Transformative Regional Engagement

Archway Partnership at The University of Georgia

Communities in partnership with the University
Dade Catoosa
Fannin
Towns
Rabun
of Georgia (UGA) focus initially on the central
county and its municipalities as portal communi-
ld

Union
Murray
itfie

Archway Partnership
Wh

Walker Gilmer

am
White
ties. The partnership is intended to involve the

sh
er
Lumpkin Stephens

ab
Chattooga Gordon University of Georgia

H
region as it develops, the portal communities act-
Pickens
Dawson Franklin
Hall Banks Hart

ing as hubs.
Floyd Cherokee Forsyth
Bartow
Jackson Elbert
Madison
Barrow Clarke
Polk Oglethorpe
Cobb Gwinnett
Paulding

Community investment in the process is vital to

Oconee Wilkes Lincoln
Haralson Walton
Dekalb
le

Douglas Fulton
da

a successful partnership. UGA provides facilities

ck

Greene Taliaferro Columbia

Mc
Morgan
Clayton

Ro

Newton

Du
Carroll

and staffing, and facilitates the process for dis-

Warren

ff
Henry

ie
Fayette Richmond
Coweta Jasper Putnam
Heard Butts Hancock Glascock

covering and prioritizing community issues. The

Spalding
r Burke
he Jefferson
et Pike Lamar Monroe Baldwin
Troup
M
er
iw Jones Washington
community, comprising city and county govern-
Upson
ments, development authorities, chambers of
Jenkins
Bibb Wilkinson Screven
Johnson
Harris Crawford
Talbot

commerce, school systems, and healthcare provid-

Twiggs Emanuel
Taylor Peach
Muscogee
Laurens Effingham

ers, commits human and financial resources and

Houston Bleckley Treutlen Candler Bulloch
Macon
Chatta- Marion
Montgomery

hoochee
Schley Dooly
Pulaski Dodge
Wheeler
Toombs Evans
Bryan
Chatham invests in solving the community issues.
Stewart Tattnall
Webster Sumter
Wilcox
Crisp Telfair
Liberty

The portal communities each share in the cost

Quitman Jeff
Terrell Davis Appling Long
Lee Ben Hill
Randolph Turner

Clay
Calhoun Dougherty Worth
Irwin
Coffee
Bacon Wayne
McIntosh with UGA of retaining an Archway Professional
(AP) who lives in the community and organizes
Tift
Pierce
Early Glynn
Baker Berrien Atkinson

the Archway Partnership process. Each AP is the

Mitchell Brantley
Colquitt
Miller Cook
Ware

direct link to UGA resources needed to implement

Lanier
Camden
Semin

Clinch
Lowndes Charlton
Decatur
strategies for resolving community issues.
Grady Thomas Brooks
ole

Echols

The Archway Partnership process begins with the

development of an Executive Committee of com-
Steering Committee: 20 people
munity leaders who can commit financial resources AP: UGA Archway Professional from the community, 2–3 of whom
to the partnership. They help create the Steering organizes the process are active in and provide oversight
for each IWG
Committee of other community stakeholders willing
to commit time and energy to developing and pri-
IWG
oritizing community issues. Interested residents are
recruited for Issue Work Groups, chaired by Steering
IWG IWG
Committee members, focused on developing strate-
gies to resolve one of the issues.
Steering Committee

Community stakeholders and UGA sign a part-

AP
nership agreement for sustained participation in
IWG IWG
community problem solving. This helps insure
Executive
long-term commitment to implementing strategies Committee
developed by IWGs. Also important to implementa-
tion is communications among the partners, which
is formalized in quarterly meetings of APs with IWG IWG
Archway management and monthly meetings of
APs with Executive and Steering Committee mem- IWG
bers.
Issue Work Group (IWG): 15
Executive Committee: 5–7
people including local citizen
people who gather resources
Impact examples: wastewater infrastructure cost re- volunteers, local staff, local
necessary for the process
experts, and UGA experts
ductions; workforce housing; tourism development
in multiple communities; and healthcare training.