John Boyle/Asheville Watchdog If you didn’t know better, you might think being on Asheville City Council is one fantastic, sexy job. I mean, why else would 20 people be running for three seats on that venerable board? Clearly, I jest. The job pays a whopping 19 grand a year, almost...

Analisa Sorrells Archer/Education NC Community college students face a variety of obstacles that may hinder their success, stemming from demands inside and outside of the classroom. Compared to students at four-year colleges, community colleges serve a larger proportion of students of color, first-generation students, low-income students, adult students, and first-...

Anne Blythe/NC Health News More than 13 years have passed since a group of prominent state retirees filed a lawsuit challenging what was then a new state law that required them to start paying for health care benefits they had received free of charge for years as part of their...

Kirstyn Clark/WRAL News Support is pouring in for a Raleigh teacher who was murdered on Saturday. From the flowers that people have placed outside of her home and the memories former students and friends shared, it is clear that Zoe Welsh led with love and kindness. “She really cared for...

Emily Sawaked/Port City Daily A campground in a Brunswick County beach town is vying for more spaces to bring in more nude travelers in 2026. Whispering Pines Nudist Resort hosts 57 recreational vehicle sites on its 35 acres but wants to add 12 more to total 69. For ease of...

Elena Marsh/The Southern Pines Pilot As the Moore County Airport Authority and local tourism officials continue efforts to bring back commercial air service, the next step to secure an airline will involve raising $3 million as an incentive to that airline. That fund would be designed to ensure that the...

The Watauga Democrat After a 30-year effort, Blue Ridge Conservancy has announced the purchase of 74 acres on Howard Knob, securing the property for hiking, rock climbing, and other public recreation, and protecting it from future development. The property adjoins Watauga County’s existing 5-acre park and the Boone United Methodist...

Addy Bink/CBS 17 News If you purchased select beef products in one of 26 states (plus the District of Columbia) during a specific timeline, you may be eligible to receive part of an $87.5 million settlement reached with the nation’s biggest beef processors. According to a website established for the...

Bradley George/WUNC Radio The rise of artificial intelligence is changing the physical environment in North Carolina and across the South. Companies are building data centers all over the region. AI-driven applications are creating demand for more conduits to carry internet traffic, like undersea cables that snake along the ocean floor....

Aarik Long/The Waynesville Mountaineer Students taking agriculture classes at Waynesville Middle will soon have a new and improved greenhouse to work in, thanks to grant funding and a lot of legwork from their teacher. The nearly 3,000-square-foot greenhouse will join one such structure already on campus, providing students with fresh...

Clare Fieseler/Canary Media David Stevenson stood in a circle of friends and colleagues in an Orlando, Florida, hotel lobby. Everyone but him wore a lapel pin that read ​“I ♥ Fossil Fuels.” “You want one?” asked a conference attendee, offering me the pin with a smirk. ​“It can be a...

Charlie Fossen/Port City Daily Next week, the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission is scheduled to vote on new regulations for chemicals PFAS and 1,4-dioxane. The proposed “monitoring and minimization” rule would require industrial facilities to sample their wastewater and, if the compounds are detected, submit a plan to the North...

Kelsey Coffey/WRAL News In a climate where child care is already fraught with challenges, a new hurdle emerges as allegations of fraud in Minnesota threaten to put federal funding on hold nationwide. The announcement earlier this week by the Trump administration that it would freeze child care funds to Minnesota...

Felicia Sonmez/Blue Ridge Public Radio Tangie Morgan is the mayor of the small town of Saluda in Polk County. She’s also the owner and manager of the M. A. Pace General Store, which she says is one of the oldest stores in North Carolina. “See, this is my family’s business,”...

Kenneth Lee Jr., James Farrell & Palmer Magri/WFAE Radio A Mint Hill man has been arrested after allegedly planning a deadly New Year’s Eve attack in support of the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS). Russ Ferguson, U.S. attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, said 18-year-old Christian...