Students in Appalachia have a heritage of problem-solving. We explore how computational thinking (CT) relates to and complements this heritage by analyzing 34 local ingenuity stories, and perspectives from 35 community members about the relevance of CT. We found the two problem-solving approaches are meaningfully different, but can be used in…

Geographical, economic, social and cultural barriers to accessing services in rural areas are widely reported. Less widely discussed are dilemmas posed by individual and community reluctance to address sensitive health issues. This article, focusing on the highly sensitive area of mental health, and employing a participatory action approach,…

Across the country, cities and regions have used community-wide partnerships to improve the educational attainment of their citizens. The most established of these partnerships have seen substantial education gains during their tenure. The community of Louisville, Kentucky has embarked on a similar effort to improve educational attainment. Nearly…

This article features "STOP (Students Taking on Prevention) the Violence," a peer-to-peer outreach initiative that empowers young people to recognize, report, and reduce the potential for youth violence. It is a national Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) program that provides young people with the attitudes, skills,…

Written to help local school systems more fully utilize community expertise in their career education programs, this guide discusses the following topics in a question/answer format: What is community involvement? What challenges must be overcome to gain effective community involvement? and How are community involvement activities developed and…

Designed to help bridge the gap between selected Appalachian communities (17 control and 18 experimental Kentucky communities) and the more affluent U.S. society, the Appalachian Community Impact Project (ACIP) used indigenous paraprofessionals, backed by Extension personnel, to work at the community level. It was hypothesized that by using…

As part of a larger study aimed at assessing how local people view recent changes and development programs in four Eastern Kentucky counties (Harlan, Perry, Whitley, and Wolfe), a survey on perceived quality of life was conducted. Data were derived from personal interviews with selected local leaders (varying from 21 to 33 interviews per county)…

Data derived from parallel questioning of 1971 knowledgables and leaders (N=111) and a 1973 sample of household heads and homemakers (N=464) living in four rural Eastern Kentucky counties (Harlan, Perry, Whitley, and Wolfe) were used to assess both objective and subjective aspects of quality of life. The indicators employed were: income; job…

In a study of the critical factors affecting local decision making on school fiscal policy, socioeconomic factors, educational leadership, and community power structure were related to one another and to local financial effort in relation to ability. The study included 122 school districts of 20,000 population and above located in the states of…

The grassroots Rural Communities Educational Cooperative (RCEC) made higher education accessible/affordable to adults in rural Appalachian communities, designed courses for competency-based rural education, and received high ratings from students and faculty. The Mountain Women's Exchange--a network of seven community organizations run by…

This report discusses trends affecting the future of rural development in Kentucky and describes strategies for leveraging more positive outcomes for rural communities. In addition to the enduring legacies of rural poverty, inadequate infrastructure, low educational attainment, and joblessness, contemporary rural Kentucky is also characterized by…