University of Pittsburgh, Appalachian Teaching Project Encompasses Connellsville and the Surrounding Area
The University of Pittsburgh, Appalachian Teaching Project encompasses Connellsville and the surrounding area Realizing Regional Resilience: Appalachian Bridges to the Future. University of Pittsburgh students, alongside an interdisciplinary team of faculty, collaborated with the Fayette County Cultural Trust (FCCT) to develop a pilot platform for community-engaged research and pedagogy about how to sustain and enhance the economic development of rural and small urban spaces in the southwestern Pennsylvania region. This interdisciplinary platform brings together a wide range of students and research skills to evaluate how to address the consequences of the rural brain drain in the post-Covid-19 era. At the start of this long-term partnership, students worked with the FCCT to identify the cultural, artistic, historic, and natural assets that are most appropriate for engaged research at this time. Through the partnership, students will have the opportunity to help FCCT in ongoing established efforts to curb the brain drain and to help identify new approaches and possibilities. As part of this project students constructed a Scope of Work and presented their findings to community partners. In addition, throughout the course students were asked to critically reflect on their experiences through prompts on a public blog. The desired outcome of this collaboration is for the team to serve as a valuable resource for their community partner and for the two to continue working towards building a more resilient future for the region. Through an Appalachian Regional Commission grant, a University of Pittsburgh study is looking at how Connellsville and other distressed communities in this area can use their resources to spur economic development
and turn around a decadelong “brain drain” — where college-educated residents leave to go elsewhere for better jobs, higher pay or a different lifestyle. Bryan Schultz, director of Pitt’s global and experiential programs at Pitt’s honors college is heading this project in cooperation with the Fayette County Cultural Trust. University of Pittsburgh seniors will be spearheading this project to study area assets of Connellsville and the area, and the difficulties these assets face. These area assets include historical sites, national parks and other areas that attract visitors. The study is designed to evaluate the area’s natural resources, infrastructure assets and human capital, to basically enhance our competitive position and quality of life in the post-pandemic period. Appalachian communities such as Connellsville might become attractive places to live because of the lower cost of living at a time when working from home and flexible work schedules are becoming more popular. It’s always a good idea to see, from the younger individuals, what would attract them here and what would make them stay in this area. The Fayette County Cultural Trust gave the University of Pittsburgh students a tour of the city on October 19, 2021. The students then met with business owners and city officials who gave students a sense of what they can build on in the future. The challenges are daunting for any economic recovery in Fayette County. The poverty rate in Fayette County was 17.5% in 2019, about 21% of its population is over 65, the per capita income was only $27,360 and only 17% of the residents are college-educated, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
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