Behind the scenes with Porch 40

Soul Infusion Tea House and Bistro was packed when Porch 40 played on Saturday, May 4, but when it’s Porch 40 it’s always packed. Porch 40, a funk/jazz/rock/energy band, has become a local favorite in the Sylva/Cullowhee area. Andrew Duncan (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Scott Burr (vocals, saxophone, synthesizer), Mitchell Metz (vocals, violin, bass, guitar), […]

Alecia Page: triumph of a first-generation college student

Alecia Page spent her entire college career holding many titles at Western Carolina University. When she walked at the graduation ceremony on May 11, she left behind a legacy –  a program that will  provide assistance and support for first-generation college students. “I was elected freshman year into senate, so my term started sophomore year as sophomore senator,” Page […]

WCU Confessions: depression, expression, oppression or discretion?

Got something you want to get off your chest but are too afraid to say? Now’s your chance with the new Facebook page, Western Carolina University Confessions. This social networking page provides an outlet for WCU students to anonymously express their feelings about the university, promote random thoughts and discuss problems with their daily lives […]

Chancellor Belcher on the WCU budget

In the fall 2013 semester, undergraduate WCU students who reside in-state will be paying an additional $340 (or 5.54 percent) for their education. In the coming months, the North Carolina General Assembly will decide on the budgets for the UNC school system, and there is a chance the budget will be cut yet again. The […]

Cadaver dog training at WCU

The Western Carolina University Forensic Anthropology Program, in conjunction with the Division of Educational Outreach and the Human Identification Lab, hosted their latest cadaver dog training program workshop May 15 – 22. Participants experienced instructional lectures as well as in-field exercises giving them and their canine companions valuable practice in human decomposition odor tracking and […]

Mosquitoes in WNC can infect community

Mosquitoes are one of the most common pests in Western North Carolina, but they bring a greater risk than itchy bites. Western Carolina University environmental health professor and public health biologist Brian Byrd has a passion for insects, particularly mosquitoes.   Though he has also worked with tics and mites, Byrd specializes in mosquito-borne diseases […]