News

Brian JR Williamson Brian JR Williamson

In The Region - June 27, 2024 | Volume 9, Issue 26

Like many of y'all, we're off next Thursday in honor of the Fourth of July. We'll see you back here on July 11! 

ARC NEWS

Lowest Number of Distressed Counties in 19 Years

Today, we released our Fiscal Year 2025 economic status designations for Appalachia’s 423 counties.

Record Lowest Number of Economically Distressed Counties in 19 Years

In FY 2025, the number of Appalachian counties designated as economically distressed will decrease to 77.

This is the lowest number since ARC began using this index-based classification system for counties 19 years ago.

Improvement comes from a decrease in the number of distressed counties in Appalachian Georgia, Mississippi and West Virginia. No state experienced an increase in the number of distressed counties.

Work remains to ensure that all of Appalachia experiences upward growth. Seventeen of Appalachia’s counties experienced a decline in economic status. 

We use these designations to set grant match rates, monitor trends and direct investments to the region's most distressed communities. Learn more about the FY 2025 data.

Charting Economic Data Across Appalachia

Our 14th annual update of "The Chartbook" is here! 📊 Updated in partnership with the Population Reference Bureau, this report provides 300K+ data points on Appalachia's population, education, employment and more.

From 2018-2022, Appalachia saw continual improvements in:Overall income. Income increased and poverty rates declined in every subregion, state and type of county (urban and rural).Educational attainment. As of 2022, more than one in four Appalachians age 25 or older reached or surpassed a bachelor's degree. Employment. More than 95% of the labor force is employed. Broadband access. The share of households with broadband internet increased by 12 percentage points between 2013-17 and 2018-22.However, there is still important work ahead to address persistent poverty rates and digital divides, particularly in the region's rural communities.

Dive into the data!

Taking PRIDE In Belonging

This PRIDE Month, we're featuring LGBTQ+ Appalachians who are helping their communities thrive, like Amy Camp. Amy is an Appalachian Leadership Institute fellow and founder of Cycle Forward in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Passionate about creating cultures of belonging both on- and off-trail. 

"We all belong to the outdoors, and celebrations like Pride Month demonstrate to anyone who’s questioning their place in Appalachia that there’s more than a single narrative or demographic," she says. "There’s a place for you here." 🏳️‍🌈

COMMUNITY

FedCo on country roads! 🚗 This week, Federal Co-Chair Gayle Manchin was in Mercer County, West Virginia.

In Bluefield, she and local leaders explored a food truck incubatorusing $400K in ARC funds.

In Charleston, she attended the ribbon cutting of the newly expanded West Virginia Health Right clinic. 

See more of her travels in the Mountain State!

Applications are due July 5 for the READY Community Foundations training opportunity! Participants eligible for the six-week virtual training will be equipped with tools and skills to strengthen operations, programming and fundraising. 

EVENTS 

Broadband Bootcamp 2.0
Sessions run through July 2, 2024; virtual

DDAA 2024 Professional Development Seminar
July 16-17, 2024; Huntington, West Virginia

Alabama - ARC Application Workshop
July 18, 2024; Montgomery, Alabama

South Carolina - ARC Application Workshop
July 22, 2024; Greenville, South Carolina

Advancing Appalachia: 2024 ARC Annual Conference
September 4-5, 2024; Chattanooga, Tennessee 

Are you hosting a webinar or event involving Appalachian community and economic development? Let us know at conferences@arc.gov and we'll add it here. 

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Brian JR Williamson Brian JR Williamson

In The Region - June 8, 2023 | Volume 8, Issue 23

ARC NEWS
New Data on Appalachia's Economy, Income, Education & More

ARC has released the 13th update of The Appalachian Region: A Data Overview from the 2017-2021 American Community Survey, also known as "The Chartbook." The report, written in partnership with the Population Reference Bureau, features more than 300,000 data points comparing Appalachia's economy, income, education, and more with the rest of the nation.

The 2023 report shows that Appalachia continued to make progress in educational attainment, labor force participation, income levels, and poverty rates from 2017-2021. Despite positive trends, work remains for the Appalachian Region — particularly its oldest, youngest, and most rural residents — to achieve parity with the nation.

To address Appalachia's key vulnerabilities, ARC launched the Appalachian Regional Initiative for Stronger Economies (ARISE) for large-scale economic transformation. The funding opportunity has a new application process that will be reviewed in detail during ARC's pre-application webinar on June 22.

Take a closer look at Appalachia's economic, income, population, and employment trends below, and register here for our webinar to learn more about the updated ARISE application process.

PRIDE MONTH
LGBTQ+ Leaders in Appalachia

This PRIDE Month, ARC is proud to spotlight LGBTQ+ partners that are leading and advancing their Appalachian communities. This week's feature celebrates Daniel Martin, a graduate of the inaugural Appalachian Leadership Institute (ALI) class! ⬇️


Daniel currently manages retail and commercial development for Electric Cities of Georgia (ECG)'s Office of Economic and Community Development. In the role, he works closely with local leaders to bring new business and development to communities in Appalachian Georgia and beyond. 

Before that, he served as Director of Economic Development for Georgia Mountains Regional Commission for five years, where he helped local governments in 12 Appalachian counties secure large-scale grant funding for economic and community development. 

Daniel built on his knowledge of Appalachian development as an inaugural fellow of our Appalachian Leadership Institute (ALI), an experience he says opened his eyes to different challenges and opportunities throughout the region.

His advice for young LGBTQ+ Appalachians looking to lead in their communities? “Be yourself. Be vulnerable. Be open-minded.”

COMMUNITY
Federal Co-Chair On the Road

During a tour of projects in North Carolina this week, our Federal Co-Chair Gayle Manchin visited the Western NC Farmers Market to see how $1.8 million in ARC investment led to a new manufacturing and training center for food and agribusiness opportunities.

Federal Co-Chair Manchin also saw ARC investments in action at The Industrial Commons, which is bringing green manufacturing opportunities to Appalachian North Carolina through employee-owned industrial enterprises and cooperatives.

AVAILABLE OPPORTUNITIES
WORC Applications Due Next Week

The deadline to apply for funding through the U.S. Department of Labor's Workforce Opportunity for Rural Communities (WORC) Initiative is next Tuesday, June 13!

WORC is awarding $44.2 million to projects that enhance workforce training and support services for dislocated workers, new workers, and individuals recovering from substance use disorder (SUD) in the Appalachian, Delta, and Northern Border Regions.

AVAILABLE OPPORTUNITIES
Seeking Consultant to Evaluate ARC's Health Grants

ARC is seeking proposals from qualified consultants to conduct an evaluation of performance and implementation of ARC's health grants, which help Appalachian communities improve healthcare availability, accessibility, and affordability.

The evaluation will include analysis of ~100 health grants that closed between 2017 and 2021 and will help ARC better understand health grant performance, successes and challenges, approaches to equity, and the impact of COVID-19 on regional health projects.

Proposals are due Friday, July 14.

EVENTS AND WORKSHOPS

ARISE Pre-Application Workshop
June 22, 2023; virtual

SBA/FDIC/USDA's "Path to Prosperity" Webinar
June 27, 2023; Fairmont, WV and virtual

ARC 2023 Annual Conference - Appalachia Rises©: Resilience, Strength & Transformation
September 11-12, 2023; Ashland, KY

Are you hosting a webinar or event involving Appalachian community and economic development? Let us know at conferences@arc.gov and we'll add it here. 

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