Support student opportunities to contribute to community engaged research!

The Center for Communities creates and sustains partnerships that lead innovative research, practice, and education. We're proud to offer research opportunities that align with students' interests in working toward creating thriving communities for everyone.

Mentoring the next generation of community-engaged researchers is essential to driving innovation and improving healthcare outcomes for decades to come. Our undergraduate, master's, doctoral, and medical student researchers transform classroom knowledge into real-world impact by developing community-facing research materials, engaging directly with community members, and disseminating research findings through presentations and publications.

Medical student Ajanta Choudhury '28 exemplifies this work. Since joining our Co-LEARN study in spring 2025, she's collected vital signs from research participants across rural eastern North Carolina, presented the study's community-engaged approach during UNC's John B. Graham Medical Student Research Day, and is now drafting a manuscript to disseminate study findings across the research ecosystem.

Your gift is an investment in future leaders like Ajanta. Your support enables the Center for Thriving Communities to continue and expand mentorship of students seeking to engage in meaningful research and understand the unique needs of communities we serve.

Join us in shaping the future of community health!