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126 years strong: Founders Day honors App State’s enduring legacy as a higher education leader
Oct 22, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — On Oct. 2, Appalachian State University held its eighth annual Founders Day, commemorating the university’s 126th year as a leader and innovator in higher education. The annual event honors the university’s founders — B.B., D.D.

Alumni, Events, University News
Appalachian State University Police Officer Cashae Cook ’14. Cook has been named Woman of the Year for 2025 by the North Carolina Law Enforcement Women’s Association. Photo by Chase Reynolds

App State Police Officer Cashae Cook earns NC’s highest award for women in law enforcement
Oct 17, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University Police Officer Cashae Cook ’14 has been named Woman of the Year by the North Carolina Law Enforcement Women’s Association (NCLEWA).

Alumni, University News
App State Chancellor Heather Norris, left, with Dr. Rahman Tashakkori, the Lowe’s Distinguished Professor of Computer Science in App State’s Department of Computer Science, at the university’s 2025 Research and Creative Activity at Appalachian event, held Sept. 19 on the Boone campus. Tashakkori is the recipient of the 2025 Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity. Photo by Chase Reynolds

App State spotlights achievements in research, scholarship and creative activities
Oct 10, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — This year’s Research and Creative Activity at Appalachian (RECAPP) event — Appalachian State University’s annual showcase of faculty research and creative endeavors — featured keynote addresses from App State faculty members Dr.

Faculty & Staff, Grants & Research, University News
U.S. News & World Report, The Princeton Review, Forbes magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Monthly magazine and Money.com have named App State among the nation’s top schools for 2025–26, recognizing the university for its academics, innovation, value, benefits for student veterans and more. This aerial image of App State’s Boone campus, taken Sept. 18, shows the beginnings of fall color dotting campus trees. Photo by Wes Craig and Chase Reynolds

High-quality academics, innovation and value secure App State’s spot among America’s top schools for 2025–26
Oct 6, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University has earned a national reputation as one of the top higher education institutions in the Southeast and the country — a position affirmed by the latest rankings of six notable publications, including U.S.

Awards & Honors, University News
Joe Dancy and Jenna Shaw stand in front of their flooded and mud-filled home in Swannanoa after Hurricane Helene. Photo by Jesse Barber

App State and regional artists channel Helene’s impact into creative works of hope and healing
Oct 1, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — Hurricane Helene is often remembered for scenes of destruction — but at Appalachian State University and in the surrounding community, artists have found beauty, hope and healing in the brokenness, channeling the storm’s impact into creative works.

Arts & Cultural, Alumni, Faculty & Staff, University News
In the wake of Hurricane Helene, App State students rallied to help their High Country neighbors — from daring rescues and digging out trapped residents to volunteering with storm cleanup and repairs. Above, students volunteer with cleanup at an area river outfitter during a Day of Service on Oct. 19, 2024. That day, around 175 students collectively completed over 500 hours of community service at 15 organizations and locations across the High Country. Photo by Kyla Willoughby

App State Reflects: One Year After Helene
Sep 22, 2025

When Hurricane Helene damaged and disrupted Western North Carolina in September 2024, it also revealed the incredible strength of our communities.

University News
The App State hellbender team surveys the New River near Boone. Pictured, from left to right, are biology graduate students Brent Kinser, Aidan Hedges and Hutch Whitman, App State alumna and lab technician Emily Gillikin '24 and recent App State graduate Hunter Comeford. Photo by Chase Reynolds

App State advances community-driven research for recovery and resilience
Sep 22, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — Hurricane Helene’s cascading effects swept through Western North Carolina’s communities, landscapes and institutions.

Grants & Research, Outreach & Community Engagement, University News
According to the National Weather Service, Hurricane Helene made landfall in the Big Bend area of the Florida Gulf Coast as a Category 4 storm late in the evening of Sept. 26, 2024. The storm reached the Southern Appalachians on Sept. 27, 2024, causing widespread flooding, landslides, downed trees and power outages. Image courtesy of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere

What made Hurricane Helene a historic storm?
Sep 9, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — In September 2024, Hurricane Helene brought record-breaking rain and wind to the High Country, leaving a lasting impact across the region. It marked Boone’s most devastating flood event since 1940 — and before that, 1916.

Faculty & Staff, Grants & Research, University News
App State enrolls 21,798 Mountaineer students in fall 2025, a 1.1% increase over last fall. This steady growth is supported by intentionally managed enrollment at the Boone campus and continued growth in the App State Hickory and App State Online student populations. Photos by Troy Tuttle, Chase Reynolds and Wes Craig

21,798 Mountaineers enroll at App State for fall 2025
Sep 5, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — This fall, Appalachian State University reports continued steady growth, welcoming a record-setting enrollment of 21,798 Mountaineer students — a 1.1% increase over fall 2024.

University News, Students
Isaac Critcher (left) and Sarah Sinner (right)

August 2025 College of Arts and Sciences Staff Shout Outs
Sep 2, 2025

BOONE, N.C. — Awarded by the Appalachian State University Staff Senate, Staff Shout Outs recognize staff members for their positive contributions to the University.

Awards & Honors, Faculty & Staff, University News