HIV Prevention
The NC Community AIDS Fund: Collaborating to Support the State's HIV Network
The North Carolina Community AIDS Fund (NC CAF) began as a Trust vision to bring funders together to develop a new type of collaboration to support HIV programs statewide. Discussions began in early 2008 between the Trust, other state funders (The Duke Endowment, the NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund, and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation), and national philanthropic leaders. In September 2008, the Center for Health Policy at Duke University was selected as the partnership's convener. The collective acknowledged that, while local initiatives are also important, a statewide approach is needed to increase communities' capacity to improve the health of people living with and at risk of contracting HIV throughout North Carolina.
The Trust led an effort of statewide health funders to pool and leverage our resources to form a partnership eligible for National AIDS fund dollars. The resulting partnership, the NC CAF, will support the HIV service network throughout the state.
Programs: Re-granting, AmeriCorps, and Technical Assistance The NC CAF began re-granting funds in the spring of 2009 to agencies across the state providing prevention and care services. The emphasis has been on prevention initiatives, with the partnership taking a creative view on prevention agencies that need to be involved.
In the fall of 2009, a team of National AIDS Fund AmeriCorps members came to the Triangle area. AmeriCorps members began serving at local agencies providing HIV education, prevention, and care services, as well as other community projects.
The NC CAF will support the state's HIV network by providing and coordinating technical assistance programs to increase agencies' capacity to provide HIV programming.
If you are interested in applying for funding through the NC CAF, hosting an AmeriCorps member, becoming an AmeriCorps member, or receiving technical assistance for your organization, please contact:
Beth Stringfield, Program Director Duke University, CB# 90392 2812 Erwin Rd., Suite 4 Durham, NC 27705 (p) 919.613.5431 (f) 919.613.5466 Beth.Stringfield@duke.eduClick here for the press release detailing the three-year, $1 million grant recently awarded to the NC Community AIDS Fund by the National AIDS Fund - the largest privately funded access to care project in the state.
A Public/Private HIV Prevention Initiative
The Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust and the North Carolina Division of Public Health are collaborating for the third year in a row in funding a statewide initiative to conduct HIV/AIDS prevention activities that target individuals at greatest risk for acquiring or transmitting HIV. Key to the success of this initiative is the use of non-traditional sites for screening and counseling.
High-risk populations, as well as homeless individuals, substance abusers, the uninsured, and racial and ethnic minorities, are more likely to test positive for HIV, yet are often missed in regular screenings. Offering free testing in settings such as public parks, homeless shelters, detention centers, drug treatment centers, mental health facilities, nightclubs, and on street corners and college campuses removes many of the barriers to reaching those most likely to test positive.
Early detection is only the first step. As a follow up, HIV-infected persons should be referred to medical and psychosocial services. Within at-risk groups, the greatest needs exist among the financially needy, especially among youth in non-stable situations and residents in communities of color. The Trust has committed $1.5 million over three years to fund an addition to the original $2.5 million initiative funded by the Division of Public Health. Trust funding will support the implementation of the non-traditional site program by community-based agencies.