North Carolina’s state legislature recently requested and funded a report evaluating the return on investment (ROI) of programs within the UNC System. The final report was released in February. Conducted by Deloitte along with the RPK Group and the Burning Glass Institute, the report estimates ROI by calculating “lifetime earnings...

Haywood County Sheriff Bill Wilke says there is no change to drug enforcement in his county despite legalized marijuana in Cherokee. Though Cherokee’s tribal council has approved the sale of recreational and medical marijuana to any N.C. adult, Haywood County Sheriff Bill Wilke says it is business as usual on...

A manufacturer in the solar industry may open a $159 million plant on Corporation Drive south of Fayetteville and hire 815 people. The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners is scheduled to hold a public hearing on Monday to listen to comments on whether county taxpayers should give the company $3.5...

Hashem Amireh was sitting by himself in a conference room when his friends texted him, around 5:30 a.m. on April 30, to say that UNC campus police were coming to dismantle the Palestine Solidarity Encampment on the quad. Amireh, a doctoral student in economics who serves as president of the...

As Fayetteville and Cumberland County officials try to persuade American Titanium Metal to build a $1.3 billion titanium recycling plant here, they can look to South Carolina and their own history for cautionary lessons. From 2008 until 2022, another company sought to open a titanium manufacturing plant in Laurens County,...

In commencement programs across North Carolina in 2022, 43,291 bachelor’s degrees were awarded by the UNC System, a key supplier of teachers for districts across our state. Only five out of 100 of graduates studied education, and less than 9% of those who did had majors specific to special education....

The Port of Wilmington is completing technology updates in its warehouses and strengthening its crane software network following concerns from the federal government about Chinese crane manufacturers, port officials said last month during a North Carolina State Ports Authority board of directors meeting. At the meeting, Doug Vogt, the port’s...

Elizabeth City, N.C., has submitted an overdue audit that shows the city has resolved some issues with financial oversight, but continues to struggle with others. The city in northeastern North Carolina has been two years behind on financial statements that are required to be reported to the Local Government Commission,...

Texas-based Whataburger is suing several North Carolina restaurants of nearly identical names for trademark infringement. The lawsuit was filed in federal court on Tuesday. The North Carolina What-A-Burger #13 restaurants are controlled by Zeb Bost and are based at addresses on W. Franklin Street in Mount Pleasant, Trinity Road in...

Dr. Jennifer Casaletto dreamed about working in an emergency department for years. “I have the opportunity to treat everyone,” she said, her face lighting up when talking about her career. “That opportunity of sharing in folk’s stories and being able to be with them on many of their worst days,...

The city of Charlotte is proposing to spend $650 million to renovate Bank of America Stadium. Several Charlotte City Council members on Monday said the city should hold a special public hearing at least one week before a June 24 vote to spend $650 million to renovate Bank of America...

A Davidson County commissioner is charged with simple assault and assault by pointing a gun. Commission Chair Todd Yates is accused of pulling a gun on one of his tenants, James Strickland. Strickland says it happened after a conversation about the building he rents from Yates. Strickland is concerned since...

Macon County is the latest in Western North Carolina to issue a public health alert about the whooping cough outbreak that is spreading across the region. Six cases have been confirmed, affecting multiple age groups, according to a Friday news release issued by Macon County Public Health. The highly contagious...

More than $270 million toward construction projects for Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point is pending passage within the MilConVA legislation. Members of the Senate are next to consider the Fiscal Year 2025 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act that cleared the House of Representatives 209-197. If...

For more than 20 years, Steven Hines, has worked in election administration in North Carolina. He served as an elections director in five counties — Pitt, Forsyth, Greene, Carteret counties and most recently, Lenoir County, where he resigned in August 2023. “The pay for elections directors is not equitable to...