If there was one thing the crowd of 230 people in E.E. Smith’s auditorium could agree on Tuesday night, it was that Fayetteville’s beloved historically Black high school needs new facilities. Applause and cheers came from Golden Bulls and community members alike as Cumberland County Schools Superintendent Dr. Marvin Connelly...

On a Sunday night in March, a Delta flight from Atlanta to Raleigh was late, but the delay didn’t diminish the spirits of a team of North Carolina State University students coming off a weekend victory. One student spotted the university’s chancellor, Randy Woodson, in the boarding area. After some...

Mission Hospital’s patient care profits have skyrocketed since its purchase by HCA Healthcare in 2019, largely because of cost cutting measures that have led to significantly lower staffing levels than at hospitals across the state and nation, according to public data. A 12-page working draft report out of Wake Forest...

Last week, Treasurer Dale Folwell filed a brief in support of a federal antitrust action to block Novant Health’s purchase of two North Carolina hospitals. He argued the merger would worsen care and increase tax demands on the state health plan. In January, the Federal Trade Commission filed an antitrust...

A federal judge has halted the enforcement of a North Carolina law that made it a serious crime for someone to vote while still on probation or parole for a felony conviction when they had simply violated the voting law by mistake. The ruling was celebrated by groups representing poor...

At the Spring Lake Board of Aldermen’s work session Monday, Mayor Kia Anthony announced that former finance director Gay Tucker had repaid the town over $18,000. Tucker was sentenced in 2022 to four years in prison for embezzling $567,070 over a five-year period from the Town of Spring Lake. “This...

Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper drew sharp contrasts with Republican lawmakers in his last budget proposal, calling on legislators to stop cutting taxes and pullback on spending programs for private schools. “They can choose desperately needed investments to educate our children and our workforce, along with tax cuts for...

The Haywood Community College is requesting several hefty funding increases from the county to cover new and expanding programs that will move the college — and county forward. HCC President Shelley White made the case for the funding increase to county commissioners last week. While the fate of the requested...

Coastal recreational and commercial fishermen will have to report certain fish harvests under a new North Carolina law that takes effect later this year. Preliminary details are scant as to how the two state agencies tasked with overseeing the reporting requirements will implement the program, one that is slated to...

The Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority on Wednesday voted to award nearly $10 million in funding to a dozen local projects as part of its inaugural Legacy Investment From Tourism (LIFT) grants – but notably, the panel steered clear of funding affordable housing. The Authority considered 14 projects in the...

A coalition of public interest groups has filed a lawsuit against Biden administration officials and agencies, asking for preliminary injunction to stop the construction of a wind turbine project off the shore of Virginia. The suit was filed in the name of saving the whales. The lawsuit claims the Virginia...

An updated feasibility study is complete regarding the viability of passenger rail between Wilmington and Raleigh. According to the newly released draft report, conducted by WGI Inc. engineering firm of West Palm Beach, the price from the last study — completed in 2005 — to bring passenger rail from the...

The North Carolina General Assembly begins its annual work session Wednesday with a little extra money to spend and limited pressing issues to address before key elections this fall and longtime state government leaders depart. Following their landmark 2023 session that expanded Medicaid, restricted abortion, broadened gun rights, swelled private-school...

A great blue heron rests peacefully along the lake of Camp Carefree. The air is crisp, the birds are chirping, and the Stokesdale site is living up to its name. Canoes and kayaks sit next to a playground on the lake’s left. A wooden pirate ship stands on the right....

The State Board of Community Colleges voted on Friday to create a permanent grant director position at the system office with the goal of bringing in additional grant money to the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS). This full-time grant director will help the system increase its federal, private, and...