Conference Overview:

The Carolina Center for Public Service, UNC Rural and other partners are hosting the Connect, Engage, Transform: Rural Community Partnerships conference on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020, at the UNC Friday Center for Continuing Education.

North Carolina is a predominantly rural state; 80 of 100 counties have a low enough population density to be considered rural. The state's many rural communities offer tremendous strengths and assets for North Carolina, though they frequently face challenges around key drivers of well-being such as education, food security, employment opportunities, environmental resilience, housing and transportation.

At the Connect, Engage, Transform: Rural Community Partnerships conference, rural community representatives and UNC-Chapel Hill faculty, staff and students will come together to listen, learn and think creatively, informed by the past and focused on the future. This conference will bring together stakeholders from North Carolina's rural communities and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to highlight and encourage authentic, effective and sustainable collaborations for the public good.

Objectives:

• Connect: highlight collaborative partnerships between UNC-Chapel Hill and rural communities in North Carolina by bringing together participants and presenters   
• Engage: provide compelling and dynamic opportunities for interaction to support sustained and effective development of rural community partnerships   
• Transform: encourage learning from each other to inform and strengthen ongoing and future initiatives between rural communities and UNC-Chapel Hill to promote the well-being of all 

For more information, please visit ccps.unc.edu/cet-conference.

Conference Logistics:

Conference registration is now at capacity, but we have opened a waitlist until Friday, Jan. 17. Attendees who have been offered a spot will receive an email with further instructions. All conference attendees must pre-register. 

Registration Fees:

• UNC-Chapel Hill faculty, staff and affiliates: $60
• Community members: $30 (lodging assistance available, see below)
• Students: $20 with valid student ID at check-in

We will accept payment for waitlist registrations by credit card ONLY.

The registration fee covers full access to the one-day conference, including lunch.

We will send registration confirmation to the email you provide in this form.

Schedule Highlights:

• Registration and Breakfast
• Welcome
• Morning Keynote Speaker - Dr. Dorian Burton, Ed.L.D., assistant executive director for the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust
• Morning Breakout Session #1 - All breakout sessions include a workshop, case study/research presentation, poster presentation and/or panel
• Morning Breakout Session #2
• Networking Lunch
• Afternoon Breakout Session
• Plenary Session
• Closing

For questions related to the conference or registration, please contact Adriana Parker at cetconference@unc.edu or 919-843-7568.