FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PBS North Carolina to Launch New Season of ‘ncIMPACT’ on October 16

A partnership with the UNC School of Government, this public affairs series examines innovative solutions to the state’s most pressing challenges.

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RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC, 9/17/2026 — PBS North Carolina and the UNC School of Government announce season seven of ncIMPACT. Hosted by UNC Professor Anita Brown-Graham, the original series explores how local innovation in areas like education, employment and economic development can light the way forward for the entire state.

Season seven of ncIMPACT premieres Friday, October 16, 7:30 PM, on PBS NC, online and on the free PBS app. Digital segments will also be available on YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn.

“What ncIMPACT does is extraordinary: it spotlights the remarkable individuals who tackle challenges within their community with passion and creativity,” said David Crabtree, CEO and General Manager of PBS North Carolina. “We want viewers to understand what happens when people try to put new solutions into practice. Hopefully, it spurs them to take action within their own community.”

This season, stories include a look at a community college that helps students balance classes and childcare, how a rural county reimagined its tobacco land as vineyards and why one county often sends a social worker instead of a police officer to 911 callers.

“The UNC School of Government is honored to partner with PBS North Carolina for another season of ncIMPACT,” said Brown-Graham. “North Carolina has a rich legacy of people coming together across sectors to solve the most pressing challenges facing their communities, and we are thrilled those stories continue to resonate with audiences.”

Broadcast Schedule
ncIMPACT airs Fridays at 7:30 PM on PBS NC. Visit pbsnc.org/schedule for the latest scheduling information.

Episode 1: Learning
Premieres Friday, October 16, 7:30 PM
Schools in NC are trying to shorten the distance between a classroom and a paycheck. Learn how a state-funded lab in Sampson County lets students earn credit for finished tech projects, how Forsyth Technical Community College in Winston-Salem tracks down childcare so student parents can stay enrolled and how a Yancey County carpentry class frames houses for neighbors displaced by Hurricane Helene.

Episode 2: Who Responds?
Premieres Friday, October 23, 7:30 PM
Call 911 in parts of NC and the person who shows up may not be a police officer. Explore how Wilmington sends civilians to minor crashes, how a community paramedic in Edgecombe County began testing street drugs and rebuilt his team’s overdose response around what came back and how Guilford County answers its most frequent callers with a social worker.

Episode 3: When the Economy Changes
Premieres Friday, October 30, 7:30 PM
When a mill or a plant closes in NC, the town feels it for generations. Explore how Kannapolis built a biotech research campus on the site of the largest single-day layoff in state history, how Henderson County turned 19 miles of abandoned railroad into the Ecusta Trail and how Surry County families replanted tobacco land as vineyards.

Episode 4: Workforce Reimagined
Premieres Friday, November 6, 7:30 PM
Announcing jobs in NC is easier than filling them. Learn how Cumberland County walks new child welfare workers through a home visit in virtual reality before the real one, how Randolph Community College in Asheboro pays recruits while training them for Toyota’s battery plant and what Charlotte’s investment means for workers already on Albemarle Road, the commercial spine of one of the city's most diverse corridors.

Episode 5: Rural Communities
Premieres Friday, November 13, 7:30 PM
Private companies passed on much of rural NC so some communities stopped waiting for one. Explore how a member-owned electric co-op ran fiber across Bertie, Halifax and Northampton counties, how Chatham County restored maternity care by turning to family physicians instead of ob-gyns and how Mayland Community College in Spruce Pine turned a closed school into a student-run hotel. 

Episode 6: Land and Water
Premieres Friday, November 20, 7:30 PM
Farms, rivers and floodplains in NC are each losing ground in a different way. Learn how Johnston County is working to keep subdivisions off working farms, how Burlington found the source of the forever chemicals in the Haw River and why Charlotte would rather buy a flood-prone house than rebuild it.

Catch up on previous seasons of ncIMPACT by visiting video.pbsnc.org/show/ncimpact.

About the Host

Anita Brown-Graham is the founder and director of the ncIMPACT Initiative and the Gladys Hall Coates Distinguished Professor of Public Law and Government at the UNC School of Government. This initiative seeks to expand the school’s capacity to work with public officials on complex policy issues, including economic mobility, the expansion of prekindergarten and extending the labor pool.

Brown-Graham previously taught at the school from 1994 to 2006, specializing in governmental liability and economic development aimed at revitalizing communities. She served as director of the Institute for Emerging Issues (IEI) at North Carolina State University from 2007 to 2016, where she led efforts to build North Carolina’s capacity for economic development and prosperity, working with business, government and higher education leaders from across the state.

Brown-Graham began her career as a law clerk in the Eastern District of California. She is a William C. Friday Fellow and an American Marshall Fellow, and was named Distinguished Global Fellow by the Eisenhower Fellowships in 2021. The White House named her a 2013 Champion of Change for her work at IEI, and the Triangle Business Journal awarded her the inaugural 2021 Andrea Harris Trailblazer Award and named her a 2017 CEO of the year. Brown-Graham serves on the boards of several organizations, including Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina. She earned an undergraduate degree from Louisiana State University and a law degree from UNC-Chapel Hill. Learn more at sog.unc.edu/about/faculty-and-staff/anita-r-brown-graham. 

About the UNC School of Government

The mission of the UNC School of Government is to improve the lives of North Carolinians by engaging in practical scholarship that helps public officials and citizens understand and improve state and local government. As the largest university-based local government training, advisory and research organization in the United States, the School of Government serves more than 12,000 public officials each year. Established in 1931 as the Institute of Government, the school provides educational, advisory and research services for state and local governments. It is also home to 10 entrepreneurial initiatives, which provide targeted and responsive support on key areas of need for communities and public officials. Learn more at sog.unc.edu.

About PBS North Carolina

As North Carolina’s statewide PBS network serving the country’s third largest public media market, PBS North Carolina educates, informs, entertains and inspires its audience on air, online and in person. Through its unique partnership of public investment and private support, the network includes in-person engagement, digital-first social and online content delivery and four over-the-air channels: PBS NC, Rootle PBS KIDS, the Explorer Channel and the North Carolina Channel. Its transformational events and content spark curiosity and wonder for all North Carolinians. Additionally, PBS North Carolina serves as the backbone for North Carolina’s state emergency services. To learn more about PBS North Carolina, visit pbsnc.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

-PBS NC-

Media Contact
For press info and resources, email press@pbsnc.org.