BBG People Moving the Mountains: Dr. Doolarie (Dee) Singh-Knights

By Traci Phillips | Black By God: The West Virginian

Across West Virginia, farms are becoming classrooms, destinations, and economic lifelines. What used to be seen simply as land is now being reimagined as opportunity—and much of that shift can be traced back to the quiet, steady work of Doolarie (Dee) Singh-Knights.

As a West Virginia University Extension specialist and agricultural economist, Singh-Knights has helped shape the state’s agritourism movement—work that sits at the intersection of agriculture, tourism, small business development, and community sustainability. Her role is not about headlines or branding. It’s about making sure rural West Virginians have viable ways to keep their land, support their families, and build businesses that can last.

Agritourism, at its core, invites the public onto working farms for experiences that are educational, cultural, and economic—farm stays, u-pick operations, on-farm events, food experiences, and value-added products. But in West Virginia, it’s also become something more: a pathway for farmers to diversify income, weather economic shifts, and stay rooted in place.

Singh-Knights has been central to that evolution. Through WVU Extension, she works directly with farmers across the state, helping them navigate business planning, marketing, liability, risk management, and long-term sustainability. For many farm families, this guidance has meant the difference between barely holding on and building something new.

Since the early 2010s, agritourism operations in West Virginia have grown significantly, driven in part by changing travel preferences and a growing demand for authentic, place-based experiences. Singh-Knights recognized early on that visitors weren’t just looking for scenery—they wanted connection. They wanted to understand food systems, meet the people behind them, and experience Appalachia beyond postcards.

Her work helped elevate agritourism from a side activity into a legitimate economic development strategy. Farms became destinations. Destinations became businesses. Businesses became anchors in rural communities.

Just as important, Singh-Knights has helped ensure that agritourism in West Virginia remains grounded in education and stewardship. The goal isn’t tourism for tourism’s sake. It’s about land preservation, local ownership, cultural continuity, and economic resilience—values that align deeply with the realities of Appalachian life.

Originally from outside the United States, Singh-Knights chose West Virginia and committed herself fully to its future. Over time, she became one of the state’s most trusted voices on how agriculture, tourism, and community development can work together—especially for small and mid-sized farms that are often overlooked.

That is why she was chosen for People Moving the Mountains.

This series honors individuals whose impact is often felt long before it is publicly recognized—people whose work quietly reshapes systems, opens doors, and changes what’s possible. Singh-Knights doesn’t just support agritourism as an idea; she has helped build the infrastructure, knowledge, and confidence that allow it to thrive.

Her influence can be seen across West Virginia’s back roads and farm gates, in family-run operations that are still standing, still growing, and still welcoming others in. She is helping redefine how West Virginia grows—economically and culturally—by ensuring that rural communities are not left behind, but positioned at the center of the state’s future.