STAY Project creates full-time position for Appalachian youth; hopes others will do the same...

The Stay Together Appalachian Youth (STAY) Project has created a full time position for Appalachian youth, to be stationed in the Central Appalachian region. This decision comes eight years after the formation of STAY, and just eight months after the part-time STAY Coordinator position was created. This change will shift current STAY coordinator Kendall Bilbrey into the full-time salaried post with benefits. This position will expand STAY’s capacity to coordinate trainings, leadership development opportunities, and resources to build community for Appalachian youth. Jobs that are fulfilling, stable, come with a benefits package, and that are specifically aimed at youth are hard to come by in Central Appalachia. This is why the full-time STAY coordinator position is so important. Its creation demonstrates what is possible for youth in the region when opportunities are made available to them. “Though creating replacements for coal mining jobs is important, we want to recognize that these aren’t the only kinds of jobs that need to be created,” Kendall said. “We need all kinds of things for people to stay here and work here.” STAY members conducted the majority of fundraising for this new position, which includes generous support from individual donors and foundations who believe in STAY’s work and in a bright future for Appalachian youth. STAY hosted their first ever fundraising week in February, and raised almost $300 from its members alone. Kendall said STAY members wanted to invest this money into a full time position because they saw the need for increased...

UK Student Group wants university to take action on climate, deepen commitment to EKY transition...

Editor’s Note: The following is a guest blog post from a guest blogger. The views and opinions expressed in this guest blog do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Renew Appalachia or of the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development (MACED). I’ve sensed a perception among individuals from the wider United States that Appalachia is a place where change comes slowly. The notion may hold a kernel of truth. From growing up in the hills of eastern Tennessee and Kentucky, I recall tracing my family lineage back to the early 19th century, surprised to learn how close I resided to distant, long-deceased relatives. I’ve learned that the local manner of speech bears the most resemblance to Colonial American English of any modern American dialect. Many of my neighbors still enjoy employment in the industries that their grandparents worked. We as a people have taken pride in our heritage and land, living as best as we could without travelling too far away. Malaise has come to Appalachia. Global economic competition, environmental degradation from intense mining, and rising awareness of the consequences of burning fossil fuels have left much of our region unmoored, at risk of sinking into oblivion. Central to this crisis is the decline of the coal industry, which was once the economic engine for the entire region; without our black gold, we have few options remaining to us. Circumstances have become so dire that some have lost hope in our ability to recover. These people are naysayers. Appalachia has the...