Amid what they call “direct attacks” from the North Carolina legislature against LGBTQ+ students, Brennan Lewis recalled how one club at their former Wake County high school helped them in a special way. The club was a Gay Straight Alliance (GSA), more commonly known now as Gender and Sexualities Alliances....

Thousands of North Carolina teens and young adults have taken part in programs in the past year that are aimed at helping them to quit vaping or to prevent them from starting. Funding for the programs comes from a $40 million settlement the state won in 2021 against e-cigarette maker...

After July 1, the University of Virginia and other public institutions in the state will no longer be able to give an admissions advantage to students who are connected to alums or donors. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a new bill into law on Friday that will end the use...

More than 4.5 million visitors flock to the mountains annually for one attraction, making it the single most-visited attraction in North Carolina — and the region’s single largest employer. Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort is a massive operation requiring 3,000 employees at the flagship location — which lies just over Soco...

The nation’s wildlife refuges have taken a federal funding cut that is expected to shutter more visitors’ centers, diminish wildlife management capabilities and further trim an already wafer-thin force of wildlife officers. With just hours looming before a government shutdown, the Senate on Friday approved a resolution to fund about...

Big Four athletics directors welcomed North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s rescinding of an executive order nearly three years old and now outdated by the Tennessee v. NCAA preliminary injunction. Cooper’s order July 2, 2021, followed the NCAA allowing students who are athletes to start earning money based on their name...

Fifty-five educator preparation programs (EPPs) in North Carolina enrolled a total of 15,865 candidates pursuing initial teaching licenses in 2022-23, according to data presented at the State Board of Education’s March meeting. Those numbers reflect a 10% decrease from 2021-2022, and a 43% increase over the last decade. However, new...

Frustration boiled over during public comments at a March 6 Environmental Review Commission meeting (ERC) described as a Presentation to the Dredging Process and Permitting. The meeting was held at the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island. Permitting to dredge Oregon Inlet continues to be plagued by conflicting rules and...

When Otis Smallwood was hired to be superintendent of Bertie County Schools — a return home to the school district he once attended as a student — he knew his charge was to find a way to attract more teachers to the district and get them to stay. “The [school]...

Critics of North Carolina’s school voucher programs like to say that even millionaires can now get public money to help pay their children’s private-school tuition. And technically that’s true, since the General Assembly voted this summer to remove income caps for Opportunity Scholarships. But the state has seen a surge...

Playing college basketball for top programs such as Duke or North Carolina, in sold-out arenas on national TV, naturally brings players pressure and draws a related amount of vitriol from opposing fans. When legal sports betting goes live Monday in North Carolina, athletes face an added source of hate headed...

While his college friends celebrated the end of midterm exams with a spring break trip to Florida, 21-year-old Wyatt Gable entered the home stretch of his bid to oust a 10-term Republican from the North Carolina House. Weeks spent phone banking after class and driving about an hour home on...

Kim Parker was spending a normal weekend afternoon with family in the living room when she spied something out the window that left her momentarily speechless. “I looked out and at first I couldn’t get the words out. I’m just pointing at the yard. The bear just came down from...

The Mayor of Sparta addressed his sudden resignation during a meeting Friday. In a room full of people, Mayor Wes Brinegar explained what unfolded at Tuesday’s town hall meeting. The Mayor spoke for nearly 30 minutes, getting emotional at times. He said there’s so much that needs to be said...

After months of deliberation and more than $40,000 spent, the Buncombe County Board of Education begrudgingly approved an electoral map Thursday night that will cause some parents to vote for officials who will not represent most of their children’s districts. The state legislature required redistricting for the Buncombe school district...