Looking at the early numbers on Shepherd University’s enrollment picture for next year, undergraduate applications are at the highest level the University has seen in eight years (and up 39 percent compared to this time last year). Enrollment confirmations are up 24 percent compared to this time last year. The University has also run up the score in attracting federal funding. Read the Full Story >>
Visit Berkeley Springs, West Virginia
Everybody needs a little time away, goes the song — even from the people, places, and things we love. Fortunately, here in Jefferson County we have an abundance of nearby travel options in the surrounding region that both local residents and visitors can experience. Read the Full Story >>
Local Conversations About The Future
Like a family we may squabble, but we also need to work together and tackle these problems, listening to the advice of experts, but also listening to the expertise of experience right here at home. Read the Full Story >>
Talent & Teamwork On & Off the Field
2021 was quite a year for the Shepherd University football team. In case you missed the excitement at the end of the season, the Rams pushed through the post-season with back-to-back upset victories to make it to the semi-final round of the Division II national championship. Read the Full Story >>
An Ordinary Person in a World Turned to War
and that Ukraine’s heritage is not distinct from Russia’s. Highlighting Ukraine’s rich literature is a clear way to counter this false narrative, and Serhiy Zhadan is one of the best writers in translation with whom to start. Read the Full Story >>
D.O. or M.D.? What’s the Difference?
Have you ever seen the initials “D.O.” after a doctor’s name? In my experience, many people are curious — what exactly is an Osteopathic Doctor? How is this any different from an M.D.? What can I expect when I am being treated by a D.O. versus an M.D.? All of these are fair questions. Read the Full Story >>
Meet the 2022 Candidates — Board of Education, Jefferson County
Voters will elect 3 candidates to the Jefferson County Board of Education this year. Read what the candidates are saying. Read the Full Story >>
A Timeline of the Fitch EMS Report
Fitch & Associates is a consulting firm with many years of experience in assisting local governments in evaluating and improving both fire and emergency medical services. The County Commission contracted with Fitch in May of 2021 for a very limited review of the county’s EMS system — a basic analysis of ambulance response data. There Read the Full Story >>
Connecting Teens to Prevent Suicide
Lee O’Neill is on a mission to bring best practices for suicide prevention to Eastern Panhandle schools. Starting two years ago with Musselman High, O’Neill now provides the program — developed by nationwide organization Sources of Strength — to all four high schools in Berkeley County. Read the Full Story >>
Remembering & Maintaining Fairview Cemetery
Cemeteries not only serve as resting places for our loved ones but also offer windows into our history. Old family graveyards are often a lasting mark of the wealthy landowners of the 19th century. Cemeteries established to bury the Civil War dead, like Elmwood, Edge Hill, and Pine Grove, remind us of the true cost of war. Church cemeteries are monuments to the congregations and community who once prayed together within their walls. Read the Full Story >>
Help For Rent, Mortgage & Utility Payments
individuals and families throughout West Virginia, but there are grant programs available to help keep people in their homes. Read the Full Story >>
Isolated & Together, Tales of Strength
While Queen of the Sea unfolds like a page-turning mystery, filled with scandalous secrets, court intrigues, and forbidden loves, both the text and the illustrations have a restrained, subtle beauty to them. Read the Full Story >>
Two Years of COVID in the Eastern Panhandle
wo years ago, in early March 2020, West Virginia was the only state in the country without a documented COVID-19 case. Anticipating the virus would soon arrive, Governor Jim Justice issued an order to close all West Virginia schools (pre-K to grade 12) after Friday the 13th of March. At the time there was very limited information about the virus, but the date was an omen of what was to come. Four days later the first case of COVID was diagnosed in Jefferson County. Read the Full Story >>
Drama at the Nest
They were all set to start a family. The nursery was almost ready. Then one day everything changed when a young stranger appeared. Is this the trailer for a new soap opera? No, it’s part of the drama that’s unfolded over the past month keeping viewers tuned in to the live camera feed at the Shepherdstown eagle nest. Read the Full Story >>
Looking Back, Learning Forward
A century of debates over separation and equality linger today in our conversations about public schools. Often the largest employer in many localities across the country (including Jefferson County), public school systems both help shape local economies and offer the promise of bringing people together to help build the future of a community. It’s a promise not always fulfilled and one that we ignore at our common peril. Read the Full Story >>