Last Updated on February 14, 2026 6:54 pm
Friday, February 13, 2026
At Appalachian State University, our commitment to academic excellence and student success is exemplified daily in the teaching, research and service conducted by our faculty, staff and students. The results are meaningful — not just for our university community but also for communities across the state and region.
- Faculty members in the Department of Geography and Planning and Department of Public Health are collaborating to study the long‑term health impacts of catastrophic flooding and help rural communities strengthen their disaster preparedness plans and resources. Together with researchers from Virginia Tech, Dr. Maggie Sugg and Jennifer Schroeder Tyson are working with local health departments and Cooperative Extension agents in Western North Carolina and Southwest Virginia, supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health. They will develop a data toolbox that documents health care challenges and identifies essential recovery needs in flood-prone areas that also have a shortage of health care professionals — a significant resource for local stakeholders, response teams and policymakers.
- Two faculty members in the Department of Child Development, Literacy and Special Education, Dr. Teressa Sumrall and Rhonda Russell, are partnering with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to address significant child care staffing shortages in Western NC. They will implement three child care training academies in Western North Carolina this spring and summer. Each will deliver an accelerated, comprehensive curriculum that meets or exceeds our state’s minimum training standards, equipping our region with well-prepared, certified child care professionals — at no cost to participants.
- In our Department of Kinesiology, students are working directly with cardiac patients and people with chronic respiratory disease to help with the prevention of further disease progression and improve patients’ quality of life. Through this UNC Health Appalachian initiative, patients have access to a physician-referred, medically supervised exercise program, while students gain real-world, industry experience in a clinical setting. I invite you to watch this short video to learn more about this program from the perspective of Cyndel Waters, a graduate student from Dahlonega, Georgia, who will soon begin her career as an exercise physiologist — right here in Western North Carolina.
- Nine students in our metalsmithing and jewelry design program were featured in a national exhibition for jewelry artists and metalsmiths, a mainstay of the annual Material Topics Symposium held on the campus of East Carolina University. In addition to showcasing their works and networking with professional national and international contemporary jewelry artists and metalsmiths, these students also shared their research on a national scale.
- The highly competitive and prestigious Fulbright program has named App State among only seven colleges and universities in the nation to have the highest number of candidates selected for both the Fulbright U.S. Student Program and U.S. Scholar Program in the 2025-26 academic year. The Fulbright program is directed by the U.S. State Department for the purpose of facilitating study, teaching and research, the exchange of ideas and finding solutions to important international issues. Fulbright U.S. Scholars are faculty, researchers, administrators and established professionals who teach or conduct research in affiliation with institutes abroad. Fulbright U.S. Students are recent college graduates, graduate students and early career professionals who participate in research exchanges or serve as English teaching assistants in local schools abroad.
These initiatives and accomplishments — and so many more — are supported, in part, by key leadership boards who volunteer their time and resources to champion and secure funding for our university. This week, I’m spending time with two of those boards — our Foundation Board of Directors and our Board of Visitors, and sharing information about the work we have underway to develop the university’s Master Plan, Strategic Plan and comprehensive fundraising campaign. The energy, passion and enthusiasm of these board members are unmatched, and I’m so appreciative for their investments in our future success.
I also had the opportunity to meet with student leaders, continuing the series of “Lunch and Conversation” events I began hosting this academic year at the Appalachian House. This week, I hosted fraternity and sorority leaders, and it was a pleasure to spend time with them and learn more about their student experiences.
As we look to the weekend, from Hickory to Boone, App State alumni are gathering for fun and fellowship during Winter Weekend 2026. Beginning last night with an alumni educators event hosted by the Catawba Valley Alumni Chapter on our Hickory campus, the fun continues throughout the weekend. With options that range from skiing and snowboarding, to attending the Margo Price concert at the Schaefer Center, to enjoying some Mountaineer Women’s Basketball, alumni and their families and friends are not only reminiscing about old times, they’re creating new and lasting memories with their alma mater.
Events of the weekend also include App State Baseball opening their home season with a three-game series in Hickory at L.P. Frans Stadium, home of the Hickory Crawdads, against Canisius — beginning today. Men’s Basketball moved into first place in the Sun Belt Conference after Wednesday’s exciting win over Georgia Southern and will fight to keep that rank tomorrow as they play James Madison in Harrisonburg for another important Sun Belt contest. Mountaineers from near and far will be wearing the Black and Gold and cheering on our Mountaineer student-athletes in several exciting contests this weekend!
Through academics, the arts and athletics, the App State Experience is purposeful, relevant and full of spirit. I wish everyone a wonderful Mountaineer weekend.
Heather Norris
Chancellor
