“We are still here”: Western Carolina University remains a Cherokee place

Story co-written with Sarah Pruitt  November is Native American Heritage Month, but it’s not just a heritage for the Cherokee people of Western North Carolina. It’s a living, vibrant culture.   There are 547 federally recognized tribes in the United States. Native Americans were not automatically afforded U.S. citizenship until 1924. November was not declared […]

WCU art students create books for Cherokee learners

Story co-produced with Madison Pait WCU art students create and donate books for Cherokee learners in WCU’s Introduction to Printmaking course.   “We’re partnering with the Cherokee learners to create a children’s book. And the hopes for this book is for all of the students in the class to create a picture that sort of symbolizes […]

Beyond the language

Western North Carolina is nestled in the beautiful mountains of the Blue Ridge region. It’s home to the color-changing leaves you can experience every fall, the music of the Pride of the Mountains you can hear in Cullowhee and is chockful of history and heritage you can see all around. But not for long. The […]

Cherokee art shines through in 2019 Mountain Heritage Day

Mountain Heritage Day celebrated the history and culture of Western North Carolina, with music, food and local artists selling their work. Brothers and Cherokee artists, Bill and Rob Radford, keep some distance between their booths, as their work has a similar style, both with a focus on knives, pipes and gorgets.  They carve knife handles […]

Cherokee Powwow at WCU

Story co- written and produced in collaboration with  Morgan Miller and Garrett Readling. Over 50 children dressed in their tear dresses and ribbon shirts came together dancing, singing and playing music produced by their elders in celebration of the Cherokee culture. This year the youth Powwow was held for the first time at WCU on April […]

WNC celebrates Mountain Heritage Day for 40th year

People came from all over North Carolina to celebrate the annual Mountain Heritage Day on Saturday, September 27 at the Western Carolina University intramural fields. Mountain Heritage Day is a celebration of the arts and traditions of western North Carolina that has been celebrated for 40 years. It began in 1974 as the Founder’s Day […]