WCU Stories      November 12, 2024

By Bill Studenc

Although the Western Carolina University campus in Cullowhee avoided any significant damage from the fury of Hurricane Helene as it tore through Western North Carolina in late September, that does not mean that all students, faculty and staff emerged unscathed.

Hundreds of members of the campus community have sustained property damage, endured economic difficulties and even lost loved ones in the aftermath of Helene, and many of them are continuing to dig out more than a month after the storm ripped across the mountain region.

But the financial impact of the disaster is being lessened thanks to donors who have provided nearly $300,000 in support to two emergency funds at WCU – one for students and one for faculty and staff.

As of Nov. 4, a total of 607 individual gifts tallying more than $160,200 have poured into WCU’s Student Affairs Emergency Fund from alumni, parents and friends, including a $25,000 corporate commitment from Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina. In addition, the student fund has received a separate pledge of $30,000 from an anonymous donor.

WCU’s Employee Emergency Assistance Fund has received 200 gifts totaling more than $143,000 through Nov. 4. That amount includes $100,000 from the C.D. Spangler Foundation in partnership with National Gypsum Co.

Many of the contributions to both emergency funds came during an annual initiative by the Division of Advancement to increase employee giving to the university and to grow membership in the Shetland Society, an organization recognizing faculty and staff donors. That effort kicked off Wednesday, Sept. 4, and concluded Wednesday, Oct. 23.

The donations to the emergency funds in response to Helene are “inspiring and a testament to the Catamount spirit," said James Hogan, WCU assistant vice chancellor for engagement.

“While WCU's main campus and our instructional site in Biltmore Park were largely spared, this storm illustrates the regional nature of this university,” Hogan said. “Our students come from all over the state, as well as from other states. For many, their home communities have been devastated. In addition, hundreds of our staff and faculty live outside of Jackson County in areas that sustained unbelievable destruction from floodwaters.”

More than 25 percent of the university’s total workforce reside in Buncombe, Haywood or Henderson counties, which were particularly hard hit by Helene. That includes the nearly 40 percent of WCU’s faculty members who live in those affected counties, a factor that has had a major impact on the university’s ability to deliver its core educational mission.

Buncombe is home to 157 of WCU’s faculty and staff (10 percent of the total workforce), 252 faculty and staff members live in Haywood (15 percent), and another 20 live in Henderson County (1 percent), said Cory Causby, associate vice chancellor for human resources and payroll.

Some 4,800 current students hail from the 27 counties of North Carolina, plus the Qualla Boundary, that have been declared part of the federal disaster area following Hurricane Helene. That total includes residential students on the main campus in Cullowhee, those studying at Biltmore Park in Asheville, and remote and distance education learners.

By the end of October, the Division of Student Affairs had received 603 applications from students for emergency funds since Hurricane Helene, said Betsy Aspinwall, associate vice chancellor and dean of students. “We have 487 students who have received funding totaling $236,476 through our standard channels, with $87,080 coming directly from the donor-funded Student Emergency Fund to support 176 students,” Aspinwall said.

In addition, the North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority has authorized the use of existing Next NC Scholarship funds to assist students from Federal Emergency Management Agency-designated disaster counties, enabling them to stay enrolled at University of North Carolina System institutions, she said. WCU’s portion of these funds was approximately $2.4 million, with assistance distributed to eligible students much in the same way the campus emergency funds have been.

Including the funding from the Next NC Scholarship program, 590 of the 603 WCU students who applied for financial assistance have received support from a variety of sources to meet expenses associated with the storm.

The amount of assistance provided to student recipients varied depending upon individual need, said Sam Miller, vice chancellor for student affairs.

“Most of the Helene-related emergency fund requests have been to help students with lost wages effects after their employers closed and students were scrambling on rent, food, prescriptions and other necessities; to help replace groceries and food lost because of power outages; to help repair damage to vehicles; to help with increased transportation expenses including buying more gas; and to assist with damage to their housing,” Miller said.

On the faculty and staff side of the equation, nearly 70 WCU employees received help from the Employee Emergency Assistance Fund in the wake of Hurricane Helene through Oct. 31. Each received $1,000 to assist with unexpected expenses associated with the storm.

An assistant professor in the College of Business is among the faculty and staff members who have received assistance from the emergency funds set up at WCU after he sustained a serious injury while assisting a Haywood County neighbor whose crawlspace had flooded.

He felt a sharp pain in his left knee while working in the crawlspace and soon discovered an old, rusty nail lodged into the tendon. He pulled it out, treated the wound and went back to volunteering in his community. But, several days later, he began feeling ill and made an appointment at his doctor’s office. He eventually learned that about a quarter inch of rusty nail remained embedded in his tendon, necessitating emergency surgery to remove it.

The faculty member described receiving support from the Employee Emergency Assistance Fund as critical to his family at the time. “I have been in a position before to make donations of this type to support people in need, and now I found myself in a position for assistance. I know so many other people are facing so much more difficulty, and I am so appreciative that WCU has the supportive family in place to give in this manner,” he said.

“It is many hands that make light work and many hearts that make love work. Love comes in so many forms, and knowing someone (or in this case, so many ‘someones’ – a global Catamount community) are there to help in a person’s darkest hours is overwhelming. I have been privileged in my life to most often find myself in the position of the giver or the one who serves, and it is humbling, inspiring and truly awe-inducing to be surrounded by so many who helped in this manner,” he said. “I will continue to pay forward and compound the love that was invested in me as a member of the WCU family, and I say ‘thank you.’”

Several students anonymously shared how receiving WCU emergency funding has helped them continue on their educational paths in spite of Hurricane Helene. Some students’ vehicles were flooded and needed repair, while others had possessions – including computer equipment necessary for coursework – damaged by flooding. Many said they lost employment income when their places of work were closed because of storm damage. And one student who resided in a riverside camper lacked shelter when flooding caused extensive electrical damage to the dwelling.

“Our students, faculty and staff who were affected by Hurricane Helene are slowly finding their way back to normalcy thanks to wonderful support from hundreds of their colleagues, alumni, parents, friends, and corporate and nonprofit partners,” Hogan said. “But, the road to recovery is going to be a long one. The needs will persist even after Helene has faded from the headlines. These emergency funds will remain available to help meet those needs in the weeks and months ahead.”

To make a contribution to WCU’s Student Affairs Emergency Fund or Employee Emergency Assistance Fund, visit the website give.wcu.edu/emergency.