Morehead State University
Quality of Life Indicators for Community Sustainability: Rowan County, Kentucky
Institution
Morehead State University
Faculty Advisor/ Mentor
Christine McMichael; Stephen Lange
Abstract
This project is directed at better understanding what factors contribute to long-term community sustainability in Rowan County in eastern Kentucky. While the scholarly literature and prior student research do identify several factors, we still do not have a clear answer to the question “Why is this area so persistently distressed?” We have come to recognize, however, that the major obstacle to answering this question is the lack of suitable quantitative and qualitative data on which to base such scholarly studies. Consequently, we are working with local leaders to identify, collect, and analyze data on key economic, political, environmental, socio-cultural, and educational indicators, among others, that will help them better understand, improve, and sustain our community’s long-term socio-economic condition and quality of life. Our Community Indicators Project is a key component in an ongoing initiative to collect and disseminate useful information to local citizens and leaders working together toward a shared vision of a more sustainable community. The long-term objective of this research, which future students will continue, is to identify definitively the underlying factors that account for the persistent distress of this particular community and of the East Kentucky region generally.
Quality of Life Indicators for Community Sustainability: Rowan County, Kentucky
This project is directed at better understanding what factors contribute to long-term community sustainability in Rowan County in eastern Kentucky. While the scholarly literature and prior student research do identify several factors, we still do not have a clear answer to the question “Why is this area so persistently distressed?” We have come to recognize, however, that the major obstacle to answering this question is the lack of suitable quantitative and qualitative data on which to base such scholarly studies. Consequently, we are working with local leaders to identify, collect, and analyze data on key economic, political, environmental, socio-cultural, and educational indicators, among others, that will help them better understand, improve, and sustain our community’s long-term socio-economic condition and quality of life. Our Community Indicators Project is a key component in an ongoing initiative to collect and disseminate useful information to local citizens and leaders working together toward a shared vision of a more sustainable community. The long-term objective of this research, which future students will continue, is to identify definitively the underlying factors that account for the persistent distress of this particular community and of the East Kentucky region generally.