In addition to hosting the North Carolina Community Engagement Alliance (NC CEAL) 2026 Research Leadership Academy (RLA) Cohort Graduation in May 2026, the RLA team attended an in-person retreat at the UNC Chapel Hill campus to align goals, wrap up the RLA, and plan for sustainability.
NC CEAL has grown since its beginning in 2020 to develop community response teams (CRTs) in direct action against the COVID-19 pandemic to 2026 with an emphasis on activating the NC CEAL coalition for the RLA and projects on food as a driver of health. As NC CEAL plans for sustainability, team retreats with partners and staff support the NC CEAL goal of engaging communities to ensure that partners across the state can use research and education to address drivers of health in North Carolina.
RLA team member Alexis Hill explains an idea while NC CEAL MPI Al Richmond writes it down on the whiteboard.
Outcomes of the retreat included wrapping up a 2-year RLA project with plans for evaluation and dissemination in the coming year. We hope to share our lessons learned and implications for future community partnership programs with our audiences, and expand the RLA program to different contexts.
(From left to right) Charisse Iglesias, Kunga Denzongpa, Peter Yang, Alexis Hill, Angelique Jennings, and Al Richmond eat lunch together.
The team poses in front of the whiteboard full of project, evaluation, and dissemination plans for the RLA.
Learn more about the 2026 Cohort: Principles of Partnership session and Graduation!
Learn about the 2025 Cohort: Seed Grant Site Visits and Graduation!
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