Appalshop, founded in 1969 as a War on Poverty program, is a non-profit media-arts and education center in the heart of Appalachia. For almost 40 years Appalshop artists have worked with central Appalachian communities to produce films, plays, radio pieces, photography, and books about the region's people, traditions, and challenges. The education and training programs Appalshop uses to produce this work help communities garner the resources, including new technologies, to tell their stories and then use these stories to reflect on and solve their problems in a just and equitable way. Each year, Appalshop productions and services reach several million people nationally and internationally.
Appalshop consists of several production divisions: Appalshop Films, Radio (WMMT 88.7 FM), Roadside Theater, June Appal Recordings (traditional music), Youth Media Training Program, and the Learning Center (community outreach and training). Non-production divisions of Appalshop include the Media Archive, Financial Team, Management Team, Web Team, and Personnel Team.
The VISTA member will work with Appalshop's Media Archive, Web Team, Film Division and Youth Leadership Training program (AMI) to build Appalshop's capacity to use and share technology tools in meeting the organization's mission.