The Maternal and Child Health Initiative was established to provide a competitive grants process among local health departments to provide funding to achieve improved birth outcomes, reduced infant mortality and improved health among children aged 0-5. Five sites across North Carolina (14 counties total) are funded to implement select evidence based public health strategies through collaborative partnerships. In the first year of the second two-year cycle, the program was designed and launched with input from NIRN through the National Maternal and Child Health Workforce Development Center.