The Appalachia Partnership Initiative's investments in workforce development and catalyzing the community: reflections from 2014 through 2018

Recognizing the workforce and education challenges facing the energy and advanced manufacturing industries in the tri-state Appalachia region of southwestern Pennsylvania, northern West Virginia, and eastern Ohio, the Social Investment Team of the Chevron North American Appalachian Mountain Business Unit launched the Appalachia Partnership Initiative (API) in 2014 and committed to investing $20 million to support K–12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and workforce development programs to educate and train local adult workers in energy and advanced manufacturing industries. In addition to the Chevron Corporation, founding partners include the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation. Additional partners to join API were Grable Foundation (in 2016) and Catalyst Connection (in 2017). The RAND Corporation serves as the external research and analysis lead for the API. RAND researchers are conducting an assessment of the API's progress toward its vision and goals, with interim assessments conducted annually from 2016 to 2019. This report is the third assessment and focuses on API's progress in meeting its goals and vision for workforce development activities and community catalyst initiatives from October 2014 through December 2018.

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