Waynesville’s Folkmoot Festival is again underway. In its 35 th year, organizers say the folkdance festival has never been more relevant - or more necessary. Folkmoot is North Carolina’s official international folk festival. As it has grown, the gathering has become much more than just a series of cultural dance performances, according to Folkmoot Executive Director Angie Schwab. “Folkmoot started out as really a folk dance organization,” said Schwab. “The word ‘folkmoot’ means meeting of the

The tiny Haywood County town of Maggie Valley has long been a familiar tourist destination – especially when its well-known mountaintop amusement park was operating. Opened in 1962, Maggie Valley’s Ghost Town in the Sky was a wild west-themed amusement park high atop Buck Mountain in western Haywood County. In its day, the park attracted crowds that powered an economic development engine that drove motels, restaurants and related attractions to a town that had a five-lane road, but just 200

Fondly is how Western Carolina students will remember Chancellor Belcher says Claire Lemke. This is her singing, "Think of Me" from The Phantom of the Opera musical at her senior recital on the Cullowhee campus. Lemke was the first recipient of a scholarship in fine and performing arts that Chancellor Belcher established last year in honor of his wife. Lemke received $1000 for the spring semester of her senior year. It was devastating to hear that he was sick and equally devastating to hear that

Replacing the leader of a high-performing organization is never easy. But that’s what Haywood County Schools did this week after the March departure of a longtime superintendent who led the district to new heights. But as the district looks to the future, it didn’t have to look far for a replacement. With more than 7,000 students, Haywood County is home to the largest public school system west of Buncombe County. It’s also one of the best anywhere in the state. In each of the past two years, Haywood County has ranked 11th in academic performance out of 115 North Carolina school systems. “In the last four years Haywood County Schools has made some very good progress,” said Haywood County Schools Board of Education Chairman Chuck Francis. “We’re now ranked in the top 10 percent in the state and it’s due to a lot of hard work with our personnel, our people. The board makes policy decisions, and we let our folks, administrators, do the day-to-day operations and they are the ones that do

The Martin Luther King Association of Asheville & Buncombe County is partnering on a new scholarship program with UNC-Asheville. The university will offer up to $5-thousand in grants for students who are nominated by the local MLK Association. Dr. Joe Urgo believes that will help grow the racial and socio-economic diversity of the student body at the liberal arts university. UNC-Asheville’s interim chancellor also thinks this makes the school a stronger option for students who’ve grown up here – something Urgo says currently may not always be the case. “The best and the brightest students often think that if they’re going to get ahead they have to get away," Urgo says. "We want to provide a local option to keep those students in Asheville and hopefully then they’ll make their careers in Asheville.” Dr. Oralene Graves Simmons is the president of the MLK Association for Asheville & Buncombe County, and she says this program has already succeeded in making local high students

Voters in North Carolina this fall will decide plenty of high stakes elections for local, state, and federal offices. But that might only be the half of it – as several proposed amendments to the state constitution may also come before voters. As the General Assembly wraps up its work for the year, several proposed amendments are before lawmakers. Democratic governor Roy Cooper wishes the General Assembly would slow down with some of the more controversial amendments that put he and Republican legislative leaders at odds. Speaking in Asheville Tuesday afternoon, the governor said too little time for analysis is being left for amendments that would mandate photo ID to vote, capping the state income tax rate, and changing appointment powers to the board that oversees elections in North Carolina. “The language (of these amendments) is confusing," Cooper said after speaking to the Western Regional Service Alliance's Summer Leadership Conference. "And there needs to be more time spent on

Controversial legislation forcing the city of Asheville to have districts for city council members could pick up the support of Buncombe County Democratic Senator Terry Van Duyn if the bill is amended on the Senate floor. An elections committee advanced SB813 this morning. Van Duyn says the bill will be on the Senate floor on Monday.

30 years ago Friday, the movie Bull Durham premiered. The film merged baseball and romantic comedy, all while showcasing the state of North Carolina. Filming locations in the state included Durham, Raleigh, Greensboro, Wilson, Old Fort, and Asheville. Bull Durham’s biggest legacy though is the resurgence it sparked in minor league baseball that’s still felt today. It was released in 1988, and while minor league baseball had been around for decades by that time, it didn’t really resemble what it does now says Asheville Tourists team president Brian Dewine. “When minor league baseball first started, it often times (teams) would take the name of their affiliate, they would play in front of a few hundred fans, and it just was what it was," Dewine says. In 1988, the total attendance for all of minor league baseball was just over 21.6 million people. Last season, the total attendance was nearly double that. “Bull Durham showed everyone what minor league baseball was.

North Carolina Republicans are proposing changes to early voting, including doing away with the popular last Saturday before the election. The House gave final approval to the measure 61-40 Friday. It now goes to the House. Rollout of the proposal, Senate Bill 325 , prompted an emergency meeting of the North Carolina State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcment. The board's chairman Andy Penry said they had no input in the bill and received less than a day's notice of it. The House also quickly passed HB717 with little debate, which makes a slew of changes to judicial districts statewide.

North Carolina Republicans are proposing changes to early voting, including doing away with the popular last Saturday before the election. Rollout of the proposal, Senate Bill 325 , prompted an emergency meeting of the North Carolina State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcment. The board's chairman Andy Penry said they received notice after midnight of the legislation and had no input in it. The rules committee advanced the legislation the following morning.