For Alamance: Small Actions, Shared Leadership, Growing Impact
In 2025, the For Alamance Initiative continued to build civic capacity and spark collaboration across Alamance County, guided by community voice and shared aspirations. Five Action Teams drove grassroots initiatives in arts and culture, youth wellness, faith, storytelling, and bridging divides. These small actions represent a growing movement of neighbors coming together to take action on issues that matter most.
Here’s what each team accomplished in 2025:
Hold for Impact Video clip
The Arts and Culture Team
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Organized the second Eyes on Alamance exhibit and third Arty Party Bus Tour.
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Hosted Arts & Culture Night with the Burlington Sockpuppets.
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Connected Burlington Writers Club members with ABSS ELA teachers.
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Collected community input at First Christian UCC to inform its future as an arts hub.
In 2025, we focused on building capacity to sustain our work beyond our four-year partnership with the Harwood Institute for Public Innovation. Harwood coaches equipped Team Leads to carry forward the momentum cultivated since the initiative’s launch in 2022, and Action Teams prepared for the transition of our Harwood coaches, who have guided them from the start.
We also invested in leadership development to strengthen our collective capacity for impact moving forward. Two team members completed the Harwood Community Guide program—an intensive, hands-on experience that equips leaders to catalyze community-led change. Additionally, several Team Leads joined our staff at the Harwood Summit in Philadelphia, engaging with national peers to explore strategies for navigating division, aligning work with community needs, and sustaining hope-driven action.
In 2025, we launched a grant cycle that allows For Alamance Teams to apply for funding, with the first round approved by our Board of Directors in November. Together, these efforts help sustain momentum and ensure teams are equipped to lead with confidence and clarity.
For Alamance Team Grants
Arts & Culture Team
Grant Amount:
$5,250
Project Description:
Supporting seven artist–teacher partnerships to expand skills and enrich arts education countywide.
Faith
Team
Grant Amount:
$5,250
Project Description:
Partnering with artists and schools to design three uplifting “Everyone Belongs” murals.
Narrative
Team
Grant Amount:
$5,250
Project Description:
Hiring an Elon student storyteller to capture For Alamance’s impact through community stories.
Youth Wellness
Team
Grant Amount:
$5,250
Project Description:
Creating the MyVoice platform and hosting conversations to amplify youth voices and mental health.
Bridge
Team
Grant Amount:
$4,890
Project Description:
Bringing residents together through twelve dinners fostering trust, belonging, and connection.
We continued to grow our coalition of changemakers through gatherings that welcomed new voices and deepened collaboration. These sessions expanded our reach, reinforced partnerships, and energized the collective movement behind community-driven change.
Impact Alamance hosted two For Alamance workspaces in 2025, creating positive momentum, strengthening relationships within and between teams, and generating new ideas for how to expand and deepen the work. In September, we also hosted the Unleashing Impact Lab, revisiting the core purpose of this initiative, honoring the collaborative ecosystems cultivated by each team, and exploring pathways for sustainable change rooted in community voice.
In April of 2026, the Harwood Institute will release a ripple report detailing the progress made since the For Alamance Initiative began in late 2022. This report will highlight how small actions have rippled outward over the past four years, creating a new trajectory of change rooted in hope.