App State was proud to host the Frontline to Farm program this week, welcoming veterans to the High Country to explore new career pathways in agriculture. This initiative exemplifies App State’s enduring commitment to supporting our service members, offering hands-on learning and fostering meaningful partnerships that enrich lives across our region. Thank you to Kyla Willoughby in University Communications for being on hand to capture this photo.
Message from Chancellor Heather Norris: June 12, 2026
This week, App State’s Frontline to Farm program brought military veterans from across Southern Appalachia to campus and local agricultural sites for its annual farmer training initiative. This grant-funded program provides comprehensive training for veterans transitioning into agriculture, with a community networking dinner held Thursday at Shipley Farms in Vilas. The discipline, resilience and leadership learned during military service are invaluable assets in agriculture, and this program reflects our deep commitment to supporting our military-affiliated community as they transition into civilian life. We are proud that our programming and support resources for military-affiliated Mountaineers and their families consistently earn national distinction, including being named among the nation’s top 10 Military Friendly Schools.
On Thursday, our Boone campus welcomed regional professionals and business leaders for the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce June After Hours networking event. Hosted by our University Operations teams at our Central Dining Hall, the evening provided a wonderful opportunity to strengthen community partnerships over refreshments and showcase our campus venues through guided walking tours. The Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives recently named the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce a national finalist for the 2026 Chamber of the Year award. Chosen from a field of more than 1,600 organizations, this distinction highlights the Chamber's outstanding community leadership and impactful operations. We wish our local partners the absolute best of luck at the ACCE Annual Convention in New Orleans this July.
App State once again welcomed government officials, industry leaders, educators and students from across the state to our Boone campus for the Appalachian Energy Summit earlier this month. Since 2012, this annual event has served as a vital platform for sharing ideas and processes that advance energy efficiency across North Carolina, the University of North Carolina System and beyond. At App State, diligent operational management has allowed the university to achieve nearly $100.1 million in avoided energy and water costs since 2002–03, while reducing our overall energy use per square foot by 51% over the same time period. Together, the UNC System and other state agencies have avoided over $2 billion in energy costs through this effort.
During the summit, App State marked the 25th anniversary of the Appalachian Energy Center, which has driven applied research and professional education alongside statewide partners, equipping North Carolina with the technical expertise and forward-looking insight necessary to thrive in an evolving energy landscape.
Creative engagement remains highly accessible to our campus and local community throughout the summer months. App State’s long-running Craft Enrichment Program offers affordable community craft classes on the Boone campus, with this summer’s sessions focusing on pottery taught by professional regional artists. Additionally, the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts has launched its Summer Drop-in Artmaking sessions. Held on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the center’s Moskowitz Artmaking Space, these free, student-led workshops invite visitors of all ages to experiment with different mediums and express their creativity in a relaxed setting.
We continue to make substantial progress on improvements to campus infrastructure this summer, including two key athletics facilities: the Mildred Southern Indoor Tennis Facility and the new Sofield Family Indoor Practice Facility adjacent to Kidd Brewer Stadium. The first project — the future home of App State’s Tennis program — will feature six courts and is on track for completion this summer. The completion of this facility will round out the multiyear, phased development of the Appalachian 105 Sports Complex. And the 85,000-square-foot, multipurpose Sofield Family Indoor Practice Facility, with a new 100-yard turf field, is progressing on schedule, with full project completion slated for December. You can watch this flyover video to check out the indoor practice facility progress and visit the App State’s Future website to learn more about these and other facility improvement projects at App State.
Last Friday, the Boone campus community gathered to honor Reich College of Education Dean Melba Spooner at a retirement reception celebrating her decade of leadership. Since 2016, Dean Spooner has kept student success at the heart of the college’s mission by strategically aligning departments, refining academic programs and expanding our doctoral program in educational leadership — which directly supported App State’s Research 2 Carnegie classification. Under her steady guidance, our institution has maintained its distinction as the number one alma mater for National Board Certified Teachers for 10 consecutive years. Her vision was also vital in launching the university’s UNC System lab schools, further deepening our campus community's commitment to elevating public education.
We thank Dean Spooner for her profound dedication and for leaving a legacy that will shape the future of North Carolina classrooms.
Heather Norris
Chancellor
Clockwise, from top left: We were proud to honor Dr. Melba Spooner, dean of the Reich College of Education, for a decade of service to App State as she prepares to retire later this month; App State’s Appalachian Energy Center celebrated 25 years in 2026, and Center Director Dr. Jamie Russell (left) and I thanked former Director Dr. Jeff Ramsdell (center) for his part in that legacy; the Appalachian Energy Summit featured a panel discussion with (from left) App State Director of Sustainability and Energy Management Mike Kapp, former EPA Administrator Michael Regan and former N.C. House Rep. John Szoka; and Executive Vice Chancellor and Chief Operating Officer J.J. Brown welcomed attendees at the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce June After Hours networking event on our Boone campus Thursday. Thank you to Chase Reynolds and Kyla Willoughby in University Communications for capturing these images.
