Hilham Native Selected To Attend Appalachian Leader Institute

Hilham’s Adam Mansell one of 40 people across 13 states to participate in the Appalachian Leadership Institute.

The Appalachian Regional Commission organizes the 9-month workshop to study economic development. Mansell said sessions begin this week.

“I grew up less than 10 minutes from Standing Stone State Park  in Hilham,” Mansell said. “Such a great example of things that are in our backyard that are a common place to us, but they are really world class assets. So, I want to help brain storm ways that we can not only draw visitors to these communities, but monetize it.”

Mansell said as the Director of Research for State Department of Tourism Development, he wants to promote economic development statewide. Mansell said the leadership institute will give the opportunity to learn new strategies from other professionals.

“I also think that economic development has to be a regional approach, and ARC does a really great job with connecting you with a pretty robust network of leaders,” Mansell said. “Not only across the state of Tennessee, but all the way from Mississippi up to New York all through out Appalachia.”

Participants will attend skill-building seminars featuring regional experts, peer-to-peer learning and case study analysis. The program begins virtually but culminates with the Class of 2021-2022’s graduation in July 2022.

“As we approach economic development, it’s important to think about it in a way that is going to be sustainable for our local culture and our environment,” Mansell said. “People live in Appalachia, because it is such a beautiful, welcoming place to be. If we are inviting tourists to the region, we want to make sure we aren’t disrupting what makes that community so great.”