FAQ

NC CEAL (North Carolina Community Engagement Alliance) is a nonprofit membership organization promoting health equity through collaborative partnerships between communities and academic institutions across North Carolina. In 2021, our efforts focused on improving awareness and access to COVID-19 information, testing, and treatments, thanks to a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). As we enter our fourth grant year, we are shifting our focus to address food as a key social determinant of health (SDoH) by enhancing access to healthy food in rural and food desert areas. Our commitment is to improve the well-being of those lacking access to nutritious food.

We view health broadly as physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual well-being and emphasize partnership approaches to health that focus on changing the conditions and environments in which people live, work, learn and play.

The Community Engagement Alliance (CEAL) is a concept developed by the NIH to highlight the importance of the network of organizations dedicated to enhancing health outcomes and strengthening community partnerships through community-engaged research. This collaborative approach aims to address health disparities related to race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic factors. To find out more about NIH CEAL, visit this link: NIH CEAL Who We Are.

NC CEAL comprises members from both eastern and western North Carolina. Our coalition includes members from across the state who engage with us on various initiatives. Join our Coalition today!

NC CEAL is headquartered in Chapel Hill, NC, with staff based across the state from Durham to Asheville.

To subscribe to our monthly newsletter, please fill out the form here. Additionally, if you have an announcement to submit, you can do so through this form. We look forward to staying connected with you!

Our website, documents and publications are subject to NC CEAL’s copyright and may be reproduced, used or adapted for non-commercial scientific or educational purposes. Any reproduction, use or adaptation of our website, documents and publications (whether excerpts or in its entirety) requires our written permission and must be properly cited. Please contact us with your request and we will provide specific instructions.

What we mean by community is dynamic and inclusive. There is no one definition of community. Community need not be defined solely by geography. It can refer to a group that self-identifies by age, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, illness or health condition. It can refer to a common interest or cause, a sense of identification or shared emotional connection, shared values or norms, mutual influence, common interest, or commitment to meeting a shared need. Defining community in a Community Engagement Alliance is more about the process of asking and answering key questions than about a strict definition of who is community or represents community: Are those most affected by the issue being addressed at the table? Are those who have a stake in the issue being addressed at the table? Are community members at the table? Do they play decision-making roles? The purpose of the partnership drives the definition, therefore each effort must ask for the definition of community.