The MaryAnn Black Summer Internship Program

Durham Teens Go Behind the Scenes at Duke Health. MaryAnn Black Internship explores 70+ careers.

Each summer, area high school students go behind the scenes with Duke health care professionals to learn about more than 70 different careers at Duke Health. The 2026 hybrid program will run from July 6-24, M-F, 8:30 am-12:30 pm. Use the link below to register beginning on January 23-February 21, 2026.

“I liked that we were always learning something…We were always moving, and I appreciated that we made the most out of our time while we were in the hospital,” said 2024 Intern Mina Zuhair.

The MaryAnn Black Internship experience is designed to expand students’ interest in the health care industry and to build a pipeline that meets the health care workforce shortages in our community. As in prior years, this 2024 education-to-career program was a collaboration between Duke Health and Durham YouthWorks.

“The internship definitely made me more interested in working in a hospital setting because I thought the only jobs in the hospital were nurses and surgeons,” said participant Nyla Littlejohn.

More than 80 Duke employees volunteered to make the program a reality.

“The internship benefitted me by connecting me to mentors and specialties that I am interested in.” - Bhadresh Amarnath, 2024 MaryAnn Black Internship participant. 

In addition to learning about dozens of healthcare specialties from volunteers, the students also received general test-taking skills training, office and dining etiquette training, and receive hands-on experience while visiting areas in Duke’s School of Medicine, School of Nursing, and other campus locations.

“I liked how interactive the internship is. I’m glad we didn’t just do tours, but got hands on activities,” said Temiloluwa Yemi-Mabo.

The Duke University Health System (DUHS) has a long history of providing educational opportunities for Durham high school students, including the MaryAnn Black Summer Internship Program. The program name honors MaryAnn Black, a former State Representative, Durham County commissioner and Duke University Health System leader who for many years helped build strong connections between the health system and the local community.

To apply to be considered for the 2026 MaryAnn Black Summer Internship please use this link to the Durham YouthWorks 2026 Application and choose the category healthcare.

Reminder this will open on January 23, 2026, and close on February 21, 2026. To learn more about the MaryAnn Black Summer Internship Program please contact Kimberly Monroe, Kimberly.monroe@duke.edu.

Housing for New Hope expands support services thanks to a grant from Duke Health

For over 30 years, Housing for New Hope (HNH) has helped strengthen our community by connecting Durham’s most vulnerable neighbors, people experiencing homelessness, to housing and the supportive services they’ll need to remain stably housed long-term. Through their two primary supportive housing programs, they provide opportunities for individuals to live in agency-owned apartment communities or with private landlords across the Durham region.

The number of unsheltered people in our community has grown by 300% since 2018. This significant increase means we are seeing more individuals and families sleeping in cars and tents. HNH operates three innovative, data-informed programs to address this housing and homelessness crisis - Street Outreach, Supportive Housing, and Affordable Housing. Together, these programs served 761 individuals in 2024. They also serve as the Unsheltered Coordinating Agency for the City of Durham and Durham County, overseeing street outreach efforts and the Point in Time (PIT) count in January.

The Building Healthy Communities Grant has enhanced HNH’s capacity to deliver essential services resulting in a profound impact for program participants. The grant has enabled the organization to expand its services and enhance its offerings to include basic medical care, financial literacy education, access to food resources, and more. Residents have noticed the improvements, particularly the increased accessibility of staff and the stabilizing impact of case management services. Additional staff and case management allow participants to communicate with staff more frequently while obtaining the services they need to continue their journey towards long-term stable housing.

“The Building Healthy Communities Grant has been incredibly impactful over the years,” said Executive Director Russell Pierce. “This awarded grant from Duke Health fills gaps not covered by federal funding including housing and critical supportive services for our most vulnerable neighbors.”

Supportive Housing is HNH’s founding principle and fundamental to the work they do to end homelessness in Durham. In the coming year, Housing for New Hope will continue to expand supportive and affordable housing options, thanks to grants like the Building Healthy Communities Grant, which are deeply impactful for organizations like HNH, especially in times of uncertainty around federal funding. Support from partners like Duke Health means HNH can continue to provide that critical supportive difference for Durham’s vulnerable neighbors.

Partnering in the Community

We’ve collaborated with hundreds of civic leaders, government agencies, and grassroots and faith-based organizations. This is a partial list of our current partner organizations and initiatives:

• Center for Child and Family Health
• Durham’s Partnership for Children
• Durham Technical Community College
• East Durham Children’s Initiative
• El Centro Hispano
• Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce
• Made In Durham
• North Carolina Central University
• Partnership for A Healthy Durham
• YMCA

If you are looking for a way to connect with our community; such as, events, partnerships, etc., please contact our Community Engagement Manager, Kimberly.Monroe@duke.edu or call her at 919-681-4041.

