Blog

Alexis Harp was lost her first few semesters of undergrad. Imposter syndrome was hitting her hard. She was a first-generation college student navigating the world of higher education, and to top it all off, she originally didn’t even want to go to college.

In the midst of ongoing staffing challenges across the healthcare industry, the innovative partnership between Western Carolina University (WCU) and the Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority (CIHA) is doing exactly what a great pipeline should do -- it matches local talent with meaningful careers close to home, expands continuing education opportunities, and opens career-ladder pathways for enrolled members of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians (EBCI).

Alexander “Alec” Harris, former recreation and events supervisor for the municipality of Jersey Village, Texas, is the new director of development for Western Carolina University’s College of Education and Allied Professions.

Heidi Von Dohlen was an educator and school principal for 27 years before becoming the director of the Principal Fellows program at Western Carolina University.

Lydia Sale has an unwavering dedication to public education. She walks into her classroom at Swain West Elementary School each morning with her students on her heart. That’s always been the case for Sale.

An ice storm shifted the first Western North Carolina Elementary STEM Community of Practice meeting to Zoom last minute, but Patricia Bricker’s project didn’t freeze up.

Professors at Western Carolina University’s College of Education and Allied Professions accepted their second A-plus score from the National Center on Teacher Quality this April.

Daniel Pickens, a Franklin native, was recently awarded a Dogwood Trust aspiring educators grant from the Western Region Education Service Alliance.