At the beginning of the Fall semester of 2024, I was presented with an incredible opportunity to deepen my knowledge about Appalachia through a unique learning experience that integrated academic study with practical community involvement. This initiative was made possible through an inspiring collaboration between the University of Pittsburgh and the Fayette County Cultural Trust. This collaboration is also known as the Appalachian Collegiate Research Initiative (ACRI), which aims to foster a better understanding of the region’s rich culture, history, and socioeconomic challenges.

The University of Pittsburgh entered into a 10-year commitment and partnership with the Fayette County Cultural Trust to co-create knowledge, support and enhance the community, and investigate innovative avenues and strategies to boost economic development in the region. This partnership not only focuses on local communities but also emphasizes the importance of student engagement and research, creating a platform for future leaders to emerge. What I thought I signed up for, and what I experienced turned out to be the best decision I didn’t know I was making. This adventure led me to engage deeply with the local culture, forge lasting relationships, and develop a new appreciation for the resilience and ingenuity of the Appalachian people.

Fayette County, Pennsylvania is located just 60 miles south of Pittsburgh, just an hour’s drive away and suddenly you are transported to a place that could not be more different from the city of Pittsburgh. The difference does not lie in the people, the differences lie in the circumstances. The Appalachian Region and its story have been depicted and described by countless storytellers, historians, politicians, and has been memorialized in movies, pop culture, folk and country songs for generations. These depictions and attempts to understand or explain this vast and diverse region sadly fall prey to opportunistic displays of polarization and division. False portrayals of Appalachia and the proud people that call this region home fail to deter the legacy this region and its people continue to carry forward.

This was not the first time I had studied the Appalachian region at the University of Pittsburgh, I had previously taken the Politics of Appalachia course offered by Dr. Kanthak. This course provided me with the political history of Appalachia, introduced me to the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) and broadened my understanding of the formation of extractive economies in the Appalachian Region. This knowledge was pivotal for me and provided the tools I needed to enter into this work without bias or stereotype and allowed me to work with, and for the community members. All too often we like to solve problems, immediately moving to come up with the quickest solution, without taking the time to fully understand or define the problem. Appalachia and communities like Fayette County are unique regions with specific needs, there is no universal answer, and there are layers to uncover together.

On paper, the Appalachia Region, and consequently Fayette County Pennsylvania are often referred to as “left-behind places”, a phrase used to describe the failure to keep economic pace with the rest of the country. The rise of large cities and suburban areas provides a stark contrast to rural areas. I would argue that rural areas like Fayette County, are not backwards, forgotten or abandoned. The phrase of “left-behind places” in Fayette County is semantic wordplay to describe the lack of investment and opportunities these communities need to transcend a life of struggle and survival into the ability to thrive and flourish. Sure, life in Fayette County moves at a slower pace, but there is also more intentionality and community here. Families here have grown up alongside one another for generations, people know one another, and they look out for and care for one another and their community.

This area is steeped in history from historic battlefields to incredible architecture and a rich culture of crafts that carry decades of artisan knowledge. A deeply patriotic area with a storied history of service and sacrifice in the military. Communities rally around fundraisers, they support local youth sports, and you can find plenty of loyal and mostly proud Steelers fans. People in Fayette County work hard, they play hard and take care of what they have worked so hard for. This is a community that is committed to each other and this place.

The urban rural divide is another tool of polarization that leverages competition to explain why some areas have resources and opportunities and some do not. Plenty of people love to live in rural areas, they want to know their neighbors and raise their children together as a community. They enjoy the slower pace of life, the unobstructed views of the night sky, and the sense of security that comes with life in rural areas. These communities don’t want to be big cities, they don’t want the traffic, the overcrowding, the noise, or the lack of natural landscapes. They don’t want city life, they want opportunity.

As a consequence of this work, I was able to enhance my capacity for relationship building while navigating unique power dynamics, bridging political divides and create lasting partnerships rooted in common goals and shared reciprocity. Understanding my positionality and role in this project was to listen, learn, encourage, and bear witness to their struggles and triumphs. Understanding my position as an outsider and a student at a university in the big city, and what it must feel like and look like to the community members was the key to connection. I remained cognizant of the way I dressed, the language I used, the way I needed to appear knowledgeable and ready to learn at the same time. We weren’t there to study the people of Appalachia and Fayette County, and we weren’t there to point out every single one of their struggles and barriers. We weren’t coming in to fix or solve their problems, they didn’t need to be fixed or solved, they needed partners. Partners who were committed to working for and with the community just as fiercely as the people who have lived there all of their lives.

ACRI is precisely that partnership led by an incredible team of Professors that remain deeply devoted to Fayette County and to the students who take on this project. Dr. Kanthak, Dr. Schultz, Dr. Sanchez, and Dr. Glass truly are the reason this project life changing, not only for the communities of Fayette County, but for the lives of the students in this project as well. This goes far beyond the books and research of academia and epitomizes true leadership in community engagement. The responsibility and trust they placed in us empowered us to dig deeper, get curious, ask more questions, and consider new strategies. The skills and experience gained through this project under the guidance of four brilliant professors cannot be matched anywhere on the University of Pittsburgh’s campus.

This scope of this project and research was substantial, four different groups all with their own projects, ideas and goals pulled together countless hours of interviews, notes, readings and previous research to invest in the success of Fayette County and each other. It required translating academic language theories and ideas into real world conversations, then back into academic language only to be translated back. Meeting people where they are and leveling the field towards equity, so everyone can participate was integral to forming the connections needed to see this project to completion. At the end of this project, a large portion of this year’s cohort expressed the desire to continue the work, we wanted to do more, and I think that speaks to the deep connections and relationships that were built throughout this project.

I think when I am older and I look back and remember this project and my experiences in Fayette County, I will reflect on the gratitude and appreciation I have for the time the community gave us to share in their stories. I will remember Touchstone Center for Crafts and my immediate reaction was to convince them to let me move there. I will remember the quiet mornings before we shared breakfast in the morning, and the stories and laughter shared by the fireplace at night. I will remember the worm, navigating Laurel Caverns wondering if I would survive, only to leave with a self-published manifesto. I will remember the spirit and hope the team shared and the deep conversations that continue between us today. I am thankful for the willingness to engage with outsiders and eagerness to share their struggles, their ideas, and their hopes and dreams for the future of Fayette County. My trip to Fayette County will continue to be a reminder that you can learn anything from anyone, anywhere if you are willing to be a little bit brave, very curious, and willing to listen. Urban or rural, republican or democrat, college degree or high school diploma, at the end of the day people are people. People are full of hope and possibility and when given the right opportunities they will come together despite their differing backgrounds to work tirelessly to achieve their goals together. Fayette County will always remind me that the world truly is a better place when the measure of our success at the end of the day is how we treat each other.