NC Rural Center

Recognized for her commitment to serving rural communities, Nelle Hotchkiss, senior vice president and chief operating officer of the North Carolina Association of Electric Cooperatives (NCAEC) has been named to The Order of the Long Leaf Pine—the state’s highest civilian honor. ? North Carolina Secretary of Commerce Lee Lilley recently presented the award to Hotchkiss, noting her selfless dedication to serving the people of North Carolina. ? This prestigious award caps a 28-year career spent fostering connections, shaping policy and advocating for electric co-op members across our state. Congratulations, Nelle!

The Federal Communications Commission will spend $9 billion to improve 5G mobile wireless coverage in rural areas of the United States, but they need your help first with identifying and targeting where coverage gaps exist. Download their mobile speed test app with the link below to help verify the accuracy and reliability of mobile voice and data service coverage. The results of the tests will help determine how the money is spent. https://ow.ly/Hi3H50VhFQF #Broadband #Infrastructure #InvestInRural

Women made up 51% of the population of rural North Carolina in the most recent Census count. In all, 3,749,217 people lived in state's 78 rural counties, about a third of the state's total population. #Data #CelebrateRural #WomensHistoryMonth

Census Bureau population estimates show that NC counties continue to fair better than counties in other states and the south. Most growth continues in and around our major urban counties, but rural counties are also benefitting from post-COVID growth. https://lnkd.in/e7pDUdfR

Whether you're a movie buff, a fan of history, or just looking for something different, now's your chance to own one of the most interesting pieces of property in rural North Carolina. The historic North Carolina mill village in Burke County that starred in "The Hunger Games" is listed for sale. https://ow.ly/afJ250VgLOa #InvestInRural #CelebrateRural

Agriculture accounts for 30% of GDP in Tyrrell County - the highest rate in the mid-Atlantic region - while farm employment accounted for 8% of jobs in Ashe County and net income from agriculture in Duplin County ranks among the best when compared to counties in neighboring states. Learn more about the business of agriculture in this new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. https://ow.ly/mKbf50VfVa4 You can also get a snapshot of influences in North Carolina agriculture from our recent report, "Trends in North Carolina’s Agriculture Industry." https://ow.ly/VzHq50VfVa3 #Agriculture #Agribusiness #Research #Data

The University of North Carolina at Pembroke is one of the handful of the state's public universities based in a rural community. In this interview with David Crabtree, CEO of PBS North Carolina, UNCP Chancellor Dr. Robin Gary Cummings - a physician who has expanded the university's health offerings - discusses his accomplishments, what the role means to him and what’s to come for the university. Click the link to see the latest episode of Focus On: https://ow.ly/mV7F50VfKCj #HigherEd #Education #InvestInRural #CelebrateRural

Gov. Josh Stein announced today that he has formed a bipartisan taskforce to examine the affordability and accessibility of childcare in North Carolina. He also signalled that his coming budget proposal will recommend raising the subsidy rate in rural communities. Improving childcare is among the policy priorities for the Rural Center this session and we look forward to learning more. For more, read this EducationNC report: https://ow.ly/6BcL50VfcKm #Childcare #Workforce #EconomicDevelopment

The state of North Carolina has set up an online dashboard to track recovery from Hurricane Helene. You can follow it to see what's happening with transportation, housing, small business loans and more. A snapshot of the latest data: ??Temporary housing programs are serving 5,720 households ??84% of impacted public roads in western North Carolina are fully reopened. Nearly 1,300 roads have been reopened since the beginning of the storm. ??The WNC Small Business Initiative has funded 989 loans for small business owners impacted by Helene to bolster economic recovery. The program is expected to award more than 600 additional grants in the coming weeks. ??Half of all state parks and cultural sites impacted by the storm have fully reopened, and all but three are open for visitors in some capacity. For more, visit https://ow.ly/NWmt50Vf2J5 #Helene #Recovery #WNC

Dawn Daly-Mack is on the move in Northeastern North Carolina. Monday through Friday, she’s working as a care management manager for Carolina Complete Health, helping coordinate medical care for hundreds of clients across North Carolina. On Saturdays, the Northampton County nurse may be at a blood drive all day or leading CPR and defibrillator training through her own organization, Double-D Health and Safety. Come Sunday, Daly-Mack is at Cool Springs Missionary Baptist Church in Gaston where she’s an associate pastor. “Community takes care of community,” says the 2020 graduate of the Rural Center's Homegrown Leaders program and the first woman president of the Northampton County NAACP. Read more of the story of this powerful local leader on our website: https://ow.ly/uYRR50Vf03b #Leadership #WomansHistoryMonth #ENC