Giving nature a helping hand: Western Carolina University’s Forest Sustainability Initiative unites students with landowners to help maintain the future of forests
By Michael Beadle
Peter Bates inspects a trio of cucumber trees growing closely together on a 20-acre tract of woods in the Balsam Mountain Preserve in Jackson County.
He checks to see if one of the trees died from a chainsaw cut known as “girdling,” in which a partial cut is made around the tree trunk. It’s a forestry management practice used these days. The idea is that some trees have to die so that others will survive, thus maintaining a healthy and productive forest.
New WCU business dean has academic, business experience
Ronald A. Johnson, who holds the JP Morgan Chase Chair in Finance in the Jesse H. Jones School of Business at Texas Southern University, is the next dean of the College of Business at Western Carolina University.
Putting the “mock” in Democracy: Capitol Steps troupe brings political laughs to WCU
By Michael Beadle
Along with death and taxes, one of the most predictable things in life seems to be political scandal, and for the past quarter century few comedy groups in America have done a better job of poking fun at our elected officials than the Capitol Steps.
From Waynesville to the Big Apple
By Michael Beadle
Nick Taylor’s career in journalism has spanned four decades and several cities, but it all began in Western North Carolina.
WCU launches ambitious $40 million campaign
Western Carolina University Chancellor John W. Bardo has officially launched the first comprehensive fundraising campaign in the university’s 118-year history, a drive to raise at least $40 million in private support to help meet a renewed emphasis on academic quality.
Catamount Conservation: Eco-CATS challenge WCU community to take on more environmental responsibility
By Michael Beadle
The cost of college can get pretty expensive, especially when it comes to paying the monthly electric bill.
WCU buys on-campus commercial buildings
Western Carolina University is now the proud owner of the strip of commercial property known locally as the downtown Cullowhee business district.
WCU students help with Cullowhee church plans
The competition between Western Carolina University students to win a building contract at a Cullowhee church was just for fun, but the construction ideas and issues they pointed out recently were real — and appreciated.
Nice threads: WCU Fine Arts Museum exhibit features fiber art instructors and professors from throughout the Southeast
By Michael Beadle
Imagine hundreds of stainless steel threads woven together to make a scarf that looks like silk. An optical illusion of sorts, but nonetheless real and exquisite.
The Energy Challenge: WCU summit calls attention to problems, possibilities
By Michael Beadle
North Carolina’s population is expected to rise by nearly 3 million people in the next two decades. As we use up more and more natural resources like oil and coal, how will we handle the energy needs of the future?
