About Us
Partners for Rural Impact’s ultimate goal is for an America where all kids are successful, regardless of zip code, income, background, or ability. At PRI, our focus is on ensuring that all children in rural places achieve success.
Our Origin
Partners for Rural Impact was born out of our place-based partnership in Appalachia, where we’ve worked for 25 years to create student opportunity and success. We learned that creating sustainable change in rural places means holding multiple roles. It means running programs, building civic infrastructure, developing local capacity and long-lasting partnerships.
As we launch PRI, place-based partnerships remain the heart of our work. Learn more about our journey here.
The Executive Team

Dreama Gentry
President and CEO
Gentry founded Partners for Rural Impact to ensure rural students have the opportunity to fulfill their educational aspirations, and the national dialogue around educational success includes rural voices. A first-generation college graduate from Appalachia, Gentry is an Annie E. Casey Children and Family Fellow and a Prichard Committee Equity Coalition member, among other honors.

Channell Barbour
Chief of Staff
Barbour joined Partners for Rural Impact in the spring of 2023 after having served as the Vice President for Student Life at Berea College.
Barbour earned her undergraduate degree in political science in 1991 from Berea College. She earned a master’s degree in public administration from West Virginia University in 1994 and her doctorate degree from Indiana State University in Higher Education Leadership in 2014.

Shanda Crowder
Vice President for Capacity and Civic Infrastructure
Crowder has 20 years of experience in strategic planning as well as developing and implementing educational programs for youth and families. Before joining PRI, she was a senior associate within the leadership development unit at the Annie E. Casey Foundation. She has a bachelor’s in biology from North Carolina Central University, a master’s in school psychology from Howard University, and a doctorate in urban educational leadership from Morgan State University.

Renee Hargrove
Vice President for Human Resources, Operations and Legal
Hargrove is an experienced nonprofit executive with expertise in Results Based Leadership, Collective Impact implementation, and organizational policy development and oversight. Most recently, she served as the director of business affairs in the student affairs division of the University of Cincinnati. She has over a decade of experience in human resources.

Mike Hogg
Vice President for Place-Based Partnerships
Hogg has more than 20 years of experience leading public districts in Appalachia and was a middle school science and social studies teacher. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in middle grades education from Eastern Kentucky University. As a first-generation college graduate, he feels a deep responsibility to pay forward what has been paid forward to him.

Penny Jordan
Vice President for Finance
Jordan has nearly 15 years of experience working in nonprofit leadership positions in grant development, finance, operations, compliance, auditing and strategic planning. Previously, she spent ten years working in the banking industry in Appalachian Kentucky. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting, a master’s degree in management from Indiana Wesleyan University, and a doctorate in educational leadership and policy studies from Eastern Kentucky University.