WVU Stories

01/12/2026

01/12/2026

Did you know? Most automated “people movers” in the U.S. are found in airports, but the West Virginia University Personal Rapid Transit system has been taking Mountaineers across campus for 50 years.

That's five decades of keeping Morgantown moving. Since 1975, the PRT has carried millions of riders across rolling hills on more than 13 miles of track, making itself an iconic part of the Morgantown Campus.

💛💙 Celebrate the PRT’s belated birthday with a ride through its history on WVU Stories ➡

The doors of the small gold-and-blue car slide open with a sigh. Inside, the seats are plain but familiar, and there exists a recognizable yet faint electrical whir. It smells a little like your grandparents’ house in the best possible way. Through the window, the Monongahela River curves like a r...

01/10/2026

💡 One WVU alumnus had an idea: use the same cables that delivered TV to also carry data and voice. That idea changed the world, connecting millions of people and leading to the faster, more accessible internet of today.

Rouzbeh Yassini-Fard, the “father of the cable modem,” tells the full story in his book, The Accidental Network. Read his Q&A on WVU Stories and the lessons he shares for future innovators ➡️

Discover how WVU alum Rouzbeh Yassini-Fard transformed the internet through cable technology — the story of the man who rewired the world

01/09/2026

What do stage and space have in common? More than you'd think.

This WVU graduate traded the theater sets for spaceships, taking creativity and a unique perspective from the arts to NASA and eventually the Air Force. There's no one path to success, and Emily Certain can attest to that: your unexpected background might be exactly what makes you irreplaceable.

Discover this Mountaineer's journey on WVU Stories:

From theater dreams to flight test engineer: WVU alum Emily Certain wound up at NASA and now flies aboard the C-17 at a U.S. Air Force base.

01/08/2026

Step inside the mind of a WVU computational quantum physicist, where every day is a beautiful day, filled with curiosity and spent exploring the tiniest building blocks of our world.

Meet Aldo Romero, see the questions that drive him and the science that keeps him inspired on WVU Stories.

If you’re Aldo Romero, then it’s a beautiful day.Romero is a quantum physicist at West Virginia University who uses math to look at the world at the atomic scale and has never stopped marveling at the wonders he sees there.He may wake up in the everyday, humdrum universe, even eat breakfast here...

01/07/2026

From deployments to classrooms, WVU student veterans carry more than just backpacks; they bring stories of service, resilience, and adventure

Mildred Shea, James Oden and Andrew Stover are just a few of the many military-connected students across WVU campuses, balancing degrees, family life, and roles in veteran communities.

💛 💙 Read about their journeys from service to study, and see how WVU supports student veterans in new roles on WVU Stories.

Mildred Shea, James Oden, and Andrew Stover are 3 military-connected students who have made the successful transition from service to study. After work that has taken them around the globe, WVU has become the place where they belong.

01/06/2026

For generations of Mountaineers, John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” has been an iconic anthem, a celebratory tune and a thread that ties alumni, students and fans to West Virginia, no matter how far.

Now, the tradition is growing.

Morgantown native and country music singer-songwriter Charles Wesley Godwin is expanding the soundtrack with “Cue Country Roads.” Devoted to his own Appalachian roots and time at WVU, the song echoes through the same hills and hollers he and his team still call home.

Learn more about the song, the story and meet the Mountaineer team behind Godwin's journey on WVU Stories

There is something ethereal about the moment you hear it. A clean, simple-chord progression carrying a gentle, country twang. “Almost heaven …” Arms lift. Mountaineers-for-life beam with pride. Strangers link shoulders. Players sway in unison. In Morgantown, victory doesn’t end with a whistl...

01/05/2026

Clean energy from natural gas. Herbicides that protect crops. Life-changing medical devices.

Through the Office of Innovation and Commercialization, WVU researchers are discovering solutions for real-life problems. Ideas don't stall at the lab bench; they become products that improve lives, protect our environment and grow West Virginia’s economy.

“Google, Kevlar, insulin, Bluetooth, X-ray technology — the world owes every one of these iconic innovations to academic research labs just like the ones we have here. WVU has always excelled in fundamental research. Now the OIC is strengthening the arm that brings that research to life," Erienne Olesh, executive director of the Office of Innovation and Commercialization, said.

Learn how research at WVU is making its way into the world with the help of the OIC on WVU Stories

For researchers at West Virginia University, the Office of Innovation and Commercialization is where dreams come true.John Hu can attest to that.Hu, the director of the WVU Center for Innovation in Gas Utilization and Research and the Statler College Chair in Engineering for Natural Gas Utilization,...

01/02/2026

2025 𝙁𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙁𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙝𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠: Scholarships drive WVU student creators, developers and researchers on the path to success

“To potential donors, your support is a way of telling somebody ‘I believe in you’ and for us students who often feel lonely in our homework, our projects, our day-to-day classes, that kind of support gives us confidence. It’s hard for me to tell anybody that I can’t do whatever I dream about if I can be confident that people believe in me.”

Full story ➡️ go.wvu.edu/4ga7c

12/30/2025

Step inside the world of "weird materials" with WVU computational quantum physicist, Aldo Romero, and discover what happens when endless curiosity meets cutting-edge research.

He approaches every challenge like a puzzle waiting to be solved. Physics, high-performance computing, and crystals collide in his work that furthers breakthroughs in quantum computing and AI.

He’s helping forensic scientists simulate gunshots, assisting researchers with data processing, finding inspiration in his kids’ homework or fostering an 80-plus-member AI discussion group (with a newsletter); all these efforts are powered by a simple belief: “Science is friendship.”

For him, every day at work feels like another universe, in the best way. Read more about Aldo and his work ➡️

If you’re Aldo Romero, then it’s a beautiful day.Romero is a quantum physicist at West Virginia University who uses math to look at the world at the atomic scale and has never stopped marveling at the wonders he sees there.He may wake up in the everyday, humdrum universe, even eat breakfast here...

12/28/2025

Fans see kick-off, John Terry sees countless hours of preparation ⚽

WVU sports management alum and vice president of events at U.S. Soccer works to make Team USA matches run smoothly. He and his team handle everything in the arena from equipment to ticketing and even fireworks, ensuring the best possible experience for spectators and players.

"In a perfect world, by the time the game rolls around, we're really bored because we've done everything in the preparation," says Terry.

Read more about how this Mountaineer keeps the ball rolling for U.S. Soccer on WVU Stories.

West Virginia University alum John Terry started with a sport management degree and now works as the vice president of events for U.S. Soccer.

12/26/2025

This week (12/31) marks 50 years since WVU's iconic Peach Bowl victory in 1975. WVU's go-to sports historian John Antonik shares the memories of the players, the brotherhood, and the legacy that still echoes today.

➡️ https://go.wvu.edu/4gb6b