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The Blue Banner

The Student Voice of UNC Asheville

The Blue Banner

The Student Voice of UNC Asheville

The Blue Banner

Asheville City Schools and Buncombe County Schools join 14 other school districts from across the state that will have no classes on Friday.
Educators are fed up with budget cuts and burn out – May 1 they are walking out
Cortne Lee Roche, Staff Writer, [email protected] April 30, 2026

The two teachers’ unions in the area, Asheville City Association of Educators and North Carolina Buncombe County Association of Educators, coordinated over 600 staff to request off on May 1. While public sector unions are not legally allowed to strike...

Unearthing Memory: Community Efforts to Restore South Asheville Cemetery
Unearthing Memory: Community Efforts to Restore South Asheville Cemetery
Melody Cosgrove, Contributor, [email protected] May 5, 2026

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Ongoing preservation efforts at South Asheville Cemetery are bringing renewed attention to one of the city’s most historically...

Mick’s poster presentation at the 87th annual meeting of the Association of Southeastern Biologists.
UNC Asheville student receives prestigious Barry Goldwater Scholarship for research on mycorrhizae communities relationship with the American Chestnut
Kellan Harrison, Arts & Features Editor • May 5, 2026

The Barry Goldwater Scholarship provides support to students who aspire to be a part of the next generation of researchers in science, engineering...

Outside Belk Theatre before a showing of Cabaret
There was a theater at UNC Asheville: A piece on Cabaret
Elijah Wolf O’Connell, News Writer, [email protected] April 30, 2026

Asheville, a haven of the arts, is known for its mirth and gaiety. UNC Asheville is cutting its theater program. UNCA also performed its final...

Christina Demetropoulos didn’t plan to attend UNC Asheville. Now, she’s helping shape what comes next.
Meet Christina Demetropoulos, UNC Asheville’s incoming student body vice-president
Brendan D. R. Rodemeyer, News Editor, [email protected] April 29, 2026

The university’s incoming student body vice-president, a current sophomore at UNC Asheville, Demetropoulos, is preparing to step into a larger...

From left to right: Zarah Ashjari, Iraj Farhadi, Frances Ganjbakhsh, Saied Ganjbakhsh. Shared by Frances Farhadi
Echoes of Revolution and a Grandfather’s Journey through Iran’s turbulent past and present
Frances Farhadi, Staff Writer, [email protected] April 28, 2026

The first time I realized how fragile distance could be was the morning I got a call from my mother. She called me frantically, letting me know...

Leslee Johnson
Reading between the bars
Cortne Lee Roche, Staff Writer, [email protected] April 28, 2026

Behind barbed wire and armed guards, where many see only criminals, some see eager students. Leslee Johnson knows how to stay busy. She teaches...

Decorative Background
Outside front gate to the Asheville Vintage Market in downtown Asheville.
Students turn to thrift shops as fast fashion’s footprint looms
Dylan Machi, Multimedia Co-Editor, [email protected] September 15, 2025

Affordability and ecological awareness are some reasons students like UNC Asheville senior Emma Montgomery shop used.  “It saves me money,”...

Jason Miller poses for his first day of kindergarten.
Don’t ask me about graduation
A reflection on leaving the UNC Asheville community and relationships built over the last four years
Jason Miller, Arts & Features Editor, [email protected] April 28, 2025

Don't ask me about graduation. Or rather, don't ask any senior about graduation. I'd avoid the topic entirely unless you want to ruin their day. Over...

UNC Asheville women's cross country freshman Emma Kennett runs past a pack of people at the Covered Bridge Open on Sept. 2.
Alexis Vaughan delivers strong performance in 400 meter at the final regular season meet
Jeremiah Louis, Sports Writer, [email protected] May 1, 2026

The UNC Asheville track and field team competed at their final regular season meet this past weekend at Western Carolina, where sophomore sprinter...

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Outside Belk Theatre before a showing of Cabaret
There was a theater at UNC Asheville: A piece on Cabaret
Elijah Wolf O’Connell, News Writer, [email protected] April 30, 2026

Asheville, a haven of the arts, is known for its mirth and gaiety. UNC Asheville is cutting its theater program. UNCA also performed its final production with “Cabaret” on Apr. 26. “We have no troubles here,” The EmCee, played by Max Thompson,...

the parking lot by Brown hall at nearly full capacity.
The perils of parking
Katy Paige Rosenberg, Staff Writer, [email protected] April 28, 2026

On Tuesday night, all I wanted was to get Chick-fil-A with one of my best friends. Unfortunately, in order to do that, I had to give up my premium parking spot: a spot in the Founders Hall lot that was only five spaces from my home, Mills Hall. I reluctantly...

Max Thompson, as the emcee, in UNCA Drama's final production, "Cabaret." Credit: Caitlyn Doughty
The Kit Kat Klub— and everything after
Joan Geiss, Arts & Features Writer, [email protected] April 27, 2026

The opening night performance of “Cabaret” moved me immensely. It was bound to— it’s sadly the drama department’s final show and they...

A rock from the Iranian Revolution, with Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and graffiti painted on.
A perspective on the fear and uncertainty as the U.S. bombs Iran from a Persian Americans
Frances Farhadi, Arts & Features Writer, [email protected] April 24, 2026

Iran and the United States have always had issues with each other since the 1950s. The U.S. played a role in the coup against Mohammad Mossadegh,...

Vandalized Flock Camera outside UNC Asheville’s campus.
Black Flock Down: Vandalism at UNC Asheville
Elijah Wolf O’Connell, Staff Writer, [email protected] April 15, 2026

A police report was filed for an act of vandalism on W.T Weaver street and Broadway street on March 1 The description provided in the report...

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