Chapel Hill, N.C – The North Carolina Center on the Workforce for Health (the Center) is proud to welcome Betsey Zook to its growing team as its first Behavioral Health Workforce Development Manager. In this role, Zook will work closely with leadership in the NC Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Services (DMHDDSUS) at the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) to identify behavioral health workforce gaps and advance sustainable strategies. Zook is an important addition to the Center’s team marking a continued investment in the mission to strengthen the state’s health workforce.

Bringing 30 years of experience to her role, Zook joins the Center from Forsyth Technical Community College in Winston-Salem, where she built and led one of the largest human services programs in the NC Community College system. Her most recent initiative was working with NCDHHS to develop and implement an Advanced Direct Service Provider (DSP) Training Pilot, designed to strengthen workforce pipelines and establish a bridge between higher education and the behavioral health workforce.

“Betsey brings a wealth of experience working with North Carolina’s public behavioral health systems as a practitioner, policy leader, and educator,” said Andy MacCracken, director of the Center. “Her experience collaborating with DHHS on the DSP Pilot and other initiatives make her uniquely positioned to hit the ground running in this new role.”

Zook’s accomplishments include:

• Awarded Opioid Settlement funds (Forsyth County) / Grant Director: For a project to expand the addictions workforce, strengthen CADC/LCAS pipelines, and pilot new models for Peer Support Specialists.
• Awarded Behavioral Health funds (Forsyth County) / Grant Director: For building bilingual pipelines for entry-level behavioral health roles and expanding bilingual social work capacity.
• Community College–University Pathways: Part of the leadership for the NCCCS Social & Human Services Alignment Project. Currently working on a statewide AAS-to-BSW articulation agreement. 
• Statewide Advocacy: As Advocacy & Advancement Chair of the NC Association for Social and Human Services Education, instrumental for NC legislation that will implement a rule change recognizing Human Services associate degrees in NC’s definition of a Qualified Professional.

“I know how critical it is to build sustainable workforce pipelines in behavioral health, and I am excited to bring my experience in workforce development, policy and training to help support and grow the work already happening in North Carolina,” Zook said. “I know North Carolina faces workforce challenges, but I also see the opportunity  to create meaningful and lasting change.”

About the NC Center on the Workforce for Health
The NC Center on the Workforce for Health launched in 2022 to provide a forum for health employers, workers, educators, policymakers, and other key stakeholders across the state to address critical workforce challenges, share best practices, and identify solutions. This statewide forum builds on a partnership between NC AHEC, NC Institute of Medicine, and the Sheps Center Program on Health Workforce Research and Policy, to provide coordinated, persistent action and track progress with measurable outcomes. For more information, visit workforceforhealth.org.