Urban League Of Central Carolinas Inc

National Urban League Central Carolinas partnered with our affiliate to raise awareness in the community about covid-19 vaccines. Since the ending of the pandemic, COVID vaccines became privatized and Community members had to go through their providers to get vaccinated and/or boosted. ULCC partnered with CVS/Aetna and Walmart Pharmacy to bring free COVID vaccine opportunities to our outreach events. Cross collaboration between ULCC and coalition partners was key in the outreach strategy. We took inventory of the resources that each partner had in relation to COVID vaccines and community engagement to formulate a plan that would increase ULCC presence at outreach events across the Charlotte Community. For example, at the black Men's wellness walk, ULCC was the only entity representing COVID prevention and vaccines. We distributed All-In and Flu vaccine information, COVID tests, and masks to inform and equip the community with preventative materials. Our most successful strategy was using what ULCC already has, People Power! Urban League is one of the most trusted Brands in the black community. ULCC increased its presence in the community at events that were not specifically geared toward health and wellness, but we brought All-in materials for distribution and used the opportunity to engage with community members and spread the word about COVID prevention, most importantly vaccines. We reached over 2500 people through this initiative and gained 12 community partnerships.

Project Ready is a program that is helps high school students prepare for college or career. Through partnerships with several high schools in the county and through funding from the National Urban League, we were able to serve 35 students in 2023 project ready. Also under the banner of project ready, ULCC put on First Day Ready where we made sure children on the southside of Charlotte had the school supplies and resources they needed to begin the school year. ULCC gave away over 300 pairs of shoes to the McKinney Vento population and 400 bookbags stuffed with supplies. We had over 30 volunteers, 5 corporate sponsors including Microsoft, Charter Spectrum, and Food Lion, and had several community resources on site to help with after school care and transportation. To ensure we were being inclusive and everyone had access to services, we started a new partnership with several Hispanic serving organizations such as Despierta and Our Bridge for Kids.