Last Updated on November 8, 2025 7:31 pm
Friday, November 7, 2025
One of my greatest joys as Chancellor is sharing points of pride about our beloved Appalachian State University.
Earlier this semester, 15 App State students graduated from our Appalachian Police Academy training program, passing all requirements of North Carolina’s Basic Law Enforcement Training — while also pursuing their App State degrees. These students completed 750 hours of training, including de-escalation, communications skills and first responder instruction and practice, and are now sworn North Carolina officers working part time for the university’s police department, and they will do so until they graduate.
Reich College of Education Dean Melba Spooner was recently recognized with the 2025 Outstanding Contribution to Educator Preparation Award by the North Carolina Association of Colleges for Teacher Education. This award recognizes individuals — based on criteria such as distinguished service to the educator preparation community and the development and promotion of exemplary practices — who have made significant and lasting contributions to educator preparation in the state. Melba began her career as a K–12 classroom teacher. I got to know her well when we were both serving as deans, and I know she is deeply committed to ensuring all students have the opportunity to both succeed and thrive in every educational setting. This ideal guides her in leading the faculty and staff of the Reich College of Education in developing future educators who serve in nearly every county in our state, and beyond. It is also demonstrated through lasting and continued partnerships, as well as the professional accomplishments of our alumni.
Last night, on the Kidd Brewer Stadium field, we recognized some of these outstanding alumni educators — 10 of Watauga County Schools’ Teachers of the Year and a Principal of the Year, joined by two-time App State graduate and WCS Superintendent Dr. Leslie Alexander ’11 ’18. We also celebrated the Extra Yard for Teachers First Teach professional training program, an important partnership between Appalachian State University and Watauga County Schools designed to recruit and support future educators. Congratulations to Dean Spooner and these exceptional educators, who represent their profession with distinction. Your dedication to the success of all students is admirable!
On Monday evening, I joined High Country leaders for a panel discussion as part of the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce’s Watauga Leadership Institute. It was my honor to join Dr. Leslie Alexander, Blue Ridge Conservancy Executive Director David Ray and Blue Ridge Energy President and Chief Executive Officer Katie Woodle ’05 ’06 — a two-time App State alumna — on the panel for a wonderful evening filled with genuine conversation. I came away inspired by the words of wisdom and experience from my fellow panelists. We are fortunate to live in a community that offers such high-quality professional development opportunities for our local leaders — just one more example of the incredible work being done by the Carolinas’ Outstanding Chamber of the Year.
Yesterday, our Board of Visitors met on the Boone campus. These individuals work to ensure our successes and stories are shared across the state — with legislators, civic leaders and other key constituency groups. As we embark on the next chapter in our university’s history, I’m incredibly excited about the potential of this board and honored to work with them to carry forward the important work of Appalachian State University.
Tomorrow, we will hold Fall Open House on the Boone campus — and it’s not too late to register! We look forward to welcoming more than 4,000 prospective and admitted students and their families, who will have the opportunity to learn more about App State and the academic programs we offer, meet faculty and current students, take guided tours of campus and learn more about scholarships, financial aid, the admissions process, student life, the arts, athletics and the many aspects that make the App State Experience so special. Our friendly and knowledgeable faculty, staff and students, the fall weather and a few brightly colored trees still showcasing our lovely mountain surroundings promise a beautiful App State welcome.
Tonight, the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts will showcase its current exhibitions — including two new ones — during downtown Boone’s First Friday Art Crawl. If you haven’t had the opportunity to take part in this event, it’s a wonderful celebration of creativity and community, and a great way to enjoy the creative arts offerings in the heart of downtown Boone. I encourage you to join the fun and explore the many captivating galleries featuring contemporary art exhibitions and the opportunities to meet local artists.
Women’s and Men’s Basketball began their seasons on Monday with games against Western Michigan and Central Michigan, respectively. After opening the season with a win against Western Michigan on Monday, our Women’s Basketball team will face Bob Jones University tonight and Davidson on Wednesday, both at home. After a win over the Carolina University Bruins in their first home game of the season, the Men’s team will take on NC Central in the Holmes Center on Sunday. I had the opportunity to visit App State’s Wrestling team yesterday and congratulate them on a strong start to their season, with seven team members earning top-six finishes at the Southeast Open on Sunday.
And congratulations are in order for our Sun Belt Conference Champion Men’s and Women’s Cross Country teams! Last Friday, App State became only the second university in Sun Belt history to sweep the championships for the second year in a row. This video captures some of the excitement as the men celebrated their third consecutive title and the women their second straight title. Overall, it was the men's fifth Sun Belt championship and the women's fourth since joining the league.
As we look ahead to next week, the university will be honoring all veterans — especially our Mountaineer faculty, staff and students who have served — with our annual Veterans Day Ceremony, beginning at 9 a.m. with the playing of the national anthem and the raising of the flag at the Boone campus’s Veterans Memorial beside the B.B. Dougherty Administration Building. We will also hear from two-time alumnus and U.S. Army veteran Dan Blakeley ’15 ’18 as we recognize the contributions our veterans have made to our campus, our community and our nation. I hope you will join me in applauding all the veterans and active-duty military members for their service to our country. While this day has been set aside nationally to recognize veterans and their families, at Appalachian State University, these individuals have our respect and our thanks every day. Thank you for your service, your many sacrifices and your selfless dedication to our country.
Heather Norris
Chancellor
