App State will hold its annual Research and Creative Activity at Appalachian event Sept. 18 on the Boone campus, showcasing a wide variety of research and creative activities by faculty and staff. Dr. Martie Thompson, recipient of this year’s Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity, will serve as the event’s keynote speaker.

This fall, App State enrolls more than 21,300 students across its Boone, Hickory and App State Online campuses — including the largest online, graduate, transfer and first-generation student populations in the school’s history. Driven by seven consecutive years of growth, online students now account for over 18% of App State’s total student body.

App State has been recognized as a leader in business education for the 2026–27 academic year, with five notable publications naming the university’s Walker College of Business and its business bachelor’s and master’s programs among the best in the nation and world.

App State’s Team Sunergy followed a second-place finish at the Electrek Formula Sun Grand Prix with a historic performance at the 2026 Electrek American Solar Challenge, becoming the only team to earn two first-place finishes in the competition’s multi-occupant vehicle category. The team drove nearly 1,830 miles in its new solar car, Autumn, and received the Practicality Award.

Each summer, high school students from across North Carolina become researchers at App State through Summer Ventures in Science and Mathematics. Offered at no cost to participants, this state-funded program engages students in hands-on, collaborative research alongside faculty and staff. App State is one of four UNC System schools that host the program.

App State’s Dr. Dave McEvoy and Dr. Tracie McLemore Salinas are the winners of this year’s Departmental Leadership Awards. Recognized for their service to and lasting impact on App State’s academic community, McEvoy and Salinas won the Distinguished Leadership Award and the Emerging Leader Award, respectively.

Team Sunergy revealed a lighter, more aerodynamic solar racing vehicle ahead of two key international competitions to take place this summer — the Formula Sun Grand Prix and American Solar Challenge. The July 10 unveiling, held on the Boone campus, gave the public an opportunity to see the new vehicle and interact with the team.

Appalachian State University has partnered with the North Carolina Community College System on a new statewide articulation agreement for health-related Associate in Applied Science degrees. The initiative includes nearly all of the state’s community colleges and establishes seamless transfer pathways into App State’s Bachelor of Science in health sciences program.

What does independence mean to you? This question is at the heart of “Spirit of Independence” — an interactive performance by App State department chair Sheryl Oring honoring America’s 250th anniversary. To date, the project has archived perspectives from more than 300 national and international participants.