Twenty minutes east of Boone, at the end of a twisting gravel road, a team of university researchers peer into the cosmos to learn more about the distant stars. Perched atop an especially dark mountain and driven by a desire to understand the universe we live in, Appalachian’s Dark Sky Observatory is a tribute to the quality of the local scientific community.

This is Dollar General Bowl week and weekend in Mobile. But before the big game Saturday, players and coaches from both Appalachian State University and the University of Toledo visited children at the University of South Alabama's Children's and Women's Hospital.

Cpl. Matt Taylor was recently picked by the command staff at the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office to receive the “2017 Employee of the Year” award. Taylor graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Appalachian State University in 2011.

Appalachian student Charles Walker Austin-Zimmerman's debut EP, "Whole Again" is a remarkable set of music — five songs detailing the anxieties and insecurities of moving away from home and starting college, where Austin-Zimmerman, who performs under the name Charles Walker, studies communications and sociology.

One of Appalachian’s most used academic buildings is slated for renovation, to be funded from proceeds of the student debt services fee. Appalachian’s board of trustees approved a motion to recommend the fee increase on Friday and to endorse renovations and improvements to Sanford Hall as well as the issuance of special obligation bonds or other long-term debt up to $18 million.

On November 4, 2017 the North Carolina Humanities Council announced Mr. Aaron Ballance as the recipient of its 2017 Linda Flowers Literary Award for his entries of “Sugarfoot,” “Old Trouble,” “The Peaks,” “One-Eyed Jenny,” “The Brink,” “Leading Flash to the Barn – January,” and “Rust.”

Pressured by a blooming reputation as well as changes to race regulations, Appalachian's Solar Vehicle Team is now finalizing designs for its second-generation vehicle.

The Hospitality House of Boone cut the ribbon Nov. 28 on its new solar panel system with 54 photovoltaic panels, becoming what it says is the first homeless services facility in the United States with solar power. Appalachian State University’s Appalachian in the Community Together service group committed to $5,000 for the project.

Children sometimes flip through National Geographic magazines just to look at the photos, but not Dr. Cynthia Liutkus-Pierce when she was growing up.