Students in App State’s GEAR UP L.E.A.D. (Leadership. Empowerment. Advocacy. Discovery.) program are pictured in App State’s Plemmons Student Union during a visit to the Boone campus. The flourishing college access program receive administrative support from App State’s Office of Rural Promise. Photo submitted
BOONE, N.C. — Building on its 126-year history as a rural-serving institution, Appalachian State University has launched the Office of Rural Promise (ORP) — a unit formed to foster regional connections and support growing programs that empower students and educators at North Carolina schools. ORP is one of several App State units that strategically support the university’s research and innovation enterprise.
Leveraging new and existing grant-supported programs, the Office of Rural Promise builds strategic partnerships to solve big challenges in rural communities; designs and implements services that impact rural students, families and educators; conducts research and evaluates programs; and recommends strategies and policy. It includes:
- College Access Partnerships, which administers programs to prepare middle and high school students for postsecondary education that furthers their career opportunities.
- Learning in the Professions, an innovative research initiative that empowers educators to direct and design their own professional development pathways.
- The Rural Education Collaborative, a coordinating body that facilitates pooled resources and knowledge sharing to benefit North Carolina’s rural schools.
“The work of the Office of Rural Promise is driven by deeply rooted partnerships in our schools and communities. We are excited about our potential to strategically support and amplify the significant impact of these programs,” said Dr. Christine Hendren, vice chancellor of research and innovation at App State. “This integration builds on past successes that align foundationally with our university’s mission to intentionally connect our endeavors with service to the people of our region.”
The staff members of App State’s Office of Rural Promise are pictured at a staff retreat. The office is home to multiple large federal and private grant programs aimed at community partnerships to strengthen rural schools. Photo submitted
ORP currently serves 27 school districts across Western North Carolina, reaching over 30,000 students and families, and has 70 full-time employees. The office is made up of multiple large federal and private grant programs, including GEAR UP, Upward Bound, Advise NC, Young Eisner Scholars, Empowering Teacher Learning, GREAT STEM and On Ramp Appalachia.
“Our commitment through the Office of Rural Promise is simple: listen deeply, partner authentically and build solutions that honor the strengths of rural schools and communities,” said ORP Executive Director Dr. James Beeler. “This new home allows us to amplify what has always made our work impactful — trust and shared purpose. Together with our partners, we’re expanding opportunities for students and educators and creating pathways that strengthen the future of rural North Carolina.”
One of the office’s largest programs is GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs), a federally funded college access program designed to increase the number of students who are prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education immediately after high school. Over the past five years, College Access Partnerships added new programs that extended the reach of GEAR UP from 11 to 17 Western North Carolina school districts. This expansion has been supported by U.S. Department of Education funding, including a seven-year, $35 million grant awarded to App State GEAR UP in 2024 — the largest single grant awarded in the university’s history.
Advise NC, a statewide initiative formerly affiliated with College Advising Corps, serves nearly 56,000 students across the state through programs based at App State, Duke University, North Carolina State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Wilmington — with 139 Next Step Advisers serving 159 high schools located in 82 counties. Through the program, recent college graduates advise and mentor high school students on post-graduation options and pathways. App State’s program places 23 advisers in 23 regional counties to serve 27 high schools.
The growth in support for these and other College Access Partnerships programs represents over $90 million in new funding to serve Western North Carolina, bringing a wide range of resources and support to the region.
App State Upward Bound, now housed in the university’s Office of Rural Promise, provides academic support, social and cultural enrichment, and opportunities for personal growth to qualifying high schools students in Western North Carolina — free of cost. App State Upward Bound students are pictured on Sanford Mall on the Boone campus. Photo submitted
The establishment of the Office of Rural Promise is part of a wider strategic realignment of App State units and initiatives under the university’s research and innovation umbrella, which aims to foster collaboration across institutes, centers and offices — specifically around funding opportunities, strategic partnerships and research administration assistance.
App State’s solar vehicle racing team, Team Sunergy, has moved to the Research Institute for Environment, Energy and Economics — one of several App State units that both support and drive research, creative activities and innovation at the university. The Office of Student Research was recently integrated as well, within ORI’s Grants Resources and Services unit. Both moves emphasize App State’s focus on interdisciplinary experiential learning and immersive student-involved research, Hendren said.
Additional initiatives, programs and offices supporting App State’s research and creative activities enterprise include Grants Resources and Services, Sponsored Programs, Research Protections, and Research Design and Analysis — all of which are administered through ORI, as well as the Small Business Technology Development Center and the Blackburn Vannoy Estate and Farm.
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Largest grant in university history will provide college and career services to thousands of middle and high school students
About the Office of Research and Innovation
Appalachian State University’s Office of Research and Innovation supports the scholarly and creative activities of App State faculty, staff and students by expanding access to and facilitating the management of research opportunities. The office consists of four units: Grants Resources and Services, Sponsored Programs, Research Design and Analysis, and Research Protections. The office also collaborates with the university’s Special Funds Accounting on the fiscal management of awarded projects. Learn more at https://research.appstate.edu.
About Appalachian State University
As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, cost-effective education. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.
Largest grant in university history will provide college and career services to thousands of middle and high school students
