North Carolina Youth Help State Leaders Redesign Youth Mental Health Services in North Carolina

RALEIGH, NC—Thirty eight young North Carolinians from Fairmont to Wilson converged on Cary on Saturday, Aug. 16, to play a key role in improving mental health outcomes for children and youth statewide. The first Youth Design Day for Changing Minds: The North Carolina Youth Mental Health Action Plan, held at Downtown Cary Park, allowed participants to identify priorities for state healthcare leaders and policymakers based on their own lived experiences and those of their peers.

“The youth mental health advocates and state healthcare leaders developing this action plan were adamant that it must be created with youth, not for youth,” said Julia Beck, president of CaroNova, a nonprofit healthcare transformation organization providing logistical and technical support for the Plan Steering Committee. “This is the beginning of a series of initiatives aimed at ensuring their voice is heard.”

This was the first in-person youth engagement event following the public launch of the North Carolina Youth Mental Health Action Plan in March 2025 and the Plan Steering Committee’s initial meetings. Event partners included NC Child, the NC Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs, El Futuro, and Faster Glass. Thirty-eight youth participated, with 22 coming from the Triangle and 16 from elsewhere in the Piedmont and Coastal Plain. As the Plan Steering Committee continues developing the action plan, CaroNova and its partners will hold additional Youth Design Days in different state regions to explore additional topics and involve more young people.

Early Findings and Takeaways from Youth Design Day

While the comments by youth are still being analyzed, some early trends are apparent.

• Youth reported that they go online for validation, distraction, belonging, and socialization. They mentioned some of the negatives from time spent online, such as comparsion to peers on social media or losing motivation.

• Teens described the pressure they feel to perform at a high level academically, and consequently, the anxiety, panic, and stress they feel. Many described these high expectations as unrealistic and unattainable.

• When asked about potential priorities for the action plan, they recommended:

  • Targeting the root of mental health issues; addressing them from a culturally humble and socioeconomically relevant lens

  • Enabling easier access to mental heatlh care for everyone in the state, including through schools

  • Decreasing mental health stigma so that mental health will be seen as simply health

  • Forging stronger connections and relationships with peers, school staff, trusted adults and other mentors

Youth Reaction

Overall feedback from the participants were positive, with comments including “I liked how we were able to discuss mental health without judgment,” and “I liked how we had the opportunity to have good open discussions with our peers.” Youth also complimented how welcoming the speakers and staff were in making them comfortable and feeling listened to; even the “dad jokes” by event facilitator David Phillips of Faster Glass were well received.

After the event, Sergio, from Wilson, described the Youth Design Day as “…very enlightening, because we got to come together as a variety of different student leaders, different organizers, and youth from across the state to talk about our different lived experiences as Americans and North Carolinians.” He encouraged adults working to improve youth mental health to continue listening to them: “Don’t just objectify people because they are young…. Everyone has a story. Everyone needs to give that story at some point.”

Chloe-Ann, from Cary, said, “I think broadly the biggest concern that I have heard from my peers and from myself is that we’re afraid to discuss mental health and it is still stigmatized…. There is still more that can be done and that needs to be done in order to have safe spaces like this one that was facilitated today.” She asked adults to remember the commonalities between youth and adult mental health: “Being able to look at yourself and say, ‘What are things that I struggle with?’ often has the same core struggles for younger people and youth as well.”

About the North Carolina Youth Mental Health Action Plan

Changing Minds: The North Carolina Youth Mental Health Action Plan brings together state leaders, subject matter experts, philanthropic funders, and other stakeholders to develop a comprehensive plan that more effectively delivers youth mental health services. The goal is to raise awareness, break the stigma surrounding mental health, and empower North Carolina youth with the resources and support they need to thrive. The planning effort was launched with initial statewide funding provided by Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation.