Jackson County — along with the town of Sylva — should vigorously pursue the proposal by Western Carolina University Chancellor John Bardo to work collaboratively to put a historical museum in its scenic hilltop courthouse. Turning this architectural gem into a repository of Appalachian and Jackson County history is probably the best idea of the many that have been put forth in the last several years.

Bardo made his proposal to the historic courthouse committee a couple of weeks ago. He wants the university to help the Kudzu Players theater troupe — which currently uses the courthouse as its home — find a new and suitable location to keep their props and put on plays. With that accomplished, he wants to help transform the courthouse into a museum by working closely with university’s Mountain Heritage Center. The Heritage Center has more artifacts than it has room to display. It is also in the process of hiring a new director, and if this proposal wins support, Bardo wants the applicants for the job to know that creating this museum would be a part of their duties.

The Mountain Heritage Center, for all its merit, hasn’t lived up to its potential. For one, its location in the basement of the administration building is not the best. This is simply not the ideal space to house its exhibits. And while Western has established a great tradition with its annual Mountain Heritage Day celebration, the university has not firmly established itself as the repository of mountain culture for this region.

Now, with the hiring of Ron Rash as the John and Dorothy Parris Professor of Appalachian Cultural Studies, there is a real opportunity for Western to move in this direction. Rash has already started a series of lectures where regional writers and others have been invited to the college. Hopefully the future will bring more programs about mountain culture and more focus on the history of this region. From what we’ve witnessed and read, Rash seems the ideal candidate to help Western move in this direction, and the Parris endowment has proved a successful catalyst. With his passion and with the expertise and energy of the new director of the Mountain Heritage Center, much is possible.

And so the time is right for WCU to work with Jackson County and the town of Sylva on this idea of a downtown historical museum. The courthouse would be the ideal place to house a collection that would tell the story of Jackson County and of how this mountain region was settled. This is a proposal that would make winners of everyone involved.


Clasby a good choice

Haywood County’s Economic Development Commission last week hired Mark Clasby as its new director, and we think the choice is a good one for many reasons.

Clasby obviously has the skills to bring a new level of professionalism to the county’s job creation efforts. His corporate background, combined with the experience of running his own small business in Waynesville, make for a good combination. He is polished, works well in small groups and in public, and has already spent many hours nurturing the relationships necessary to do his job well. The fact that he used his time as interim director making himself a better candidate for the permanent position — rather than merely serving as a caretaker — speaks volumes about his potential.

Clasby has stepped into a highly political position at a very difficult time. The changing economy is presenting new and difficult challenges to small communities throughout this country. Western North Carolina, for all its quality of life attributes, is saddled with an aging, under-educated workforce that does not possess many of the skills necessary to compete for today’s information age jobs.

All that said, Clasby is a good choice to be out there representing Haywood County as it faces these challenges. The new EDC and Clasby should be prepared to roll up their sleeves. There is a lot of work to do.