Former WCHS athlete, honor student completes internship with CEDIK for downtown revitalization

This summer, the Community and Economic Development Initiative of Kentucky (CEDIK) hosted Lilly Rice (Whitley County High School, Class of 2019) as a downtown revitalization intern.

Lilly is from Corbin, and is currently completing her bachelor’s degree in economics with a minor in sustainability at Berea College. Throughout her academic career she has worked at the Loyal Jones Appalachian Center on various efforts and projects related to Appalachia and has a strong interest in economic development and policy in the region. Over the course of her 10-week internship Lilly worked with CEDIK staff and community partners on a variety of projects in support of ongoing collaborative efforts connected to philanthropic responses to disaster, small business support and community planning.   

This summer’s experience was designed to provide a wide range of opportunities intersecting with several of Lilly’s interests while building upon her existing talents and introducing her to new skills.

Lilly worked with the Foundation of Appalachian Kentucky, the Appalachian Impact Fund, and Invest 606 to help develop an assessment to garner feedback from recipients of 2020’s Southeast Kentucky Downtown Business Stimulus Fund and 2021’s Appalachian Kentucky Local Business Flood Relief Fund. The timing unfortunately couldn’t have been more critical considering the unprecedented flooding that devastated eastern Kentucky communities in late July.

Lilly’s efforts provided insights to philanthropic partners on the types of support local businesses received, what they felt was most impactful and what technical assistance they still needed.

“This summer, I was grateful for the opportunity to be able to do work that I feel is significant for the growth of Eastern Kentucky’s economic development,” Rice said. “But it was most important for me to find an opportunity to be involved in community development that took into account Appalachian values.”

“I’m also glad that I was able to help communities throughout their strategic planning process identify their own needs because it allowed the community’s autonomy in their development which was essential for me when looking for an internship that fit me well.”

Lilly also worked directly with Shane Barton, CEDIK’s Downtown Revitalization Coordinator, on Business Retention and Expansion efforts in Letcher County as part of an Appalachian Regional Commission funded POWER project titled Revitalize, Redevelop and Reinvest Initiative. She was able to observe and contribute to the analysis of BRE data and support the drafting of the community report that captured the perceptions and needs of local businesses in Whitesburg.

Lilly was also engaged in several community listening sessions and public engagement meetings hosted by the Jackson County Development Association as part of their ongoing countywide strategic plan update process.

As part of this effort, Lilly was involved in the planning of the meetings and successfully tested her public facilitation skills while navigating a wide range of community conversations. Specifically, she was critical in capturing community comments and feedback related to a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis. She diligently summarized the results and organized them using a community capitals framework that she was recently introduced to as part of this project.   

When reflecting on Lilly’s experience this summer, Barton said, “Having interns like Lilly and being able to see their contributions in real time is one of the most rewarding aspects of mentoring emergent development professionals. She held her own and picked up skills she will lean into as she continues to blaze her own professional path. I look forward to seeing what the future holds for her.”

By Shane Barton, CEDIK Downtown Revitalization Coordinator, for the News Journal