Community Projects

Community Engagement

UVA Wise’s Center for Appalachian Studies provides opportunities for students to learn by doing. In the spirit of the campus's broader experiential learning initiatives, through programs like UVA Wise CONNECTS, students in Appalachian-focused courses commonly participate in projects that aim to address regional challenges, meet specific needs of partner organizations, or provide new information about the region, its people, and its environment to public audiences.

Community-engaged projects are discipline specific. Students in regional courses have previously studied area wildlife populations and medicinal plants, volunteered for local naturalist rallies, created podcasts featuring regional authors, and conducted research on historic properties that contributed to nominations for the National Register of Historic Places.

Certain courses within the Appalachian Studies curriculum may be designated as "Academic Community Engagement," or ACE, courses. Designation of these courses is at the discretion of faculty members and may be subject to change. If a course is "ACE" designated, it counts toward the liberal arts core requirement for experiential learning.