Grant Empowers Women's Center to Expand Housing and Support Services

The Women's Center of Wake County has significantly expanded its ability to serve unhoused and vulnerable women thanks to a grant from Duke Health. The funding has enabled the center to not only increase its output of women served, but it has also allowed for a more comprehensive approach to support services, something that is increasingly important as more and more unhoused populations are experiencing mental health challenges, addiction, and trauma. "Over the last five years, The Women’s Center has housed approximately 20+ women per year," said Nora Robbins, Volunteer Coordinator. With the ongoing support and funding through the Building Healthy Communities Grant at Duke Health, we've been able to dramatically scale up our housing program. The grant has allowed the center to hire additional staff, including a housing coordinator. We are now on track to house approximately 100 women this year." This has made the process of finding safe, stable housing for clients more attainable.

One of the latest initiatives the Women’s center has been able to launch is the innovative "Safe Haven" program, providing low-barrier shelter options for women with severe mental health issues, disabilities, medically fragile and/or who may have been banned from other facilities due to SPMI. The Safe Haven program provides private contained sleeping units with curtains and personal storage, rather than traditional bunk beds. This dignity-centered approach has shown promising early results. When speaking with the Women’s Center Rep, she shared a story of one of the women they recently welcomed into the Safe Haven program. Before entering the program, she was distant and uncommunicative. However, after her first night, "she took a shower, her face was glowing, and she smiled. She's now saying hi to everyone," the representative shared. "It's huge." Beyond housing, the grant has enabled the center to offer even more support from healthcare to local partnerships and everything in between. They now bring in mobile medical units and offer incentives for women to receive preventive care like mammograms. "We make it a priority. We talk to women saying, “This is important. This is here for you,'" said Robbins.

The center has also expanded its partnerships with local organizations to provide job training, Ready-to-Rent, Safety and Stabilization, Stress Mgmt., addiction recovery support, and other services. Programs like Designed for Joy and Carroll's Kitchen offer "restorative employment" opportunities to help women build skills and work experience. The attitudes of both the staff and the women served make it clear that the Women’s Center of Wake County is so much more than a shelter. Their unique approach to care, which is centered around addressing the root causes (like mental illness, trauma, and generational poverty, etc.), while still providing for immediate needs, is transforming lives. One of the women shared "this is not only my home away from home, but it's also sisterhood. It's our protection." The Women's Center has created a strong foundation based on love and support for the women they serve, and the grant funding from Duke Health will only continue to amplify their impact, enabling them to reach new heights in the Raleigh/Wake County community.

Benefits Enrollment Center

The Duke Benefits Enrollment Center (BEC) works with Medicare Beneficiaries, and those eligible for Medicare, to help them apply for public benefits and connect to local resources. The BEC can answer questions about eligibility and enrollment, assist with filling out applications, and provide follow-up throughout the length of the determination process. The BEC maintains strong relationships with community partners and organizations, to ensure a no-wrong-door approach to navigation services, connecting clients to additional resources and appropriate organizations to address their health-related social needs.

We can help complete applications for:

• Medicaid
• Medicare Savings Programs
• Low Income Subsidy (Extra Help)
• SNAP
• Home Weatherization
• Paratransit
• Duke Financial Assistance
• Family Caregiver Support Programs

In Fiscal Year 2025, the BEC helped 448 unique clients apply for over 600 benefits. These represented savings to the beneficiary estimated at $2.85 Million, based on Federal value of benefit calculations. These services are provided to any Medicare beneficiary in North Carolina at no cost, regardless of if they are a Duke patient. This work is made possible through grant funding from the National Council on Aging. Click here to learn more about their work.

Volunteer Opportunities: Every year, the BEC hosts volunteers from the Duke Student Body. Volunteers have the opportunity to help their community access essential benefits and services, and receive training in the policy and procedure of state and federal programs. To learn more, call 919-681-7356, or email BEC coordinator David Regan at David.Regan@duke.edu.

Health Summits

We sponsor the annual Durham Health Summit, which raises awareness of key health issues in Durham and offers solutions that can lead to a healthier community. Each summit has a different theme, which allows us to focus on timely and important health needs.

Highlights from previous summits can be found in our archives.

Faith Based Initiatives

We have quarterly training sessions for health and wellness initiatives with local faith organizations, including programs for leaders and congregants. It’s a way to promote their role in community wellness and allows the Duke University Health System to be a part of it. These sessions offer information from Duke Pastoral Services, including topics of interest identified by local faith leaders. 

For more information about the initiative, contact Kimberly Monroe at 919-681-4041 or kimberly.monroe@duke.edu.

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