Participant Information

Patrick is the president and chief executive officer of the NC Rural Center. He is a product of our state’s public schools, including Piney Creek Elementary School in Piney Creek and Alleghany High School in Sparta. He graduated from Wake Forest University in 1987 and from Wake Forest University School of Law in 1990.

After law school, Patrick worked briefly for Congressman Steve Neal before becoming the first executive director of the Alleghany County Chamber of Commerce in his hometown of Sparta. From 1992-1999, Patrick served as director of the chamber and as the lead economic developer for the county, successfully recruiting two new industries to the county that were the top new investments in the entire state in 1994 and 1998.

Toward the end of Patrick’s chamber tenure, a collaborative effort led by the Alleghany Chamber resulted in the New River being named one of 14 American Heritage Rivers in the United States by President Bill Clinton in July of 1998. Nine months later, Patrick left the chamber to become the first executive director of a startup nonprofit, New River Community Partners, the lead organization responsible for coordinating and leading the basin-wide implementation of a sustainable economic development plan encompassing three northwestern North Carolina counties, 11 southwestern Virginia counties, and seven southern West Virginia counties.

In 2000, Patrick was elected to the Alleghany County Board of Commissioners. In 2003, Patrick, still director of New River Community Partners was simultaneously named executive director of the Blue Ridge Business Development Center, a revitalization project in Sparta that was an initiative of New River Community Partners. The project involved the renovation of an abandoned textile plant—the place his mother had worked for 42 years—into a state-of- the-art technology and education center focused on transitioning the region’s old manufacturing economy to a new more diversified economic base for northwestern North Carolina.

In March of 2006, Patrick lost his father, a retired school teacher. He then made the difficult decision to leave his home county in October of 2006 to become vice president of programs for the North Carolina Rural Center. As a graduate of the Center’s Rural Economic Development Institute and a member of the Center’s board of directors from 1997 to 2000, Patrick already had a long history with–and connection to–the NC Rural Center.

In 2013, he was named president of the NC Rural Center and led the organization through a major transition, repositioning the Center into a new era of work and community engagement but still focused on the singular mission to serve the people and places of rural North Carolina.

“I can’t imagine work that is more rewarding or more important to me that the work I’ve been able to do at the Rural Center. It’s enabled me to experience every nook and cranny of the ‘goodliest land under the cope of heaven’ and to do work that maintains a deep connection with the place and people of Piney Creek, who gave me everything I have needed to live a very blessed life.”

Olaunda is the director of leadership training for the NC Rural Center. In this role, Olaunda oversees the Rural Economic Development Institute (REDI) and Homegrown Leaders programs. With over 20 years of professional experience, Olaunda has worked with local communities, nonprofit organizations, and state government entities by providing training, facilitation, and technical assistance.

Olaunda was born and raised in Bunnlevel, a small township in rural Harnett County, about 20 miles north of Fayetteville.  She received her bachelor’s degree in health education at North Carolina Central University and her master’s degree in human services counseling with a life coaching cognate from Liberty University.

In her spare time, Olaunda enjoys volunteering at her church, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.

Dalton Bailey is the data manager for the NC Rural Center and conducts its research and data analysis. He was born and raised in a small rural town in Northern Indiana. He completed his bachelor’s degree in psychology and criminal justice at Manchester University, a small college in rural Indiana, in 2020. He graduated cum laude and won several research conference awards while enrolled. During this time, Dalton participated in a handful of research and data projects at Manchester and in the surrounding rural counties. These projects included evaluating a local county’s drug court program, general community development, and programs at Manchester. He also served as a student board member for the peace studies program, played collegiate tennis, and worked in the university’s first-year student experience department.

Dalton then attended Western Kentucky University and completed his master’s degree in psychology with a concentration in psychological science in 2022. This research focused program allowed him to continue to develop his research skills and provided several opportunities to use them in applied contexts. While enrolled, Dalton completed his thesis on political information evaluation and selective political memory. He also managed the program’s social cognition research lab and taught a research methods lab. Dalton also worked as an intern and subcontracted consultant for Elevate Consulting, an evaluation and consulting firm based in Nashville that predominantly serves local nonprofit organizations.

Coming from a rural background, Dalton is passionate about using his knowledge to benefit rural communities. He believes these communities are often underserved and wants to do what he can to improve this in his chosen home of North Carolina. In his free time, Dalton enjoys playing with his dog, staying active, and trying new food.

After 12 years of full-time, pastoral ministry, Darren has most recently transitioned to the NC Rural Center as the senior program manager of Faith in Rural Communities. A graduate of REDI 29 and a participant in FIRC in 2018, his passion is found in community building in the name of Christ.

He has a wonderful wife and four beautiful children. His oldest, Lyndsay, is a registered ICU nurse. His second-youngest daughter, Payton, is currently enrolled at Western Carolina University and is seeking her elementary education degree so she can one day become a kindergarten teacher. His son, Nathan, is in 11th grade at Davie County High School. His youngest, 2-year-old Sophie, has recently started preschool. 

Darren has been a full-time clergy member of the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church since 2010 and was ordained as an elder in full connection in 2016. He has a degree in manufacturing engineering from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, a master’s of divinity from Hood Theological Seminary, and a doctorate of ministry from Duke Divinity School with an emphasis on rural church ministries. He is so thankful for the opportunities to serve God in rural North Carolina.

Anita is the founder and director of the ncIMPACT Initiative at the UNC School of Government (SOG), a special initiative that seeks to expand the School’s capacity to work with public officials on complex policy issues, including economic mobility, housing affordability, and broadening the labor pool. She also leads Carolina Across 100 (CX100), a pan-university effort to partner with communities in each of North Carolina’s 100 counties. This five-year initiative responds to requests that the campus build and support community collaborations to address current challenges, primarily through cross-sector collaboration.

She previously taught at the SOG from 1994 to 2006, specializing in governmental liability and economic development aimed at revitalizing communities. In 2007, Anita served as director of the Institute for Emerging Issues (IEI) at NC State University, 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.

Anita began her career as a law clerk in the Eastern District of California. She is a William C. Friday Fellow, an American Marshall Fellow, and an Eisenhower Fellow. The White House named her a 2013 Champion of Change for her work at IEI, and the Triangle Business Journal named her both a 2014 Woman in Business for her policy leadership in the state and a 2017 CEO of the year. Anita 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.

Jonathan Q. Morgan is a professor of public administration and government at the UNC School of Government. He teaches, advises public officials, and conducts applied research on economic development. Morgan’s research has focused on industry cluster-based development, the role of local government in economic development, business incentives, development impact analysis, and innovative, homegrown approaches to job creation. Morgan directs the School’s Basic Economic Development Course, which is accredited by the International Economic Development Council (IEDC).

Morgan joined the School of Government in 2003. His articles have been published in leading journals, such as Economic Development Quarterly, Policy Studies Journal, and Community Development.

Previously, he worked for Regional Technology Strategies, Inc., an economic and workforce development consulting firm. He has also served as director of economic policy and research for the North Carolina Department of Commerce, and research and policy director for the NC Institute of Minority Economic Development.

Morgan holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Virginia, an MPA from Clark Atlanta University, and a Ph.D. in public administration from NC State University.