Guest reviewers for the awards included:

• John Bendel, FHLBank Pittsburgh
• Sherry Bossie, West Virginia Housing Development Fund
• Mary Hunt-Lieving, Benedum Foundation
• Sandra Mikush, Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation
• David Warner, West Virginia Economic Development Authority

Awards criteria:

1. Sustaining Promise Award: Designing Comprehensive Strategy                                    

• Reflects Culture: Reflects unique opportunities, flair of community, community wishes.
• Factual: Plan built on foundation of community data, including community described assets.
• Builds Capacity for Implementation: Plan reflects community capacity to implement, includes strategy for building capacity (social, leadership, philanthropic, organizational).
• Strategic: Prioritizes and leverages opportunities and funding.
• Multiple Impacts: Plan takes into account different facets of community (such as education, heritage, youth, economy, housing, environment, health, infrastructure, etc.).
• Specific: Plan details tasks to complete goals, includes a timeline and lists specific responsible people.

2. Exemplifying Community Spirit: Engaging Citizens

• Volunteer Opportunities: Opportunities for individuals to contribute are detailed, clear, and managed. There are opportunities for people of differing talents.
• Invitation: An invitation to contribute is made to both specific individuals (intentionally) and to the community as a whole, (generally).
• Civic Dialogue: Opportunities for civic dialogue are a part of the planning process.
• Collaboration: There is a “sense of symphony” between contributing groups and individuals.
• Leadership Renewal: There are methods of encouraging new and sustaining current leadership built into the plan.
• Meaningful Contributions: Stakeholders can have meaningful input on the direction of the plan.

3. Communicating with Clarity: Articulating Vision, Goals, Objectives and Measures

• Vision and Goals: Vision and goals are clear and concise.
• Evaluation: Objectives are clear and measurable, lends well to evaluation.
• Coherence, Usability: The plan is written so that it is understandable to a fresh set of eyes, such as community newcomer or outside funding entity.
• Visual Representation: There are non-verbal methods of communicating vision and goals.
• Community Involvement: Community is involved in sharing this plan with each other. Rather than a document used in an office, this plan is embraced by the citizens.
• Public Relations: Public relations are shared by multiple organizations or volunteers through more than one media source.