Participation Type
Discussion
Session Title
Session 5.18 Foodways and Development
Presentation #1 Title
Launching the Supporting Emerging Appalachian Leadership (SEAL) Network
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
The Supporting Emerging Appalachian Leadership (SEAL) network will work to address the need for committed, skilled and supported young leaders who are capable of transforming Appalachia by promoting shared prosperity based on development instead of extraction. We seek to move the central Appalachian region toward a more creative economy with emerging leaders at the forefront in non-profit organizations, small business, philanthropy, government entities, and educational institutions. SEAL feels strongly that now is the critical time to create and allow avenues to invest in and capitalize on our emerging leaders, the very people who will serve as decision-makers in a region that they will continue to work and grow in. Please join this session to find out how your group can become a member of this new, exciting network. You can be a network member that leads the region in finding spaces and places for emerging leaders to contribute, grow and thrive.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Ada Smith is from Whitesburg, KY. She graduated from Hampshire College and has been rooted at home ever since. Ada is currently the Institutional Development Director for Appalshop, a multidisciplinary arts and education center in the heart of the coalfields. She is also a founding member of The STAY Project- a youth-run, multi-issue central Appalachian regional network.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #2
Elandria coordinates Highlander’s work with youth and intergenerational organizing. Before coming to Highlander she was involved in popular education and organizing around anti-oppression, anti-racism, nonviolence, education reform, the prison military industrial complex, and intergenerational education and organizing with many different organizations, including the Fellowship of Reconciliation, the Unitarian Universalist Association, and the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. She is now on the Coordinating Committee of the US Solidarity Economy Network and on the National Council of Churches Ecumenical Young Adult Ministries Team.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #3
Stephanie Tyree joined the WV Development Hub as the Director of Community Engagement and Policy in November 2012. A native of Charleston, Stephanie has an undergraduate degree for the University of Pittsburgh and a J.D. from New York University School of Law. She brings a range of skills to her work with the Hub including facilitation, leadership development, community organizing, legal and policy research and writing, public speaking, coalition coordinating and collaborative community engagement. Since returning home to West Virginia in 2009, Stephanie has worked in the southern coalfields as a community organizer and state policy coordinator.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #4
Ethan Hamblin is from Gays Creek, KY in southeastern Kentucky. He is 22 years old and is currently pursuing a degree in Appalachian Studies from Berea College. He serves as the student intern for the Brushy Fork Institute and helped begin the Youth Philanthropy Initiative at the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky.
Launching the Supporting Emerging Appalachian Leadership (SEAL) Network
Harris Hall 302
The Supporting Emerging Appalachian Leadership (SEAL) network will work to address the need for committed, skilled and supported young leaders who are capable of transforming Appalachia by promoting shared prosperity based on development instead of extraction. We seek to move the central Appalachian region toward a more creative economy with emerging leaders at the forefront in non-profit organizations, small business, philanthropy, government entities, and educational institutions. SEAL feels strongly that now is the critical time to create and allow avenues to invest in and capitalize on our emerging leaders, the very people who will serve as decision-makers in a region that they will continue to work and grow in. Please join this session to find out how your group can become a member of this new, exciting network. You can be a network member that leads the region in finding spaces and places for emerging leaders to contribute, grow and thrive.
