Ramsey Center to get new skin

The black glass Liston B. Ramsey Regional Activity Center is an iconic structure on the Western Carolina University campus, but it will soon have a much different look following the WCU Board of Trustees’ Dec. 1 endorsement of a $3.9 million project.

Jackson commissioners OK 185-foot radio tower

A unanimous vote from the Jackson County commissioners will allow construction of a 185-foot radio tower in Cullowhee to move forward, but the decision came after vocal opposition from six of the seven county residents who spoke at a 3 p.m. public hearing on Monday, Nov. 27.

Cancer battle causes WCU chancellor to step down

After battling brain cancer since April 2016, Western Carolina University Chancellor David O. Belcher announced Nov. 27 that his treatment is no longer working. He will go on medical leave and does not expect to return to his position.

A place to heal: Retreat center for combat veterans works to establish in Cullowhee

When Margo Capparelli, Ph.D., first began her career, she had little idea that it would develop such a strong focus on helping combat veterans that she would one day drop everything to found a retreat center serving them.

But that’s exactly what’s happened. Capparelli, 53, is founder of Equinox Ranch, located on 23 acres in Cullowhee that she hopes to get in shape to begin operations by late spring or early summer in 2018.

New development gets the green light in Cullowhee

After receiving approval from two separate boards, a proposed 80-bedroom development along Little Savannah Road in Cullowhee has the green light to move forward.

Dorm renaming recognizes Cherokee history

Before white settlers corrupted the name to Cullowhee, the land along the Tuckasegee River south of Sylva was known to the Cherokee people as “Joolth-cullah-whee,” or Judaculla’s place.

Details emerge surrounding Jacob Ray’s death

Charges against two Charlotte teens arrested following the shooting of 21-year-old Jacob Alexander Ray, of Hendersonville, have been upgraded from attempted murder to first-degree murder as of Monday, Oct. 16.

WCU student dies in shooting; Two teens arrested in connection

A late-night shooting near the Western Carolina University campus Friday, Oct. 6, has left a student dead.

Developer takes Jackson to court over permit denial

Denial of a permit to build a 388-bed student housing complex in Cullowhee will land Jackson County in court after Atlanta-based Mallory & Evans Development filed a motion asking for a judge to overturn the decision.

WCU total student enrollment tops 11,000

Records continue to fall by the wayside at Western Carolina University, as total student enrollment has surpassed 11,000 for the first time in the institution’s history and as the GPA of the entering freshman class has hit an all-time high.

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