Community Assessment August 2017 Community Assessment 2017 I. Buchanan County Head Start: Background Buchanan County Head Start serves the county of Buchanan located in Southwest Virginia. The program is federally funded to enroll 145 children in seven classrooms and one home- based program. Four of the classrooms operate five days per week for a full day. Three of the classrooms operate four days per week part day. II. Objectives, Need for Assistance, and Geographic Area Buchanan County is in the Appalachian Plateau on the borders of Kentucky and West Virginia. It covers 508 square miles of land and is one of the most remote and extremely rural areas of Southwest Virginia. (See attached map of the county). It is bounded on the west by the Kentucky state line and the northeast by the West Virginia state line. According to family surveys and assessments, many families have needs that include but are not limited to: health care, (the distance some families must travel to obtain medical services is an average of 45 miles one way), health insurance, employment, housing, public water and sewage, homes that need to be winterized, fuel assistance, dental care, job training, and day care evenings and after school. The county’s natural resources include coal, natural gas, and timber. Grundy, the county seat, functions as the trade center for the area and for some neighboring counties in Kentucky and West VA. The communities are located throughout this area and are for the most part, isolated one from the other due to topography and terrain. The county is located 200 miles west of Roanoke, VA and 390 miles west of Richmond, VA, the state capitol. Residents of the county must drive at least three hours to reach a major shopping center. In addition, Buchanan County shares the beautiful Breaks Interstate Park with Dickenson County. The Breaks Park also known as the ‘Grand Canyon of the South,’ attracts approximately 400 thousand visitors a year to its cabins, walking trails, swimming pool, restaurant, and lodge. Recreational facilities are somewhat limited with only one 18-hole private golf course and one 9-hole public course. There are three public swimming pools, two of which are located at the public-school facilities. The other one is located at the WMCA. The youth of the county are frequently found using the local schools’ outdoor tennis and basketball courts. Now, Buchanan County does not have a shopping mall, but there are three mini shopping strips found in various locations of the county. There is a plan for a Wal-Mart that serves the county that is in the Town of Grundy. There are other a few stores located next to Walmart, to include a couple if restaurants, a Page Community Assessment August 2017 shoe store and two or three clothing stores. There are a few fast food establishments, i.e. Pizza Hut, Wendy’s, Hardees, Subway, the Huddle House, etc. There are two family restaurants with buffet style dining. There is one hotel within the town limits of Grundy with two other motels in the county. The population density is approximately 53.05 persons per square mile. Almost all the county’s population is rural, with only 4.53% living in the Town of Grundy. Approximately 4% of the population is made up of minority or ethnic groups with 3% black and .03% Asian. The poverty level of the county is high. An excellent indicator of poverty is represented by the percentage of students in the public-school system who receive free and reduced- price breakfast and lunch. The population of Buchanan County is in a declining mode. There is a steady out migration of individuals who have no job opportunities in the county. The county population currently stands at approximately 22,925. (U.S. Census Bureau, State and County Quick Facts). See statistical county data below: Buchanan County, Virginia Population in households in Buchanan County Total Population: 22,925 Male Population: 11,279 Under 5 years: 583 5 to 9 years: 571 10 to 14 years: 628 15 to 17 years: 474 18 and 19 years: 264 20 years: 125 21 years: 109 22 to 24 years: 378 25 to 29 years: 631 30 to 34 years: 650 35 to 39 years: 688 40 to 44 years: 784 45 to 49 years: 917 50 to 54 years: 1,047 55 to 59 years: 922 60 and 61 years: 325 62 to 64 years: 467 65 and 66 years: 302 67 to 69 years: 359 70 to 74 years: 491 75 to 79 years: 312 80 to 84 years: 151 85 years and over: 101 Female Population: 11,646 Under 5 years: 522 5 to 9 years: 577 10 to 14 years: 633 Page Community Assessment August 2017 15 to 1 7 years: 342 18 and 19 years: 253 20 years: 110 21 years: 121 22 to 24 years: 376 25 to 29 years: 647 30 to 34 years: 615 35 to 39 years: 