Public, private and nonprofit leaders throughout Appalachia are encouraged to apply for ARC’s free eight-month training program.
WASHINGTON, D.C., May 1, 2025 —Today, the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) opened applications for the seventh class of the Appalachian Leadership Institute (ALI), an eight-month leadership development training opportunity with a focus on economic development in Appalachia. Anyone living or working in Appalachia’s 423 counties is eligible to apply.
The program, at no cost to participants, focuses on skill-building, mentoring and collaboration to grow Appalachia’s economic future. The curriculum comprises six multi-day seminars across Appalachia, each focusing on one of ARC’s investment priorities, and concludes with a graduation ceremony in West Virginia.
From October 2025 to June 2026, the seventh cohort of fellows will learn to:
- Recognize and utilize unique assets in their communities to build economic development plans.
- Identify and implement strategies to strengthen their communities through improved infrastructure, business development, workforce development, tourism and community capacity building.
- Collaborate with a network of leaders across Appalachia on strategies to expand the region’s future growth.
“Collaboration is key to ensuring a prosperous future for Appalachia,” said ARC Federal Co-Chair Gayle Manchin. “I’m encouraged by the way ARC’s Appalachian Leadership Institute prepares our region’s leaders to make lasting impacts on their communities by working together, and I invite changemakers from all 13 Appalachian states to apply to be part our seventh ALI cohort.”
The Appalachian Leadership Institute is limited to 40 fellows each year and includes participants from each of the 13 Appalachian states. Applicants may be from the public, private or non-profit sectors, and each class represents a wide network of experiences.
“ARC’s Appalachian Leadership Institute brings together a diverse group of people to work together toward a shared goal: bolstering the economy of the entire Appalachian region,” said Maryland Governor and 2025 States’ Co-Chair Wes Moore. “Maryland’s ALl graduates are among our state’s leaders and innovators across the public and private sectors, and we look forward to seeing our next group of changemakers join forces to realize even more economic development potential.”
Upon completion of the program, fellows automatically join the ALI Alumni Network, a peer-to-peer working group committed to collaborative solutions that strengthen Appalachia. The alumni network provides an opportunity to stay connected to the network of more than 200 ALI alumni and to continue learning from leaders in Appalachian economic development.
Applications for the 2025-2026 class are open through June 15, 2025. To learn more about the program and apply, visit: arc.gov/leadership.
About the Appalachian Leadership Institute
The Appalachian Leadership Institute is a comprehensive regional leadership training program developed by the Appalachian Regional Commission in partnership with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; The Howard H. Baker Jr. School for Public Policy and Public Affairs; Tuskegee University; and Collective Impact. The current class of the Appalachian Leadership Institute includes representatives from a variety of sectors and industries such as education, healthcare, economic development, public service, and other professions.
About the Appalachian Regional Commission
The Appalachian Regional Commission is an economic development entity of the federal government and 13 state governments focusing on 423 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.