Davidson County May 2023

Our Extra Miles Tour visit to Davidson County began at Davidson-Davie Community College (DDCC), where we met with school leaders to learn more about the school’s innovative approach to experiential learning and how they are addressing students’ physical and mental health needs.

Our conversation began with a review of the school’s role in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which Vice President of Financial and Administrative Services Laura Yarborough rightly termed “an unprecedented public health and public safety crisis.” During the height of the pandemic, the school’s main parking lot served as a mass vaccination site. Taking learnings from the response, school leaders have secured funding for a multi-purpose regional education and training center that could serve as a more permanent emergency response complex should the need arise again.

We then learned about an innovative partnership between the college and Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist that offers health care apprenticeships to students, allowing them to gain practical work experience that augments classroom instruction. As Holly Myers, Dean of Davidson-Davie Community College’s health science department, noted, “It’s critical that we shorten the time it takes to get qualified, licensed practitioners into the workforce.”

A discussion of efforts to improve students’ access to mental health services followed, with details of the school’s collaboration with TimelyCare, a vendor that provides virtual mental health care. This care has become increasingly important during the COVID-19 era. Along with expanding access to mental health care, we must eliminate the social stigma often faced by those seeking help.

We next heard from the faculty of the ECU School of Dental Medicine at Davidson-Davie Community College, detailing a growing apprenticeship program for training dental assistants. Expanding access to dental care is crucial to overall health.

To end our time on campus, we heard from students studying zoo and aquarium sciences and toured a zoology lab and aquarium. The birds, reptiles and fish play important roles in research and behavioral studies.

Finally, we enjoyed lunch at the popular Barbecue Center in nearby Lexington, sampling the fare that has forever connected the city’s name with a particular style of cuisine, Lexington-style barbecue. We were joined by representatives of the county’s nonprofit community including Davidson Medical Ministries Clinic and Home Solutions of Davidson County. These organizations and others focused on behavioral health, food security and workforce development have banded together to create Davidson County Connects (DC Connects). Through this initiative, county residents can access a single entity for resources relevant to housing, health care, food and jobs. It’s a one-stop referral system meant to ease the burden of individuals seeking assistance.

The host of our meal, former Lexington Mayor Newell Clark, also spoke about the opportunities ahead for Lexington – increased access to Davidson County via a restored rail depot and population growth as residents seek housing near but not quite in a growing Mecklenburg County. Clark stressed the importance of engaging the community as the city continues its economic growth: “We want to empower, not just enable.”

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U39702, 5/23