CANONSBURG, Pennsylvania, Aug. 18 -- The Conservation Fund issued the following joint news release on Aug. 17: The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (Conservancy), The Conservation Fund (the Fund), and Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC (Mountain Valley), today announced a conservation stewardship agreement that will advance the Conservancy's work to manage and protect the Appalachian National Scenic Trail (Trail), help the Fund secure additional conservation lands for public use, and enhance Trail-rela  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Aug. 19 -- Appalachian Voices issued the following joint news release: The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), on behalf of Protect Our Aquifer, Energy Alabama and Appalachian Voices, is challenging in federal court the Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) monumental decision to implement never-ending contracts designed to keep local power distributors captive customers of the federal utility forever. The contracts further entrench TVA's control over a vast network of p  more

HIRAM, Ohio, Aug. 18 -- Hiram College issued the following news: The Hiram College Board of Trustees is pleased to announce the appointment of David P. Haney, Ph.D., an established higher education leader, as interim president, effective September 1, 2020. Dr. Haney comes to Hiram College after serving two years as the President of Centenary University, a private liberal arts University in Hackettstown, New Jersey. Prior to his presidency at Centenary, Dr. Haney served four years as the Vice P  more

CULLOWHEE, North Carolina, Aug. 20 -- The North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching issued the following news: The North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching thanked Dr. Aaron L. Fleming for his service as Chairman of the Board of Trustees during the June 22nd meeting. Dr. Fleming assumed the NCCAT board leadership position on July 1, 2019. During his time on the NCCAT Board of Trustees, which he served beginning in 2012, there was sizeable growth in the number of reside  more

DURHAM, North Carolina, Aug. 20 -- The North Carolina Waste Awareness and Reduction Network issued the following news release: As a long-awaited hearing begins next Monday, attorneys for NC WARN and allies will firmly oppose Duke Energy's request for yet another electricity rate hike even as the Utilities Commission's Public Staff and other parties recently announced settlements with Duke on portions of the rate request. Duke has proposed no changes in its customer-gouging, grid "modernization"  more

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 21 -- Policy Matters Ohio, a 501(c)3 non-profit and nonpartisan state policy research institute, issued the following statement on Aug. 20 by Policy Matters Senior Researcher Amanda Woodrum: * * * ReImagine Appalachia is a diverse coalition of organizations from West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Ohio that put forward a policy blueprint to rebuild Appalachian communities through public investments that will put people to work in good-paying jobs while protecting pe  more

HYDEN, Kentucky, Aug. 22 -- Rep. Harold Rogers, R-Kentucky, issued the following news release: U.S. Rep. Harold "Hal" Rogers (KY-05) sent a letter to the board of directors at Frontier Nursing University, requesting the prompt return of a beloved 15th century stained-glass window to St. Christopher's Chapel in Hyden, Kentucky, where Mary Breckinridge pioneered the Frontier Nursing Service in the 1920s. Frontier Nursing University recently removed the historic window to be installed at its new c  more

WASHINGTON, Aug. 20 -- Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-New York, issued the following news release on Aug. 19: U.S. Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $286,263 in federal funding to expand nursing opportunities and combat workforce shortages in the Southern Tier. Specifically, this funding will be used to establish clinical education and training programs in the region. "The COVID-19 crisis has proven to us the importance of nurses in keeping the   more

WASHINGTON, Aug. 20 -- Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-New York, issued the following news release on Aug. 19: U.S. Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $286,263 in federal funding to expand nursing opportunities and combat workforce shortages in the Southern Tier. Specifically, this funding will be used to establish clinical education and training programs in the region. "The COVID-19 crisis has proven to us the importance of nurses in keeping the   more

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee, Aug. 21 -- The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy issued the following news release on Aug. 20: Today, the Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB) Board of Commissioners adopted two resolutions in order to address issues raised by the ACT on KUB campaign earlier this summer. The first resolution freezes the residential basic service charge, or fixed fee, for five years beginning in 2021. The second resolution establishes a Community Advisory Panel that will serve as a conduit of c  more

MEMPHIS, Tennessee, Aug. 19 -- The Southern Environmental Law Center issued the following news release: The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), on behalf of Protect Our Aquifer, Energy Alabama and Appalachian Voices, is challenging in federal court the Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) monumental decision to implement never-ending contracts designed to keep local power distributors captive customers of the federal utility forever. The contracts further entrench TVA's control over a vast  more

CINCINNATI, Ohio, Aug. 22 -- The University of Cincinnati issued the following news: A 1925 property deed owned by her late grandfather inspired Rhonda Pettit to address racial segregation and institutional racism in her poem 'A Deed Supreme.' It is one of two poems by Pettit included in the Anthology of Appalachian Writers Crystal Wilkinson Volume XII, which was recently released by the Shepherd University's Center for Appalachian Studies and Communities. Pettit is an English professor at the  more

RICHMOND, Virginia, Aug. 21 -- The Virginia State Corporation Commission issued the following news release: The State Corporation Commission (SCC) will receive public witness testimony by telephone on September 14, 2020, on an Appalachian Power Company rate filing that seeks a $65 million increase in annual operating revenue. Appalachian Power filed its application on March 31, 2020. The company estimates its request would result in an increase in residential rates by approximately 6.5%. For a  more

CHARLESTON, West Virginia, Aug. 19 -- Gov. Jim Justice, R-West Virginia, issued the following news release on Aug. 18: For the second time in as many weeks, Gov. Jim Justice held a virtual ceremony today to award more than a million dollars in grant funds to help ensure the survival of numerous fairs and festivals across West Virginia. Today, Gov. Justice awarded 64 additional grants, worth $1,144,010 from the Governor's Contingency Fund, to help various organizations that host fairs, festival  more

CHARLESTON, West Virginia, Aug. 18 -- The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy issued the following news release: With a full blown outbreak of COVID-19 looming in the state's regional jails, advocates reiterate the call to magistrates, circuit court judges, and prosecutors to use the full force of the new bail law to slow the spread of the virus and protect people's health and safety. According to the most recent data reported by the Department of Health and Human Resources there are 30  more

CHARLESTON, West Virginia, Aug. 21 -- The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy issued the following news release on Aug. 20: ReImagine Appalachia is diverse coalition of organizations from West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Ohio that put forward a policy blueprint to rebuild Appalachian communities through public investments that will put people to work in good-paying jobs while protecting people's health and the environment. The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy is a found  more