News & Press Releases
Appalachian Community Capital Awarded Grant from EPA’s Clean Communities Investment Accelerator
Christiansburg, VA, [April 4, 2024] – Today, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the recipients of the Clean Communities Investment Accelerator (CCIA) competition. Appalachian Community Capital (ACC) and its partners are thrilled to learn that it has been selected for a $500 million award for the Green Bank for Appalachia, Energy Communities, and Underserved Rural America (Green Bank for Rural America) by the EPA under the CCIA. The award will catalyze green energy investments in low-income rural communities across the nation, and leverage private capital to finance an anticipated $2.25 billion in 2,750 clean energy projects, create 18,000 quality jobs in rural communities, reduce energy generation from carbon-based sources by 1.4M MWh annually, and reduce carbon emissions by 12M tons annually.
Appalachian Community Capital Receives Grant from the Truist Charitable Fund for Redevelopment Projects in Central Appalachia
Christiansburg, VA., Feb. 27, 2024 – Appalachian Community Capital (ACC) today announced that it received a $350,000 matching grant from the Truist Charitable Fund, a donor-advised fund administered by The Winston-Salem Foundation. The funds will be used as part of a match for a recent $1.5 million grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) for Opportunity Appalachia (OA), an initiative to build local opportunity and wealth through capital and technical assistance aiding development projects in six Central Appalachian states: North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Kentucky.
Bank of America, Veteran Loan Fund, and ACC and Its Members Provide Support for Veteran-led Small Businesses in Appalachia
Bank of America is seeding a second round of financing for Veteran Loan Fund, doubling a two-year-old commitment that has already funded more than 500 small businesses that have created or retained more than 3,000 jobs across 37 states. Appalachian Community Capital (ACC) has already distributed $1MM in loan funds through this partnership for use in Appalachia.
ACC Power Grant From Appalachian Regional Commission Enables Expansion Of Opportunity Appalachia Program
Christiansburg, VA – Appalachian Community Capital (ACC) is pleased to announce that it has received a $1.5M grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission through ARC’s POWER (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization Initiative.) ACC’s grant is part of nearly $54 million awarded for 64 projects in 217 counties through ARC POWER which directs federal resources to economic diversification projects in Appalachian communities affected by job losses in coal mining, coal power plant operations, and coal-related supply chain industries. In addition to its newest state partner Kentucky, ACC’s POWER grant will enable current participating Appalachian states— Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia—to provide direct development technical assistance to 30 communities, engage 600 participants, create 1,200 jobs and 11 businesses, and leverage $150 million in private investment during the grant period and up to three years after.
Appalachian Community Capital Launches Technology Transformation Project for
Community Development Members in Western North Carolina
Christiansburg, VA – Dogwood Health Trust has selected Appalachian Community Capital as a recipient of its prestigious Accelerating Capital to Under-Fueled Entrepreneurs grant designed to create a dramatically healthier region in Western North Carolina. The Accelerating Capital program is focused on supporting the growth and development of non-traditional small business
lender ecosystems with the focus on enhancing their ability to meet the capital and development needs of entrepreneurs of color and rural entrepreneurs who have traditionally been underserved.
Connect Humanity Partners with Appalachian Community Capital to Raise Capital to Bridge the Digital Divide
Connect Humanity and Appalachian Community Capital (ACC) have joined forces in a bold campaign to raise $25 million through IDEA (Investing in Digital Equity in Appalachia), aiming to bridge the digital divide throughout Appalachia, one of the least connected regions in the United States.
Opportunity Appalachia Investor Convening to Showcase High Impact Projects Anticipated to Create Thousands of Jobs
Opportunity Appalachia, a project of Appalachian Community Capital, is hosting a virtual investor convening on May 31 – June 1, 2023.The convening will feature 33 Opportunity Appalachia projects looking to develop relationships with investment partners. The 2023 Project Portfolio is seeking $252 million in financing and is anticipated to create 3,000 jobs – including jobs for individuals in addiction recovery, the long-term unemployed (such as former coal industry workers), minorities, and women.
Appalachian Community Capital has received a grant of over $600,000 as part of the CDFI Fund’s CDFI Equitable Recovery Program.
April 2023
Under this program, over $1.73 billion in grants were awarded to 603 CDFIs across the country through CDFI ER, which represent the largest CDFI grant program in history. These grants are intended to spur economic recovery for areas most severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Virginia CDFI Coalition Celebrates Win For Virginia
March 2023
On March 28, 2023, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin signed into law Senate Bill 1320 (SB 1320) and House Bill 1411 (HB 1411), codifying and recapitalizing the Virginia Community Development Financial Institution Fund (VA CDFI Fund). Both bills overwhelmingly passed the Virginia General Assembly in February 2023.
Appalachian Community Capital Receives $510,000 Award from Treasury’s CDFI Fund to Support Small Business Lending across Appalachia
February 2023
Christiansburg, VA – Appalachian Community Capital (ACC) has received a
$510,000 grant from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund’s (CDFI) Program to increase lending for small businesses in historically underserved areas in the 13-state Appalachian region.
ACC HIRES CHIEF LENDING AND IMPACT OFFICER
February 2023
ACC is pleased to announce that Julia J. Parker has joined Appalachian Community Capital as its Chief Lending and Impact Officer (CLIO).
The CLIO is a member of the executive team and has overall responsibility for ACC’s lending program and continued innovation. Primary responsibilities include: meeting annual lending goals; developing strategies to meet identified investment gaps in ACC’s service area; designing and implementing new and updated financial products and services that are responsive to the needs of clients; and maintaining loan and grant policies and systems.
This is a remote position serving the Appalachian Region, which includes the entire state of West Virginia and portions of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.
Ms. Parker has extensive knowledge of and experience in economic development, small business lending, impact investing, and supporting underserved and diverse communities and populations.
Opportunity Appalachia
Bringing jobs, business support, and investment to Central Appalachian communities
Opportunity Appalachia today announced selection of 8 projects to participate in a program to bring jobs, business support, and investment to Central Appalachia. The selected projects propose to create over 310 jobs and attract $27 million in financing to develop and expand childcare centers, outdoor recreation, food business incubator and support facilities, regional airport facilities, and hotels in downtown and rural areas across East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia.
