Appearances, as the cliche goes, can be deceiving. Take the Mahoning Valley economy, for example.

In recent years, we’ve rightly cheered on numerous economic development successes many argue serve as proof our community is finally turning the corner from the long-lingering economic devastation wrought by the demise of the once almighty steel industry nearly a half-century ago.

Witness the construction of electric vehicle battery manufacturer Ultium Cells LLC that has in a few short years grown to be one of the Valley’s largest — if not the largest — manufacturing employers. Witness investments in businesses reinvesting and revitalizing downtown areas of the Valley’s two largest urban centers, Youngstown and Warren. And witness the massive tumble of the Valley’s unemployment rate from 12.5% during the height of the Great Recession in 2009 to 6% this summer.

Despite those very concrete and laudable achievements, however, the Valley still lags considerably behind the nation in key economic metrics. For example, only 57% of the 343,870-member local civilian labor force age 16 and older have jobs, but in Ohio and across the U.S., the labor participation rate is a noticeably more robust 63%, according to Census Bureau data. That data also shows the annual average salary of $12,733 per year is dramatically lower here than elsewhere in Ohio and $21,302 lower here than the rest of the U.S.

That data mined by Youngstown Area Goodwill Industries and the Youngstown / Warren Regional Chamber illustrate that Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties in Ohio and nearby Lawrence and Mercer counties in Pennsylvania still are locked in a game of catchup with the rest of the United States in economic health and vitality. It’s also a clarion call for development and job-creation agencies in our region to double down on efforts to stimulate more employment growth.

To their credit, Goodwill Industries and the chamber have answered that call. They recently formed a partnership to study workforce needs to galvanize diverse economic growth in our region. They are in the midst of conducting a massive community needs assessment, which continues through Aug. 9. That assessment will include survey responses given to about 3,000 chamber members, other stakeholders and the public, plus findings from a series of focus group discussions.

The assessment will help them get a firmer handle on the Valley’s employment needs as well as the most severe barriers faced by employers and residents in meeting those needs.

Guy Coviello, chamber president and CEO, summarized the praiseworthy goals of the assessment: “We are hopeful that this initiative will help pinpoint employment and training barriers so that we can create a community-wide action plan to overcome them. That will enable us and our partners to grow the local workforce and ultimately strengthen the economic fabric of northeast Ohio and western Pennsylvania.”

That new partnership comes at a promising time for economic development in the Mahoning and Shenango valleys. In addition to the bedrock growth and development agencies in the region such as the regional chamber, Valley Economic Development Partners, the Eastgate Regional Council of Governments, Western Reserve Port Authority, Ohio Means Jobs and others, a new and potentially game-changing entity arrived on the scene this spring to complement those efforts.

The Lake to River Economic Development district was carved out of a larger JobsOhio northeast Ohio district to become its own distinctive entity on the state’s stage. As we commented several months ago, Lake to River has potential to bring transformative positive growth to our region.

Earlier this month, Lake to River announced another partnership with Flying HIGH Inc. — a professional development organization — to start a new workforce development initiative to provide training for success in the region. Initiatives will focus on key industries, such as manufacturing and health care, to ensure that residents are equipped with the skills required by today’s employers.

At every turn, it seems, new development initiatives have been taking root. The promising needs assessment by the chamber and Goodwill, as well as all other local job-growth initiatives, appear to be off to a great start. To succeed, however, they need constant nurturing, cohesive planning and concrete action. We’re confident all stakeholders involved in the revitalization of the Mahoning Valley and its economy possess the will and commitment to succeed.

As they work toward those goals and chip away at job-growth barriers, those disconcertingly low labor participation rates and those comparatively low wage scales that have defined the Valley for decades will no doubt climb. As they do, so, too, will the quality of life for all in our region.