This award provides funding to The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to support the Lead for North Carolina (LFNC) fellowship program, which began in 2019 with support from Golden LEAF. Local governments in rural and economically distressed communities are currently confronting a combination of decreasing workforces, escalating responsibilities, and limited financial resources. LFNC identifies recent college graduates, provides training, and places them in these communities to support the local government staff. Since 2019, LFNC has placed over 150 fellows in over 90 counties and municipalities. LFNC will continue to recruit, train, and place recent college graduates in full-time local government fellowships across North Carolina, focusing on high-need jurisdictions. The program will place 40 fellows for 2026-2027, working full-time on critical projects such as workforce development, emergency management, and financial operations. Direct costs for the fellows are supported by public and private funding. Golden LEAF funds will be used for the salaries, wages, and employer-paid benefits of fellows employed in rural communities.
