New Online Portal Will Allow a Deeper Dive Into Rural Tennessee

A new online dashboard will allow policymakers in Tennessee to move beyond superficial data and take a deep dive into why certain rural counties struggle, experts at East Tennessee State University said.

The Tennessee Livability Indicators Dashboard was developed by ETSU’s Center for Rural Health and Research (CRHR), using data collected from various agencies about 60 topics related to the counties’ quality of life. Data is related to such topics as economic development, housing, transportation, education, employment, availability of health care access, and how friendly a community is for aging residents.

Of Tennessee’s 95 counties, 78 are designated as rural, and 70 counties have more than half of their residents in rural areas. The dashboard, officials said, helps to show where resources are needed most and what different elements of life may be affecting rural areas.

Dr. Qian Huang, a research assistant professor with the CRHR, said the dashboard helps to provide easy access to data about everyday life across the state at the county level.

“By bringing these data together, we aim to equip communities, leaders, and organizations with the tools they need to make informed decisions and strengthen livability across the state,” Huang said in an interview with the Daily Yonder. “This provides an overall picture that allows us to connect more than 60 variables that give policymakers a picture of what is happening at the county level.”

The dashboard came out of the Tennessee Livability Collaborative, a group of 26 state agencies, departments, commissions, and academic institutions that work together to create alignment within the state’s government. Group members determined there was a need to be able to view and share data about the state on a range of topics that contribute to the quality of life in the state.

This story was originally published by The Daily Yonder and AP.