The following readings will be held at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva.

• Julie L. Reed will present her new book, “Land, Language, and Women: A Cherokee and American Educational History,” at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 19. Reed uses Cherokee teaching and learning traditions spanning four centuries to rethink Native American educational history. A citizen of the Cherokee Nation, she recently joined the history and anthropology departments at the University of Tulsa. 

Shortly after opening the doors of the Don Tomas Health Sciences Center back in 2021, Southwestern Community College developed a strategy for not only filling the area’s tremendous healthcare workforce needs — but also providing a promising future for soon-to-be high school graduates. 

Even
After
All this time
The sun never says to the earth,
“You owe me.” 
Look
What happens
With a love like that,
It lights the
Whole
Sky. 

This poem by the 14th century Persian poet, Hafiz, was cited in Wayne Dyer’s book “Change Your Thoughts — Change Your Life.”

John Burgin Construction, LLC workers arrived at Haywood Community College’s Poplar Building Jan. 5, marking the start of an estimated 120-day renovation process driven by the addition of middle school called ‘Haywood Innovative’ and managed by the county school system. 

Haywood County Schools is renting the building to do “a tenant upfit … They’ve hired an architect, and they’re overseeing that,” said Brek Lanning, the college’s vice president of infrastructure, campus development and technology. 

Grace Church in the Mountains in Waynesville will host a daylong series of worship services, presentations and artistic offerings focused on peace, education and action in response to the ongoing war in Ukraine. 

What do rangers eat for lunch? How did the Great Smoky Mountains get their name? Do rangers have to feed the bears? Are there alligators in the park? What about moose? Dolphins? 

“The kids really want to know,” said Scott Young, a volunteer at Great Smoky Mountains National Park who, together with his wife Jayne, has answered every letter kids from across the country send to the national park since they first took on the task in 2021.

It’s been two months since Haywood County Schools announced their “innovative middle school,” and while there aren’t concrete updates, leaders continue to express a sincere commitment to turn their vision into a reality by the 2026-2027 school year.  

Gary Carden has accomplished a great deal in his life. But by his own estimation, none of it compares to his most recent endeavor — donating a treasure trove of books to the Jackson County Public Library that took him a lifetime to collect. 

The garden gnomes stared at me from our cluttered carport, dirty and bored, no blooming flowers to observe or tomato vines to tickle their bellies. I was holding on to them well past their desire.  

The Haywood County Farm Bureau Board of Directors is proud to announce the sponsorship of Central Haywood High School’s new tractor. This tractor will be used by Kevin Bailey, Ed.D., Central Haywood High’s agriculture teacher, to improve student understanding of agricultural equipment and give them real-world education and experiences directly related to the agricultural industry.