Total enrollment at Western Carolina University has crossed the 12,000-student threshold for the first time in the institution’s history, thanks in part to notable increases in distance education and graduate student populations and a surge of returning undergraduates.

If you’re planning to pass through Waterloo, Ala. on Saturday, Sept. 21, best of luck with that.

Hundreds of members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) lined up inside and outside of the Cherokee Indian Fairgrounds exhibit hall on the afternoon of Thursday, Aug. 29 to receive a free book to help start them on a journey towards Cherokee language fluency. 

If the current long-range weather forecast of close-to-normal weather conditions pans out, the mountains of Western North Carolina should produce a typically bright display of fall leaf color this year – enough to satisfy both the region’s residents and the thousands of visitors who travel in for nature’s annual show.

Fifteen pairs of shoes take the stage. A butterfly festival inside, and beads of sweat running past their eyes as they gaze out at 1,500 people.

Jasper Thomas Garrett Jr. sat in testing at United States Navy Boot Camp when he heard a familiar sound. It was something that he had learned from his father while growing up and was now about to change his life.