On May 2, 2024, a brief, awkward moment inside a women’s restroom at Western Carolina University was recorded, uploaded to social media and sparked a flashpoint in America’s ongoing culture wars.

To the Editor:

Have you noticed how quietly our basic freedoms can disappear? Right now in Jackson County, a small group of commissioners is on the verge of dismantling our entire library system — not because it’s failing us, but because it’s succeeding at something they fear: exposing people to ideas beyond a single worldview. 

Anyone who thought that two years, dozens of meetings, thousands of dollars and hours of public comment to reach a new interlocal agreement between Jackson, Macon and Swain counties for the Fontana Regional Library would spell the end of the controversy over local libraries thought wrong. 

With a new middle school on the horizon, Jackson County Public Schools is budgeting for a changing school system. On May 6, JCPS made its official request for local funding from the Jackson County Commission.  

Fairview School kindergarten teacher Anna Woods was named the Jackson County Public Schools District Teacher of the Year during the Excellence in Education Awards Evening on May 8th, 2025. 

Back in the 1940s, while World War II was still raging in Europe and the Philippines,  Charlie Kilpatrick and I used to entertain ourselves by prowling through the kudzu thickets near his house. 

Gary Carden has accomplished a great deal in his life. But by his own estimation, none of it compares to his most recent endeavor — donating a treasure trove of books to the Jackson County Public Library that took him a lifetime to collect. 

For the second year in a row, Macon County Schools will request funding from county commissioners to bridge the gap in funding for free school meals for all K-12 students. But with data trending downward, it’s unclear whether the school system will be able to continue its free meal program for more than two more years.  

The Jackson County Board of Education this month took an in-depth look at per pupil spending across the school system, prompted by recent discussions about Jackson Community School and its viability for the future. 

As a young child, growing up right outside of London, Dan Tapster fondly remembers watching David Attenborough’s nature documentaries with his mother, these family moments that were “a cherished ritual.”
“She proudly claims to be his number one fan,” Tapster said. “And those early experiences ignited my fascination with storytelling and the natural world.”