At a time when North Carolina’s employers are facing critical workforce shortages, Rockingham County is rising to the challenge. Golden LEAF is backing a powerful, community-led solution that connects students to career pathways and strengthens the region’s economy by building strong local roots.
In February 2025, the Golden LEAF Board of Directors awarded more than $1.2 million in total funding to Cleveland County Schools, Cleveland Community College, and Gardner-Webb University to establish a new Healthcare Educational Pathway to expand access to the field, build local talent, and strengthen the healthcare workforce in the region.
North Carolina’s number one industry is agriculture and agribusiness. Golden LEAF focuses on agriculture as an economic development engine. One of the outcomes Golden LEAF measures in its agriculture priority is value-added agricultural enterprises.
Davidson County has three new employers that will create a total of more than 650 jobs at Lexington Industrial Park, thanks in part to infrastructure funding from Golden LEAF.
In April 2017, the Golden LEAF Board of Directors awarded $1 million in Community-Based Grants Initiative funding to Davidson County for the development of a new county-owned industrial park near Interstate 85. Golden LEAF funds were used for public wastewater infrastructure costs for the Lexington Industrial Park.
The University of Mount Olive is building a new livestock/forage training facility that will provide research and educational opportunities for college students and the greater agricultural community.
Surry and Yadkin counties are building a strong workforce through partnerships and work-based learning experiences through Surry-Yadkin Works.
On January 31, 2025, Surry-Yadkin Works held a grand opening and ribbon cutting for Surry-Yadkin Works FLEET program. The Fostering Learning through Education, Employment, and Trades (FLEET) program is the newest program offered through Surry-Yadkin Works.
In 2020, a partnership between several economic development entities helped bring quality jobs to a new industrial park in Henderson County.
“The Economic Investment Fund of Henderson County and the Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development had the strategic vision to create an industrial park that would bring capital investment and quality jobs to the area,” said Brittany Brady, President and CEO of Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development.
On October 3, 2024, the Golden LEAF Board of Directors awarded $13 million through Golden LEAF’s Economic Catalyst Program to Wilson Community College for training equipment that will be used to support the location of a major biomedical manufacturing company, Johnson & Johnson, in Wilson County.
Johnson & Johnson will create 420 quality jobs, paying an average annual wage of over $108,000, and make a capital investment of over $1 billion.
Wilkes County in collaboration with Wilkes Economic Development Corporation, is the first county in North Carolina to receive funding for all three Golden LEAF SITE Program phases. Between the Identification, Due Diligence, and Development awards, Wilkes County has received $1,565,000 in support from the SITE Program.
The goal of the SITE Program is to support communities in North Carolina in identifying potential industrial sites for economic development, enabling the completion of due diligence on industrial sites already identified, extending public utilities to, and conducting grading and clearing of industrial sites for which due diligence has been completed.
The 2021 state budget appropriated $10 million to the Golden LEAF Foundation for the Food Distribution Assistance Program. This program is funded by federal State Fiscal Recovery Funds through the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. To date, Golden LEAF has awarded $8.9 million to support 67 projects from 48 counties. Although the application period is closed, Golden LEAF is working to distribute all funds available in the program.
Through this program funding may be used for the following:
