“Best in the West: North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District Forum” are a series of two debates across Sept 4-5 between retired USAF Col. and Democratic nominee Moe Davis, against the young rising star of the Republican Party Madison Cawthorn. Hosted by Blue Ridge Public Radio, Mountain Xpress and Smoky Mountain […]
Recent News
Elections 2020: NC-11 candidates for US Congress
As election day comes upon us, it’s crunch time for voters to decide who they want to represent them. Voters need to know who aligns more with their standards and look past the soundbites they hear from news outlets, social media and attack ads. Candidate profiles are extremely vital to […]
Covid Cluster Rocks Western Students
On Tuesday, Sept. 1, Western Carolina University released a statement exposing a cluster of 17 COVID-19 cases from students, all residing from Harrill Residence Hall. This is the first and largest cluster of cases we have seen yet this school year and raises some concerns with parents and students alike. […]
WCU to enforce mask policy
Originally published in The Sylva Herald on Aug. 27, 2020. BaShaun Smith, Western Carolina University’s associate vice chancellor and dean of students, has announced that students may face WCU Code of Student Conduct Violations if mask requirements are not followed during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Shared community standards remind us that […]
Editorial: UNC Board of Governors, fix this or resign
When The Daily Tar Heel called this whole situation a clusterfuck, they were on to something. A majority of students would’ve been able to tell you that we saw this coming. Yet, the UNC Board of Governors (BOG) chose to continually ignore students, experts, faculty and staff concerns, pleas and […]
Western Carolina University adds 22 new COVID cases during first week of instruction
Editor’s note: As a result of an ambiguously-worded COVID “dashboard,” the original version of this article, first published Aug. 20, erroneously listed the number of new cases as 8 and not 22. University administration convened a working group Aug. 21 to address the website to ensure the accuracy of future […]
The Husk and The Helm’s delay leaves WCU students anxious as classes start
Originally published in The Sylva Herald on Aug. 20, 2020. Move-in weekend is usually a joyous occasion for Western Carolina University students and their parents. For many occupants of The Husk and The Helm apartment complex, this has not been the case. The Husk and The Helm faced various code […]
Maggie Valley protests to reignite Aug. 1
The July 18 march in Maggie Valley had managed to catch some Saturday afternoon rain, though it was less of a portent and more of an annoyance, I would imagine. I wouldn’t know, I was sitting at home, watching the protest on Facebook live via Smoky Mountain News. A camouflaged […]
WCU students up in arms over 2020-21 housing agreement
Originally published in The Sylva Herald on July 16, 2020. Western Carolina University’s 2020-21 Housing Agreement has left students angered and concerned for the upcoming school year. “Residents acknowledge that, in the event of such temporary closures, restrictions, and/or adjustments to the housing services schedule, WCU shall not have the […]
Four Sylva businesses in three days close temporarily from employees testing positive for COVID
North Carolina, despite logging record numbers of new cases over the past two weeks, including a new single-day record of almost 2,500 on July 11, still maintains the “safer-at-home” phase 2 of reopening. One of the defining provisions of this phase is the 50% capacity allowance for dining-in at restaurants. […]