(Chapel Hill, N.C. – May 14, 2025) – The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Carolina Across 100 initiative (CX100), with support from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (Blue Cross NC) and the UNC Child and Adolescent Anxiety and Mood Disorders Program (CHAAMP), have announced a new program to address youth mental health needs through collaborative community partnerships. Community-driven Approaches for Resilient and Empowered Youth (CARE4Youth) will support a cohort of 10 communities from 18 counties as they develop supportive systems of care designed for – and with the participation of – young people in North Carolina.

Youth mental health is in a state of crisis. Half of all chronic mental illness begins by age 14, and more than one out of every 10 children will experience a severe mental health disorder. In North Carolina, approximately 300,000 young people will develop a psychological health problem before adolescence. This challenge is underscored by the number of youth experiencing acute psychiatric crises: In the last 12 months, 10% of North Carolina high school aged students attempted suicide. These concerns make it more difficult for young people to complete educational credentials, participate in the workforce, and lead healthy, thriving lives.

“Carolina is deeply committed to serving North Carolina’s communities and supporting them as they navigate their most pressing challenges,” said UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Lee Roberts. “Young people in our state are experiencing a mental health crisis. Carolina’s unique strengths in health care position us to be a critical partner to communities in meeting this moment.”

CARE4Youth is supported by a $600,000 gift from Blue Cross NC. This investment builds on Blue Cross NC’s commitment to improve youth mental well-being and resiliency across the state by investing in prevention, expanding access to high-quality care, and enhancing community support.

“As we travel the state, and listen to the communities we serve, one thing is obvious, the youth and adolescents of our state are struggling,” said Kelly Calabria, Chief Communications, Marketing and Corporate Social Responsibility Officer at Blue Cross NC. “It is critical that we do all we can to protect mental health resources for our youth. Carolina Across 100 is driving meaningful change for our state’s young people and we are proud to support the opportunities that CARE4Youth provides children and communities to be mentally healthy and thrive.”

Select teams from two of Carolina Across 100’s past programs, Our State, Our Work and Our State, Our Wellbeing, were invited to participate. The role of mental health  in young peoples’ prosperity and wellbeing emerged as a theme in both programs and these teams inspired the new initiative by their commitment to build creatively on community assets. CARE4Youth capitalizes on insights from teams engaged with young adults not working or in school in Our State, Our Work and teams developing community-based approaches to mental health support through Our State, Our Wellbeing. Carolina Across 100 prioritized teams from disaster-affected communities in western North Carolina in anticipation of greater long-term mental and mental health needs stemming from Hurricane Helene.

“The communities invited to participate in this opportunity have demonstrated the capacity to build partnerships that engage youth and strengthen systems of support for mental health,” said Anita Brown-Graham, lead coordinator of Carolina Across 100 and ncIMPACT Director. “CARE4Youth will allow these teams to build on their tremendous momentum as they implement evidence-based strategies in communities while centering the voices of youth and young adults.”

Over the next three years, participating communities will strengthen cross-sector, collaborative teams established through the prior programs to more deeply implement strategies to address local youth mental health priorities. Teams will also engage young people to actively co-create local systems of support that meet their mental health needs. Carolina Across 100 will help connect teams to subject matter experts in mental health and youth engagement and advise them on project implementation. Communities will participate in nine peer learning forums in Chapel Hill and receive additional training and technical assistance through webinars and other program touchpoints. A kickoff webinar will be held in June, and teams will attend their first forum later this fall.

“Across North Carolina, young people are facing an unprecedented mental health crisis—and they cannot meet it alone,” said Danielle Roubinov, Director of CHAAMP. “Communities know their young people best, and they are leading the way in creating systems of support that reflect local needs and strengths. Through CARE4Youth, we are honored to partner with these dedicated teams to implement effective treatment and support programs and build sustainable solutions so every young person reaches their full potential.”

Carolina Across 100 is a five-year initiative, coordinated by the ncIMPACT Initiative, seeking to support community-driven recovery and build sustainable efforts in all 100 counties by providing human resources, data insights, coaching, facilitation, coordination efforts, and program design. CARE4Youth is the sixth program in this larger initiative.

CHAAMP is a cutting-edge clinical research program dedicated to improving the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of mood and anxiety disorders in youth, from early childhood through adolescence. CHAAMP faculty, most of whom are licensed clinical child and adolescent psychologists, study a range of important topics related to youth mental health including depression, suicidal thoughts and behaviors, psychosis, and early life adversity. Their strong expertise in youth mental health risk makes CHAAMP the ideal partner to help CARE4Youth teams expand and improve youth mental health care within their home communities.

Blue Cross NC, the leading not-for-profit health plan in North Carolina, is committed to making health care more affordable, easier to navigate and accessible for all. Since 1933, the health insurer has created programs and initiatives to provide North Carolinians the opportunity to be healthy. Blue Cross NC serves its customers and communities of more than 4.2 million members, including approximately 1.1 million on behalf of other Blue Plans. Blue Cross NC is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. Visit Blue Cross NC online at bluecrossnc.com. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.