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NO SECTION NAVIGATION Moving Appalachia Forward: ARC Strategic Plan, 2005–2010
Delivering Results and Measuring Performance

Performance Measures


As an investor in grassroots economic development, ARC's performance is in large measure dependent on the achievements of its local, state, and regional partners. To measure its effectiveness, ARC will look at the following four areas of performance:
  • Leverage. ARC will measure additional public and private financial and technical support attracted by Commission investments.
  • Jobs. ARC will gauge its involvement in job-generating programs by both the quantity and the quality of jobs created.
  • Employability. ARC will measure improvements in high school graduation rates, increases in college attendance and graduation rates, the number of participants completing workforce training programs, and the number of children served in early childhood education programs.
  • Infrastructure Development and Connectivity. ARC will look at the number of citizens served; connections made between modes of transportation, particularly between railways and highways; and highway miles opened to traffic.

Performance Goals


Assuming ARC's annual funding remains at the current level, the Commission is committed to the following six-year and ten-year performance goals:

Six-Year Performance Goals
  • 120,000 jobs will be created or retained.
  • 120,000 households will be served with new or improved water and sewer infrastructure.
  • 120,000 citizens of the Region will benefit from enhanced education and job-related skills.
  • 150 miles of the Appalachian Development Highway System will be opened to traffic (based on the current level of transportation funding from the U.S. Congress).

Ten-Year Performance Goals

  • 200,000 jobs will be created or retained.
  • 200,000 households will be served with new or improved water and sewer infrastructure.
  • 200,000 citizens of the Region will benefit from enhanced education and job-related skills.
  • 250 miles of the Appalachian Development Highway System will be opened to traffic (based on the current level of transportation funding from the U.S. Congress).

The Appalachian Regional Commission tracks the programs it supports and reports its findings regarding performance on a yearly basis. ARC's current performance and accountability report can be found on the ARC Web site at www.arc.gov.

Human Resources


ARC is composed of the governors of the 13 Appalachian states and a presidential appointee representing the federal government. The governors elect one of their members each year to serve as the states' co-chair; the federal representative serves as the federal co-chair.

Each year, the governors develop state Appalachian strategies, including projects for ARC funding that will help carry out these strategies, and submit them to the Commission. The strategies are reviewed and approved at a meeting of all the governors and the federal co-chair.

After the states submit project applications to ARC, they are reviewed by ARC's program analysts. The process is completed when the federal co-chair reviews each project and formally approves it.

To meet its strategic objectives, the Appalachian Regional Commission relies on experienced, professional staff to deliver the following five critical skill sets:

  • Networking and Grassroots Empowerment. Providing stakeholders with access to critical partners and essential organizational support.
  • Technical Expertise. Guiding leaders in the Region through infrastructure and program development and delivery.
  • Leadership and Advocacy. Representing the priorities of the Region to state and federal leaders.
  • Oversight, Management, and Quality Control. Ensuring a high-quality result.
  • Communication. External and internal communication of ARC plans, programs, and activities.

Federal and Commission staff are centrally located in Washington, D.C., to deliver services to the entire Region. State-funded staff are located in each of the 13 Appalachian states, with a regional representative located in Washington, D.C. Provision of staff by each of the states exhibits their commitment to the ARC partnership. This unique partnership serves to reduce the federal overhead expenses of operating the program while concentrating efforts on high-quality program management.

Program Management


ARC is committed to an administrative structure that encourages the highest-quality performance and supports the greatest amount of organizational flexibility. ARC manages programs and activities by providing staff focus in the following five areas:
  • Support to Local Development Districts. ARC staff provide support and services to the local development districts, including information and technical assistance for planning and grant making, professional development training, and administration. (Local development districts in the Appalachian Region.)
  • Program Support. ARC staff implement programs in partnership with federal and local organizations. Upon request, ARC staff provide technical assistance to partners on infrastructure, human resource development, and organizational capacity building.
  • Planning and Research. ARC staff assist stakeholders by reviewing relevant state strategies, collecting data, and assisting with the creation of performance measures. ARC planners and researchers evaluate projects, manage the research portfolio for the Commission, and collect and analyze data to assess the effectiveness of the ARC strategic plan.
  • Outreach. ARC staff provide communications support both internally and externally, to stakeholders and strategic decision makers; support ARC-sponsored events and meetings; and create and support regional councils, working groups, and task forces to focus on specific regionwide challenges and opportunities.
  • Finance and Administration. ARC staff perform all financial management, accounting, and budget support functions for the organization; maintain the grants management information system and other information technology operations; manage the ARC Web site, publications, and other administrative functions; and handle procurement and supply.

Communication


In order to ensure the implementation of the ARC strategic plan, the Commission will communicate the goals, objectives, and strategies of the plan throughout the agency and to the regional partners. Communication within the agency will involve an ongoing process of sharing the challenges and opportunities of moving the Region to national socioeconomic parity. ARC will communicate the new plan and strategies to the regional partners through newsletters, conferences, Commission meetings, and local development district workshops. This will be an ongoing process, with regular reporting at conferences and events.

ARC staff will be accountable for monitoring and communicating progress in achieving the mission, goals, and objectives.