The Alliance of West Virginia Champion Communities inspires leadership by example. Those who participate learn how to facilitate meetings, develop agendas, conduct surveys and network with other leaders. Members mentor emerging community leaders in structuring projects, writing grant applications, organizing volunteers and other important leadership skills.

Providing Strategic Leadership

Established in 1993, The Alliance recognizes the need for rural communities to have access to effective technology resources. We believe all people deserve knowledge of and access to emerging technologies so they may use these tools to affect their own destinies.

Information was collected about technological and community development for members to use. It includes:

* Employment trends
* Businesses located within The Alliance communities
* Industry clusters with GIS capacity
* Community development tools and information
* Inventory of expertise within The Alliance communities
* White papers developed by The Alliance communities
* Training opportunities
* Information on grants and proposal development
* Data useful to attaining The Alliance mission

Our efforts have raised awareness among legislators, educators, health care providers and other industries. As a result, many residents of The Alliance communities are now selling products and services produced locally to consumers and business clients worldwide.

Sharing Development Experience

The Alliance of West Virginia Champion Communities was initiated through the Empowerment Zone Program. Each Champion Community directive was to improve community development and mitigate the negative effects of economic problems due to job losses. The initiative empowered each community to identify and solve their own problems and achieve sustainable development. Several grants, including Small Cities Block Grants were received to fund the efforts.

To facilitate these changes and support "grass-roots" community planning and development among member Champion Communities, The Alliance established a base of operations and assumed responsibility for the following:

* Conducting technology and community development education and marketing
* Ensuring access to emerging technologies
* Disseminating development policy change information
* Providing a forum for sharing "best practices"
* Facilitating replication of successful programs through development and publication of white papers
* Creating and managing a development plan to assure sustainability of The Alliance through membership rules, grants and gifts, and providing services for fees.

Expanding Access To Technology

The Alliance has opened discussions with internet providers on ways to extend access into unserved and underserved rural communities. The results of the BAP survey will be used to develop a strategy of where commercial providers can offer high speed internet service, where demand can be expanded, and where other methods of provided service need to be explored.