ARC NEWS ROUND-UP | DECEMBER 8, 2016

In this Issue

•	ARC Spotlight
•	Appalachia in the News
•	Investments in Action
•	Upcoming Events

ARC SPOTLIGHT

Mentoring Advanced Energy in Tennessee

Applications are now open for national mentors and Tennessee’s advanced energy startups to join the Energy Mentor Network.

Since 2011, ARC has been a committed partner in Launch Tennessee (LaunchTN), a public-partner partnership to make Tennessee a destination for entrepreneurship, innovation, and high-quality jobs. Under Governor Bill Haslam’s leadership, LaunchTN has been managing a statewide accelerator support program with the tools to build a strong and connected entrepreneurial ecosystem.

This week, LaunchTN and the Tennessee Advanced Energy Business Council formally debuted the Energy Mentor Network to capitalize on the state’s advanced energy market. Using a proven structured program developed by CONNECT San Diego, the Network pairs promising Tennessee energy technology startups with mentors in the advanced energy sector. As a result of the program, these new startups will be armed with a rock-solid business model, a ready-to-use business pitch deck, and other tools to help them to raise capital and scale their company. Currently, nearly 325,000 Tennesseans work in the advanced energy sector and more than 17,000 energy business entities that contribute $33.4 billion to the State GDP. The Energy Mentor Network will foster the growth of Tennessee’s advanced energy entrepreneurial ecosystem because it gives startups a leg-up in a marketplace where Tennessee has a distinct advantage.

APPALACHIA IN THE NEWS

ACMC Cuts the Ribbon on Renovated Cancer Center, Star Beacon, Ashtabula, Ohio

Piedmont School System Receives $70K Grant for Career Training, Anniston Star, Anniston, Alabama

Lonely Planet Names Asheville Best in U.S., Asheville Citizen-Times, Asheville, North Carolina

The Golden Triangle, 60 Minutes

Speak Your Piece: Just Say No to ‘Poverty Porn’, Daily Yonder

Drone-Delivered Health Care in Rural Appalachia, Clinical Advisor Magazine

ARC Career Opportunities
Are you a network master? Software superhero? Tech wizard? We are recruiting for an IT specialist at ARC's Washington, D.C., headquarters.

Do you have a vision for economic development in North Carolina? North Carolina’s Department of Commerce, ARC’s state partner in the Tarheel State, is recruiting for a community development planner.

INVESTMENTS IN ACTION

Main Street Makeover in Appalachia

What do Frostburg, Maryland, and Marietta, Ohio, have in common? They are two Appalachian locations under consideration for the second annual Small Business Revolution on Main Street national competition! Frostburg (population 8,700) recently underwent its own Main Street makeover by renovating facades, upgrading sidewalks and streetlights, opening scores of new restaurants and pubs, and debuting its new community center in a rehabbed auto showroom. Many of these efforts were supported by Maryland’s state Main Street Program with additional support from ARC. Meanwhile, Marietta, Ohio’s oldest “city” (population 14,000), is home to festivals, shops, restaurants, and the historic People’s Theater which attracts local, regional, and national performers. Both towns were chosen from 14,000 submissions as semi-finalists in the Small Business Revolution on Main Street competition. Over the next few weeks, Frostburg and Marietta will be visited by a Small Business Revolution production team who will produce a video series about their unique Mainstreet vision. In February, the Small Business Revolution will ask the public to vote on which town should win a $500,000 grand prize and have their video series featured on Hulu next year.

Frostburg, Maryland, and Marietta, Ohio, are on the Small Business Revolution’s shortlist for most inspiring small towns.

UPCOMING EVENTS

SOAR Connect Your Economy Seminar
Pikeville, Kentucky
December 15–16, 2016

2017 DDAA Management Training
Greenville, South Carolina
January 17–19, 2017

AACC Workforce Development Institute
Newport Beach, CA
January 25–28, 2017

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is an economic development agency of the federal government and 13 state governments focusing on 420 counties across the Appalachian Region. ARC’s mission is to innovate, partner, and invest to build community capacity and strengthen economic growth in Appalachia to help the Region achieve socioeconomic parity with the nation.

Appalachian Regional Commission
1666 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20009-1068
www.arc.gov | info@arc.gov

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