NC Rural Center

06/01/2026

Dr. Michael Waldrum, CEO of ECU Health and dean of the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, shared some sobering news during his recent testimony to a U.S. House committee: Rural healthcare is under attack and ECU faces a potential loss of more than $1 billion over the next 10 years from Medicaid reductions included in federal legislation.

Waldrum wrote about the challenges facing rural health providers in a new op-ed in Business North Carolina.

Read the full piece to learn about the difficult choices facing the health system: businessnc.com/op-ed-when-standing-up-for-rural-healthcare-means-saying-no

05/29/2026

The Rural Health Transformation Fund is getting a mixed reception in rural Eastern North Carolina with some residents ready to take any help they can get and others skeptical the money will be enough to restore local services.

Martin County Manager Drew Batts is pictured below inside Martin General Hospital in Williamston, which closed in 2023. Resident hope the transformation fund may help reopen the hospital.

For more, read this report from KFF Health News: https://ow.ly/SkCg50Z5nHJ

05/29/2026

Kayla Reilly, a licensed clinical social worker, has expanded her Wilmington-based mental health practice Evolution Wellness to three locations.

A loan from First Citizens Bank, along with access to expanded capital from the Rural Center's Loan Participation Program, gave her the funds needed to open her third location and bring on additional therapists and another administrative team member.

“There was no way I was going to be a present, healthy mother if I’m running this business by myself,” Reilly says. “And in order to really step away, there had to be enough income to provide good salaries to not only retain really good clinicians, but also to support that administrative team and start paying some higher-level people, like a clinical director and practice director, which is just expensive for a small business.”

Learn more about how Kayla grew Evolution Wellness here: www.ncruralcenter.org/2024/11/rural-center-loan-lets-mental-health-practice-expand-so-owner-can-step-back

May is Small Business Month. To highlight just a few of the state's small businesses, we're sharing a story each week this month about a past small business we've gotten to know.

Learn how Kayla Reilly planned, then grew her mental health practice, Wilmington-based Evolution Wellness, to three locations.

05/27/2026

05/27/2026

Two recent news items highlight the effort being put toward to the state's advanced manufacturing and economic development future:

🔸Education NC reported on how AdvanceNC, the collaborative initiative that connects educational institutions and workforce partners in 21 North Carolina counties, is working to fill more advanced manufacturing roles in the state: https://ow.ly/ltSy50Z4uWA

🔸The new statewide four-year roadmap, the "First in Opportunity" Strategic Economic Development Plan, highlights goals for North Carolina's next phase of economic growth: https://ow.ly/L4TE50Z4uWB

Today Governor Josh Stein and the NC Department of Commerce announced North Carolina’s new "First in Opportunity” Strategic Economic Development Plan – a…

05/27/2026

Our President and CEO Patrick Woodie joined a Medicaid innovation roundtable discussion recently sponsored by the Duke University Margolis Institute for Health Policy.

The Rural Center hosted the gathering where current and former state Department of Health and Human Services secretaries, legislators, and federal Medicaid administrators broke down successes in North Carolina and how they could serve as models for the nation.

From there, Patrick headed to Boone for the Vision Northwest North Carolina conference, where he joined a panel to discuss infrastructure funding for the future. Thank you for the invitation from the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce.

Healthcare and infrastructure are two of the Rural Center's advocacy priorities, and we're grateful to have a place in these conversations.

05/26/2026

NC RURAL RESOURCES: Opportunities to help rural communities grow.

🔷NCImpact Initiative at the UNC School of Government will host a June 4 workshop focused on artificial intelligence in local government. This workshop is designed for local government staff, elected officials, and nonprofit partners across North Carolina. Register here: https://ow.ly/pRSE50Z2XZs

🔷The NC Early Childhood Foundation invites you to apply to lead a Family Forward NC Community Certification campaign. This initiative supports local businesses in adopting policies that boost employee morale, productivity, and retention while providing a vital economic safety net for families and children. RSVP for May 27 (https://ow.ly/sXkL50Z2XZv) or May 29 (https://ow.ly/8TIx50Z2XZw).

🔷The national Center on Rural Innovation will host a live webinar June 17 about its new Rural Entrepreneurship Index. This first-of-its-kind tool brings together key measures of entrepreneurial activity to help rural communities better understand their strengths and identify opportunity. Register here: https://ow.ly/xtCK50Z2XZx

05/26/2026

Our Faith in Rural Communities team is bringing its successful Connect Church coaching program to the nation. The yearlong asset-based community development initiative has engaged with more than 100 churches in North Carolina. Recently, team members Darren Crotts, Liz Styron, and Andrew Hudgins along with our President and CEO Patrick Woodie visited Missouri to introduce the model to our new partners.

Andrew shared a summary of the visit:

"We were very busy visiting with our hub partner, the Missouri Annual Conference of the (United Methodist Church). We met conference leadership, including the bishop, at their office in Columbia. They gave us some cultural context for the state and the diversity of their rural communities.

"One of our biggest takeaways was that sharing a border with eight other states heavily influences the culture. We did a site visit and tour of Pleasant Grove UMC in Hatton. Hatton is a community comprised of nine homes, including the pastor's, and no paved roads. Their church currently worships with over 125 on Sunday morning with an additional 1,200 joining online.

"They serve hundreds of meals to families, as well as providing diapers for babies. The most impressive aspect as that they've done all of this by cultivating a culture of strong volunteer leadership -- identifying the gifts of each person in their church and helping them find ways to put it in service to the wider community."

Thank you to the Lilly Endowment, Inc. and The Duke Endowment for supporting our faith work. You can learn more on our website: https://ow.ly/Suvv50Z2Xqj

05/25/2026

Rural people enlist and die in military service at higher rates than their urban and suburban counterparts, and pride in that service runs high. Today we remember and honor those who sacrificed their lives to protect our nation. Thank you.