ABCD Founders
Bill Turner and Jim King co-founded the Appalachian Black Community Developers in 2020, driven by a shared vision of their values – to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly (Micha 6:8) – and common professional endeavors.
William H. Turner, Ph.D
Bill Turner is among the first to combine African American and Appalachian Studies. He co-edited the path-breaking textbook, Blacks in Appalachia (1985) while working as research associate to Roots author Alex Haley, who said in 1990, “Bill knows more about black people in the mountains of the South than anyone in the world. Bill was awarded his bachelor’s degree from Kentucky (1968) – and spent a year at Howard University in the Foreign Affairs Studies Program, under sponsorship of the US State Department - and he earned his doctorate in sociology and anthropology at Notre Dame (1975). Among the recent honors Turner has received: Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters by the University of North Carolina-Asheville for “unparalleled service to the Appalachian Region;” induction into the University of Kentucky Hall of Fame in 2021. The Harlan Renaissance: Stories of Black Life in Appalachian Coal Towns, the title of Turner’s latest book (2021) won the 2021 Award for Book of the Year, conferred by the Appalachian Studies Association and Berea College. Turner’s book was selected in May 2023 as “the most significant book on Kentucky history in the past five years” by the Kentucky Historical Society. In late 2024, the WR Kenan Charitable Trust (University of North Carolina | Chapel Hill), awarded Turner the esteemed Kenan Distinguished Professorship “to continue his outstanding work focused on Appalachia” – linked to the Appalachian Center of Berea College. whturnerphd@gmail.com
Jim King
Jim King has worked to advance opportunity for people and communities primarily in Appalachia. Mr. King has experience across all aspects of community development and finance and is recognized as a national leader in the field. He is a regular speaker at national and regional conferences and his advice is sought by policy makers and financial industry leaders. Mr. King has served on advisory boards alongside executive leadership at Truist Bank, First Citizens Bank, and Fannie Mae. He has served as board chair to Opportunity Finance Network (OFN), the leading membership of Community Development Financial Institutions nationally. He has been a contributor to numerous books and publications including “Forces for Good,” “Wealth Creation,” and “Appalachia Revisited.” He is a recipient of a fellowship from the Ford Foundation, the National NeighborWorks Association Lifetime Achievement award, and the National Housing Conference Visionary Award. Under King’s leadership, Fahe pioneered a collaborative model known as the Berea Performance Compact, bringing a commitment to scale and collaborative performance to nonprofits servicing rural and remote communities. These efforts have brought over $4.5 billion in impact, benefitting nearly 1 million people in one of the economically challenged regions of our country. He is an alumnus of the Harvard Business School’s three-year owner/president management (OPM) program and the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Achieving Excellence program. He holds an MBA degree from Eastern University and a BA from Bluffton University. Jim King can be reached via email at jim@fahe.org
