News

Dear AppCAC,  As college advisers, we hold a unique and powerful position: we guide students through one of the most transformative stages of their lives. Every day, we are given the opportunity to make a difference in a young person’s …

In this series, we feature individual CAP staff members and dive into their unique perspectives on college access, education, the role of our grant programs in the community, and more. This month, we highlight Sherry Paddie, Navigator for Empowering Teacher Learning. …

Six faculty and staff in the Reich College of Education (RCOE) including two CAP staff members, and five educators from GEAR UP districts will be participating in the Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP).  The EPFP program, hosted by the Public School Forum, …

The GEAR UP L.E.A.D Coalition Program launches its inaugural cohort this month, and 25 student leaders from across western North Carolina have been identified after a rigorous application process. The students represent eight GEAR UP districts and are in their …

When Appalachian State’s College Access Partnerships was presented with the opportunity to replicate Empowering Teacher Learning (ETL), a professional learning research project, with teachers in Athens, Greece, I was thrilled. This was the dream! Years ago, one of my graduate …

Read about how CAP Executive Director, Jim Beeler, will serve on the Rebuilding Western NC Advisory Board.

As part of their research, the ETL team supports teacher professional development using micro-credentials (competency-based professional learning that helps teachers gain the skills and understanding to hone their practice in the classroom). Recently, the team reached a milestone by successfully authoring and publishing …

In light of the devastation and destruction that Hurricane Helene left in its path across Western North Carolina, there has been an overwhelming outpouring of support from the Appalachian community.  Over the last few weeks, the Appalachian GEAR UP team …

It’s strange returning to a place you vowed you would never return to…yet that is what I was doing when I started as a College Adviser at my old high school, Ashe County High School last year. It is ironic …

The U.S. Department of Education has awarded a seven-year, $35 million grant to App State’s College Access Partnerships to expand its GEAR UP program for middle school and high school students. The award represents the largest single grant ever awarded …

The Appalachia Branch of YES (Young Eisner Scholars) hosted a robotics workshop for two different groups of scholars on July 16 and 17 at the Ashe campus of Wilkes Community College. Jose Lopez, the YES STEM Director and National Operations …

Setting the tone for the 2024 Academic Innovation Conference (AIC), educators from western North Carolina congregated on the scenic campus of Appalachian State University in Boone, NC on June 18, 2024 to pitch the next innovative approaches to teaching. Rooted in …