Identifying the Lever of Change
Megan Langley on Her Work at Strengthen ND and on the Multi-Partner Health Collaborative
Health really isn’t just this one slice of the pie that we can access and “fix.” It’s the thread that runs through everything.
- Megan Langley
Launched in 2024 by the Foundation for a Healthy North Dakota, American Heart Association, and North Dakota Health & Human Services, the Multi-Partner Health Collaborative (MPHC) is building a healthier North Dakota by teaming up with communities, tribal nations, businesses and other sectors to equitably enhance wellness across our state. We recently chatted with Megan Langley — executive director of Strengthen ND — about what she believes are the most challenging health issues facing North Dakotans today and her involvement with the MPHC as vice chair.
Strengthen ND is a nonprofit organization that empowers rural communities and nonprofits across North Dakota by providing informal leadership training and programs specifically designed for nonprofit and rural leaders. Their team has more than 75 years of experience in rural capacity building, planning, placemaking, and community and economic development.
“We help organizations and communities really maximize their impact and sustainability and ensure that rural North Dakota remains vibrant, resilient and always thinking about their future,” Megan told us.
In her work at Strengthen ND, Megan has seen firsthand the challenge that nonprofits and rural communities are facing when it comes to workforce shortages, particularly in the health care field. These shortages are in part due to limited access to sustainable funding sources and grant opportunities, she explained, which has led to gaps in both care and preventative service access in rural areas. Strengthen ND assists organizations in securing grant funding and developing long-term financial strategies, and also collaborates with state and federal partners to advocate for policies that support rural community development and resilience, such as their recent work on Senate Bill 2097.
“We work hard to enhance local economic stability and build up economic resilience,” Megan said. “We’re trying to make sure that when we’re talking economically as a whole for the nation that rural communities are represented and have a strong voice in strategy development.”
As vice chair of the Multi-Partner Health Collaborative, Megan is helping to unite government, nonprofit and health care organizations to address public health challenges across North Dakota. As part of the MPHC’s work, goal groups have been formed to focus on the four critical areas outlined in the State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP): strengthening the workforce, cultivating wellness, expanding access and connection, and building community resilience.
“The MPHC represents a groundbreaking initiative,” she shared. “I’m most excited about the collaborative approach to addressing social determinants of health, workforce shortages, and health care access gaps through these strategic partnerships and data-driven solutions.”
Understanding the landscape of health in North Dakota requires looking beyond the traditional medical model. Social determinants of health (SDOH) are the non-medical factors that profoundly shape a person's well-being. These encompass the conditions in which individuals are born, grow, live, work, and age, spanning a broad spectrum of social, economic, and environmental influences. Effectively, SDOH acknowledge that health is deeply rooted in the everyday circumstances of life, including access to safe housing, nutritious food, quality education, and economic stability.
As Megan explains, these factors are far-reaching and interconnected. "Social determinants of health really mean almost everything,” she said. “Those social determinants impact your access to health care, whether or not you have insurance and your economic stability. So one of the things I really like about the MPHC is the diverse representation of folks from all across the ecosystem of community, because health isn't just one slice of the pie we can address and 'fix.’ It's really the thread that runs through everything. Housing stability, food insecurity and educational disparities can all lead to chronic health conditions, increase stress and reduce life expectancy. So we have to address all of these factors through policies and community driven solutions to improve health all across our state."
Megan told us she feels Strengthen ND’s work intersects with the goals and activities of the MPHC in a number of ways, including the desire to enhance workforce development and address workforce shortages in rural health care and nonprofit leadership.
“They’re both very interested in what it means to have a resilient community and how you build community resilience,” she said. “I think the MPHC is going to push North Dakota to be more holistic and community-driven in terms of its approach to public health and strategies around public health.”
When looking at the future of health in North Dakota, Megan says there is already a lot of interesting innovation happening in rural spaces, such as the North Dakota Full-Service Community Schools Consortium’s work to address gaps in access to medical care. NDFSCS has a telehealth program so that rural schools have access to a school nurse, even if not on-site. She sees this unique approach to problem solving happening within the MPHC, too.
“One of the things I really like about the MPHC is the diverse representation of folks from all across the ecosystem of community,” she says. “Health really isn’t just this one slice of the pie that we can access and ‘fix.’ It’s the thread that runs through everything. North Dakota really has the potential to lead innovative public health strategies that are truly sustainable and equitable.”
Individuals can get involved with Megan’s work at Strengthen ND by becoming a member of their donor program. These contributions help support the organization’s training, grant assistance and community programs. They’re also always looking for people with rural development skillsets to volunteer on their board of directors or on their statewide grantmaking committee. You can learn more here.
Though there are challenges ahead, Megan remains hopeful for the future of community wellness in North Dakota. The key to finding solutions, she believes, is to tackle just one problem at a time.
“If we try tackling it all once all the time, we won’t be successful, so we have to be super strategic about what we can shift within the system to make the most impact for the most people,” she says. “We have to just keep identifying that lever of change, that little lever we can push to make things just a little bit better or get a waterfall of positivity coming through.”
If you have a story about how an illness, disease, or any other health-related issue has impacted your life, we want to hear from you. Share your story with us here. It could help your neighbors — and create a healthier North Dakota for all of us.