714 40 to 44 years: 842 45 to 49 years: 954 50 to 54 years: 981 55 to 59 years: 963 60 and 61 years: 379 62 to 64 years: 539 65 and 66 years: 263 67 to 69 years: 414 70 to 74 years: 599 75 to 79 years: 364 80 to 84 years: 254 85 years and over: 184 Demographic average population of home by age Average household size in Buchanan County Total: 2 Under 18 years: 0 18 years and over: 1 Demographic household type Number of occupied homes in Buchanan County Total: 9,968 Family led homes: 6,866 Husband-wife family: 5,346 Other family: 1,520 Population of male led with no wife present: 460 Population female led with no husband present: 1,060 Population of Nonfamily homes: 3,102 Population living alone: 2,781 Population not living alone: 321 Demographic population of homes with people under 18 years old by type Total occupied homes in Buchanan County with people under 18 years ol d: Total: 9,96 8 Population of homes with one or more people under 18 years: Population of family homes: Husband-wife family: Under 6 years only: Under 6 years and 6 to 17 years: 6 to 17 years only: Other family: Male householder, no wife present: Under 6 years only: Page Community Assessment August 2017 Under 6 years and 6 to 17 years: 6 to 17 years only: Female led with no husband present: Under 6 years only: Under 6 years and 6 to 17 years: 6 to 17 years only: Nonfamily households: Male led households: Under 6 years only: Under 6 years and 6 to 17 years: 6 to 17 years only: Female led householder: Under 6 years only: Under 6 years and 6 to 17 years: 6 to 17 years only: Households with no people under 18 years: Family households: Husband-wife family: Other family: Male led with no wife present: Female led with no husband present: Nonfamily households: 2,70 8 2,68 7 1,87 7 396 331 1,15 0 810 197 43 28 126 613 164 86 363 21 14 6 0 8 7 0 0 7 7,26 0 4,17 9 Page Community Assessment August 2017 3,46 9 710 263 447 3,08 1 Buchanan County, Virginia - Wikipedia https: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buchanan County,_ Virginia 4 of7 Government Board of Supervisors Garden District: Buddy Fuller (R) Hurricane District: William P. Harris (D) Knox District: Trey Adkins (D) North Grundy District: James Carroll Branham (D) (Chairman) Prater District: Earl Scott (D) Rocklick District: Craig Stiltner (R) South Grundy District: Gary Roger Rife(R) Constitutional Officers Clerk of the Circuit Court: Beverly S. Tiller (D) Commissioner of the Revenue: A. Ruth Hom (R) Commonwealth's Attorney: Gerald D. Arrington (D) Sheriff: C. Ray Foster (R) Treasurer: Bill Keene (D) > 85 80-84 75-79 70-74 65-69 60-64 55-59 50-54 45 -49 40-44 35-39 30-34 25-29 20-24 15- 19 10-14 5-9 < 5 9 5 4 3 2 1 0 Ofo O 1 2 3 4 5 Age distribution of Buchanan County, Virginia Buchanan County is represented by Republican A. Benton Chafin in the Virginia Senate, Republican James W. "Will" Morefield in the Virginia House of Delegates, and Republican H. Morgan Griffith in the U.S. House of Representatives. Education Colleges • Appalachian School of Law, Grundy Page Community Assessment August 2017 • Appalachian College of Pharmacy, Oakwood Private schools • Mountain Mission School, Grundy • Keen Mountain Christian Academy, Oakwood Public high schools 6/ 1/1 7, I :52 PM Buchanan County, Virginia - Wikipedia https://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/Buchanan _ County, _ Virginia All public schools in Buchanan County are operated by Buchanan County Public Schools system. • Grundy Senior High School, Grundy • Twin Valley High School, Pilgrims Knob • Council High School, Council • Hurley High School, Hurley Public elementary and middle schools • Twin Valley Elem/Middle School • Council Elementary School • Riverview Elementary Middle School • J.M. Bevins Elementary • Hurley Elementary/Middle School Former schools • Harman Elementary (Demolished: 2009; site is now a baseball field.) • Vansant Elementary (Demolished: 2007) • Big Rock Elementary (Demolished: 2009) • Grundy Jr. High School (Now the Appalachian School of Law) • Garden Elementary (Demolished) • Garden Middle School • Garden High School (Now the Appalachian College of Pharmacy) • Whitewood Elementary School (Demolished) • Whitewood High School (Demolished: 2010) • D.A. Justus (Demolished) • P.V. Dennis (Now the ASL Library) • Russell Prater Elementary Communities Towns • Grundy Census-designated place • Vansant Other unincorporated communities • Big Rock • Harman • Keen Mountain • Oakwood • Council • Harman Junction • Mavisdale • Prater • Davenport • Hurley • Maxie • Shortt Gap ; of7 6/ 1/17, 1:52 PM Buchanan County Demographics & Statistics - Employment, Educat.