Message from Interim Chancellor Heather Norris
The month of November is already bustling with activity, with a number of events coming up, including our rescheduled Founders Day and Homecoming events and our annual commemoration of Veterans Day.
Since 1954, Nov. 11 has been set aside nationally each year as the day to recognize veterans and their families, and on Monday, Appalachian State University will join the nation in honoring those who have served in the United States Armed Forces.
At our university, 261 student veterans, 113 active-duty service members and nearly 127 active-duty and veteran staff and faculty enrich our campus community. More than 1,000 of our students are military spouses or dependents. We work to support them every day.
For the last 15 years, we’ve been nationally recognized for the support we provide to our military-affiliated students, faculty and staff — and their families.
- The VIQTORY organization, which is dedicated to helping military personnel transition to civilian life, has, for the 15th consecutive year, placed App State among the top 15% of colleges, universities and trade schools in the country that are doing the most to embrace military students and to dedicate resources to ensure their success in the classroom and after graduation. For four years, VIQTORY has also honored App State with a top 10 Military Spouse Friendly School designation.
- For the seventh consecutive year, Military Times named App State to its “Best for Vets: Colleges” rankings list — in recognition of our services and programs specific to military students.
- U.S. News & World Report ranks App State as the No. 2 Best College for Veterans among Southern universities — a distinction we’ve held for four consecutive years.
These recognitions reaffirm our steadfast dedication across the university to support veterans, service members and their families in their academic pursuits. We are grateful for the chance to serve those who have served our country and we are honored to continue supporting you.
Last week, the UNC System announced that App State will join six other University of North Carolina System institutions as a headquarters for NCInnovation’s applied research support. NCInnovation is a nonprofit organization that provides grant funding, mentorship and partnership development to university researchers to support innovative, real-world research at North Carolina’s public universities. NCInnovation hubs assist researchers on their respective campuses and at nearby universities in connecting NCInnovation grant recipients with industry and business services to advance their research toward commercialization.
You may recall that in May I shared that Dr. Rahman Tashakkori, the Lowe’s Distinguished Professor of Computer Science in App State’s Department of Computer Science, was awarded an NCInnovation grant in excess of $640,000 to support commercializing parts of the Beemon Hive Monitoring System. Through this grant, Dr. Tashakkori and his team will continue their development of hive monitoring tools with an aim to decrease honeybee die-off and increase hive production.
At Appalachian State University, we are committed to fostering applied research that advances and drives innovation in our communities and industries. Our collaboration with NCInnovation not only enhances opportunities for our faculty, staff and students but also supports the vital mission of translating university research into solutions that benefit the people and economies of our state and region.
Support from the UNC System has also helped us successfully launch new App State Online offerings this year through our partnership with Project Kitty Hawk (PKH). With the Bachelor of Science degree programs in health care management and business administration in supply chain management underway this fall, we have also been working with PKH to add three additional programs in accounting, criminal justice, and organizational leadership and learning. I am appreciative of the UNC System’s vision and guidance, the PKH team’s support and the efforts of our faculty and staff to make our PKH partnerships successful for our students.
This week, our Career Development Center partnered with the N.C. Department of Commerce’s Career Center, NC Works, to offer a career fair for our App State Hickory students and other job seekers from the surrounding community. The event gave students the opportunity to practice their career readiness skills, research the industries in which they're interested in working, and network. I appreciate the 29 employers who participated in this event — it was a great way for us to partner with the community in the Hickory area.
I’m looking forward to joining the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce State of the Community event next week, as well as our rescheduled Founders Day bell ringing and celebration events, during which we will induct the newest members of the Bell Ringers Society. These are great opportunities to work together with our Boone community and honor our 125-year history.
The end of the semester and December Commencement are nearly upon us! Please continue to rely on your resources and support systems at the university as we look to a busy season ahead.
Heather Norris
Interim Chancellor
App State is dedicated, each and every day, to supporting our veterans, service members and their families as they work to achieve their academic goals. Here, App State Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) cadets are pictured on the field at Kidd Brewer Stadium, where they were recognized during the university’s Heroes Day football game on Nov. 2 for their efforts in assisting local communities that were impacted by Hurricane Helene. Thank you to University Communications’ Chase Reynolds for capturing this moment.
From left to right: App State professor Dr. Rahman Tashakkori, who received an NCInnovation grant supporting his Beemon Hive Monitoring System project, is pictured in his research lab on the Boone campus, with student members of his research team; App State Hickory students and other job seekers from the surrounding community learned about area job opportunities and networked with employers during a career fair at the Hickory campus; and on Nov. 21, App State will celebrate Founders Day — a tradition that takes place each fall to honor App State’s founders and the first day of classes in 1899. Thank you to Chase Reynolds and Kyla Willoughby in University Communications, as well as Hickory Campus Director David Cook, for these images.
