School helps rural students dream big for the future

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Jeni Cook
December 11, 2024

Written by Sabrina Shaw

Through an immersive visit, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy faculty and alumni are working to give young students from rural North Carolina a chance to visualize a future they may have never imagined. In collaboration with the School, Chapel of the Cross, the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, and the Ackland Art Museum, six students from the Conetoe Family Life Center, and their parents, spent a day exploring the University in an effort to experience new educational opportunities. It was part of the Conetoe Family Life Center Future Leadership Program.

Double Tar Heel Jenny Mabie, ‘76, ‘00 PharmD, a former volunteer of Conetoe Family Life Center Summer Camp and School alumna, is the visionary behind the program. She worked closely with Anissa McLendon, the director of E3 (Empowering Excellence thru Exploration) who was also instrumental in this process.

“The goal is to instill leadership skills while teaching the students to look into a different world,” said Mabie. “We want these kids to be able to go back home and talk about the cool things they’ve experienced.”

On the day of the visit, students took part in solar car construction and testing conducted by 16-year-old, East Chapel Hill High School student and E3 camper, Johnathan Okello, at Chapel of the Cross, they explored the galleries of the Ackland Art Museum where they were encouraged to think critically and observe selected pieces, they visited the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, and they ended their day with a tour of the pharmacy school, led by Ty Chapman, PharmD candidate Class of 2025, and Regional Associate Dean Betsy Sleath, PhD.

“My favorite aspect of Conetoe is the people. I have learned how important it is for all of us to help youth believe that they can do anything they set their mind to and the importance of having our community – students, faculty, staff, and alumni – believe in them and open up their eyes to possibilities,” said Sleath.

Conetoe is a small-town in Rocky Mount, North Carolina with a population of 199. The rural town is working to invest in improving the mental and physical well-being of its community, where educational outlets are a luxury many families don’t have access to.

“That will be a marker of how successful this project is, if other students come back and ask, ‘when can I get a turn?’ This is going to generate interest and excitement to keep them engaged,” said Mabie.

The idea of a leadership project kick-started in 2023 when students from the school volunteered with the Conetoe Family Life Center Summer Camp. The camp was created to expose children and teens to information about nutrition, and well-being. In the future, the leadership program aims to diversify the instructional lessons by catering to the students’ individualized interests, whether that be nursing or music for example.

“I hate seeing younger children – around preschool age – their eyes are bright, they’re happy, the world is good. But you see very quickly that the light goes out in their eyes because of their circumstance,” said Mabie. “I feel our job is to try to keep the light on in the eyes of these children.”