Marine and plant farming merge in aquaponics

Randy Reinke is a new graduate of Western Carolina University with a bachelor of science degree in natural resource conservation and management. He spent his senior year developing a fully functional aquaponic farming system in the WCU campus greenhouse. What is aquaponics? It is a hybrid of two different farming techniques. The cultivation of plant […]

Affirmative action at WCU

There has been a lot of controversy regarding whether college institutions should be allowed to regulate college admission by factoring race, and using race to fill in necessary slots in the school’s freshman class. The affirmative action has been challenged in several instances and institution in the past year. The Supreme Court in March decided […]

WCU students prepare for life in the ‘real world’

Western Carolina University is about to send its largest-ever class of graduates out into the world of real life jobs, but the job market for new college graduates has not improved in recent years. This discouraged this class of WCU students. They all have plans and aspirations for after they graduate. Some plan to further […]

Angela Laird Brenton: 1953 – 2013

Dr. Angela Laird Brenton, Western Carolina University’s provost and vice chancellor, died early Wednesday morning after a three-month battle with pancreatic cancer. Brenton began serving as provost at WCU in August 2012 after a 16-member campus committee appointed her in May. Brenton was born on Jan. 3, 1953, in Duncan, Oklahoma. Prior to her tenure […]

Fishing: a line and a lure

Every spring, the white bass converge on the rivers in North Carolina, gliding upstream to participate in spawning rituals that result in waters overflowing with the silver-bodied fish. If fishermen calculate correctly, they will find themselves ripping these fish out of the water faster than they can reel. “I’ve had days when I’ve literally caught […]

WCU students share their gun violence ‘number’

After losing a dear friend, Dr. Roger Hartley, associate professor of political science at Western Carolina University, created a Facebook group called “What is Your Number? Our Network of Gun Violence.” The group has gained national attention through MSNBC and The Washington Post. Dr. Hartley spoke with WCJ about his project. Read the full story […]