Rural areas have historically been overlooked and screwed over by the political system, big business and Mother Nature. Eighty of North Carolina’s 100 counties are considered rural, with 41 percent of the state’s population living in these rural areas. Despite this, there’s a shortage of ways for undergraduates to engage in rural issues.
UNC has a number of programs, projects and centers that focus on rural areas. Many are health-related, including the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, the Kenan Primary Care Medical Scholars Program and public health initiatives to increase access to healthy food.
Others focus on history, culture and development — the UNC Southern Oral History Program’s Back Ways Project aims to uncover the lost history of segregation, and the NCGrowth initiative supports innovative economic development across the state.
While laudable, many of these programs exist at a research or graduate level. More opportunities for undergraduate students to engage in and learn about rural areas are needed. These opportunities ought to include learning about the rich history and culture of rural areas, not just the many problems facing them today.
To prepare students to take on geographic disparities, we should build passion and knowledge about rural areas early on. We encourage researchers and on-campus programs with focuses in rural areas to publicize their projects to undergraduate students. Together we can make sure that rural areas aren’t forgotten.
