Educating and Informing

The Center for Rural Health is committed to enhancing the understanding of rural health issues in our state, region, and the nation. We work with a wide range of rural stakeholders to:

• Raise awareness about the challenges facing rural communities
• Help people working on rural issues share their experiences and learn from one another
• Support informed decision making

What We Can Do for You

In the area of educating and informing, we offer:

• Key North Dakota rural statistics, maps and supporting information via fact sheets and other publications.
• Presentations by our staff on a wide variety of rural health topics. For more details or to request a presentation, see our speakers bureau.
• Professional development opportunities at the Dakota Conference on Rural and Public Health as well as other workshops and meetings.
• E-mail updates on state and national resources and opportunities via the Center for Rural Health Update
• The Rural Health Information Hub's website offers an online clearinghouse with information on 80 key rural health and human services topics and all 50 states, examples of successful programs and approaches, tools to support grant writing, free customized assistance and much more.

Our Expertise

Our staff and faculty present and publish on a wide range of rural health topics at the national, regional, tribal, state and community levels. We also serve on a variety of national and regional boards, committees, and taskforces, all with the aim of helping to inform people, organizations, and policy discussions about rural issues.

We provide information to the North Dakota Legislature, the Governor's office, and our state's federal delegation, as well as to legislative staff across the country.

The Center for Rural Health has operated the Rural Assistance Center for nearly ten years and also oversees one other national online information portal, the Rural Health Research Gateway.

Key Contact

Kristine Sande, MBA - Associate Director

Most Recent Publications

• Mental Health Resources for K-12 Educators During COVID-19
  This product compiles all recent toolkits, guides, tip sheets, and infographics that have been developed by reputable sources to assist educators throughout the current health pandemic (COVID-19).
  Author(s): Schroeder, S., Heitkamp, T., Diers, L., Winfield, S.
  Date: April 2020
  Type: Fact Sheet
• Mental Health Resources for Parents and Caregivers during COVID-19
  This product compiles all recent toolkits, guides, tip sheets, and infographics that have been developed by reputable sources to assist parents and caregivers throughout the current health pandemic (COVID-19).
  Author(s): Schroeder, S., Heitkamp, T., Diers, L., Winfield, S.
  Date: April 2020
  Type: Fact Sheet
• Executive Summary: Mental Health Training and Technical Assistance Needs Among Probation and Parole Officers in Region 8
  This is an executive summary of the larger report, Mental Health Training and Technical Assistance Needs: Findings, Implications, and Summary of a Survey of Probation and Parole Officers in Region 8. The brief summarizes the mental health training needs of probation and parole officers in the six-state region and provides recommendations for future work.
  Author(s): Schroeder, S., Heitkamp, T., Martinefski, D.
  Date: March 2020
  Type: Policy Brief
• Colorado Probation and Parole: Mental Health Training Needs
  This fact sheet describes specific results for the state of Colorado from a survey assessing the mental health training needs among probation and parole officers throughout U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Region 8.
  Author(s): Schroeder, S.
  Date: January 2020
  Type: Fact Sheet
• Mental Health Training and Technical Assistance Needs: Findings, Implications, and Summary of a Survey of Probation and Parole Officers in Region 8
  This report describes the results of a survey assessing the mental health training needs among probation and parole officers throughout the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Region 8. The report includes an overall assessment, a presentation of training needs among rural and urban probation and parole officers, varied training needs between probation and parole, and state specific reports.
  Author(s): Schroeder, S., Heitkamp, T., Martinefski, D.
  Date: January 2020
  Type: Report

Most Recent Presentations

• Rural Health Research Dissemination
  Presented by Schroeder, S. on May 15, 2020 at the Rural PREP Professional Development Series, Webinar
• Creating a "Better Poster"
  Presented by Schroeder, S. on Apr 07, 2020 at the Graduate Professional Development, University of South Carolina, Webinar
• Rural Health Research Gateway: Dissemination Toolkit
  Presented by Schroeder, S. on Dec 16, 2019 at the Midwest Rural Research Funder Consortium, St. Louis, Missouri, Videoconference
• Introduction to Farm Stress: Mental Health Needs Among Diverse Farm Populations
  Presented by Schroeder, S., Heitkamp, T., Perdue, M. on Nov 25, 2019 at the Mountain Plains Mental Health Technology Transfer Center Network, Webinar
• The State of Rural Health: The Environment and Policy Implications
  Presented by Gibbens, B. on Nov 21, 2019 at the Interim Health Care Committee, University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Grand Forks, North Dakota