The Carolina Aging Network stems from a long history of collaboration and coalition-building across aging initiatives at UNC-Chapel Hill.
2016-2024: Partnerships in Aging Program (PiAP)
The Partnerships in Aging Program (PiAP) was an initiative of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Office of the Provost. PiAP concluded on June 30, 2024. The work and mission of PiAP has informed the development of the Carolina Aging Hub.
PiAP worked to facilitate vibrant University-Community collaboration, academic exploration, and creative solution-building to cultivate age-embracing people and communities. For example, in 2021, PiAP hosted a Diversity in Aging Symposium, which addressed the intersection of aging, race, ethnicity, and eldercare.
PiAP envisioned and helped create communities where every age is celebrated and supported and where elderhood is viewed as a time for continued adaptation, growth, and contribution.
We are deeply grateful for and are working to continue the long history of committed partnerships cultivated by PiAP and its many community partners.
2019: Partnerships in Aging Consortium Think Tank (PACTT)
On March 28, 2019, the UNC Partnerships in Aging Program facilitated the inaugural Partnerships in Aging Consortium Think Tank (PACTT). PACTT brought together 32 campus-community partners to discuss current and future aging-related initiatives at UNC-Chapel Hill and beyond.
PACTT discussions imagined new aging-related initiatives that bridge university and community efforts, expand access to aging-related services, and innovate education around aging. Action items and priorities included engaging storytelling to produce diverse narratives around aging, expanding accessibility to culturally relevant aging resources, connecting students and elders through arts and humanities programming, and developing an aging studies concentration at UNC-CH.
2000s-2014: UNC Institute on Aging
The Institute on Aging at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was a historical precursor to the Carolina Aging Network. The Institute on Aging was a central campus unit that housed educational, research, and community engagement initiatives related to aging at UNC-CH. The spirit of collaboration fostered by the Institution on Aging continues to drive the Carolina Aging Network’s efforts.
Additional information about past and present aging-related initiatives at Carolina is available in the Resources section.