevention information and resources for providers across the continuum of care
  • Radon Testing and Mitigation
    • Reduce exposure to radon including through increasing grant funds to eligible homeowners for mitigation, improving access to free radon test kits and education, and requiring public schools, licensed child and adult day care facilities, and long-term care facilities to test and mitigate for high levels of radon
  • Brain Health and Dementia Care
    • Utilize inclusive formats to educate individuals, caregivers, and healthcare providers, including direct care and community health workers, about cognitive decline risk factors, including screening for potential hearing loss and evidence-based interventions to support brain health
    • Encourage effective screening and diagnostic assessment to identify early signs of cognitive decline risk factors and dementia to reduce risk, slow decline and manage symptoms
    • Improve awareness and advocacy throughout North Carolina for services available for people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD), including financial implications and options across long term-care
  • The following updates were shared.
    • Phillip Gibson shared legislation passed that now requires the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction to test all schools for radon and carbon monoxide. The legislation does not mention radon mitigation. There are resources available to them with their process.
    • Laura Ward shared key data points and statistics related to Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) for North Carolina.
• Action Planning
  • The group began discussing action steps related to brain health and dementia care priorities.
• Plan for the next meeting April 23, 2024, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm
  • At the next meeting the group will review the action plans from the 2022-2023 Life Expectancy Work Group. The group will narrow down action steps to identify what needs to happen and what organization/ how could the action steps be implemented.

Tuesday, October 24, 2023, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, Microsoft Teams- Work Group Meeting

Attendees: Heather Carter, Martha Zimmerman, Divya V., Laura Ward, Philip Gibson, Dr. Zenobia Edwards, Scott Herrick; Staff: Hannah McDiarmid and Ashley Rink

• Welcome and Agenda Overview
  • Heather Carter welcomed everyone and asked for introductions. The icebreaker question was what their favorite thing about fall was.
  • Grounding and Level Setting
  • The Year of Action asks, roles and expectations, timeline, Indicator 21: Life Expectancy were reviewed. 
• Priority Review
  • The purpose of the priority review was to determine if the priorities were clearly stated, were actionable, were resourced, and if they would continue to be a priority.
  • Refer to the priority section for the work group's updated priorities for 2023-2024.
• Action Planning
  • The next steps for the work group were as follows.
    • Martha will share a link to the updated Falls Coalition Action Plan.
    • Heather will email DPI contact about radon testing.
    • Heather, Martha, and Amy have a planning meeting on January 16, 2024.
    • Laura will gather specific measures and data related to Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias (ADRD) to start the list.
• Closing
  • At the next meeting the group will discuss continuing education training for providers, including family practice physicians (NC Academy of Family Physicians) about life expectancy elements, fall prevention, brain health, and radon. This could be an opportunity to engage MAHEC/ AHEC.

Readings/Listenings

• AARP HomeFit Guide: https://www.aarp.org/livable-communities/housing/info-2020/homefit-guide.html
• Alzheimer’s Association - Brain Health: https://www.alz.org/help-support/brain_health ATSDR – Who is at Risk of Radon Exposure: https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/radon/who_risk.html
• CDC- A CDC Compendium of Effective Fall Interventions: What Works for Community-Dwelling Older Adults: https://cdc.gov/falls/pdf/Steadi_Compendium_2023_508.pdf
• CDC- Fact Sheet: Risk Factors for Falls: https://www.cdc.gov/steadi/pdf/Risk_Factors_for_Falls-print.pdf
• CDC- STEADI- Older Adult Fall Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/steadi/
• Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report-Nonfatal Fall-Related Injuries Associated with Dogs and Cats-https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pdf/wk/mm5811.pdf
• NC DHHS- Dementia-Capable North Carolina: 2022 Update- A Strategic Plan for Addressing Alzheimer’s Disease & Related Dementias: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/dementiacapablestateplan112322/download?attachment#:~:text=NCDHHS’s%20BOLD%20NC%20work%20focuses,decline%20as%20 well%20as%20their
• NC DHHS Housing and Home Improvement Assistance: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/aging-and-adult-services/housing-and-home-improvement-assistance
• NC DHHS- North Carolina Dementia Friendly Communities: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/nc-dementia-friendly-communities-standards/open
• NC DHHS- North Carolina Radon Program: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/health-service-regulation/north-carolina-radon-program
• North Carolina Falls Prevention Coalition- 2021-2025 Action Plan: https://ncfallsprevention.org/2021-2025-action-plan/