The Echo

The Echo Student News from Warren Wilson College The publication was renamed The Talon in 1976 and later renamed the Common Tongue in 1989.

The Echo student-run newspaper was first published in 1942, just a short time after Warren Wilson Vocational Junior College began admitting women. In early 2000, it reverted back to The Echo until December 2016, when the College decided to stop running it due to a lack of funding. On November 16, 2020, a new chapter of The Echo begins. The Echo encourages readers to respond to issues raised in our

pages via letters to the editor. Letters can be submitted to [email protected] by 3 p.m. on the Sunday before publication (Wednesdays) and should not exceed 300 words. Letters that do not meet the deadline or word limit will be considered on a space-available basis. Anonymous letters will not be accepted. By submitting a letter, you give permission to reproduce your letter in any format. The Echo reserves the right of editorial review of all submissions. Comment Policy
The Echo intends for this area to be used to foster healthy, thought-provoking discussion. Comments are expected to adhere to our standards and to be respectful and constructive. We ask that you refrain from the use of foul language, personal attacks, derogatory remarks or comments that might be interpreted as libelous. We reserve the right to delete comments that do not align with our standards.

The Echo Newspaper’s editor-in-chief Emily Cobb graduated today and is moving forward towards bigger and better things 🎓...
05/09/2026

The Echo Newspaper’s editor-in-chief Emily Cobb graduated today and is moving forward towards bigger and better things 🎓🎉

Emily has been with The Echo all four years of her college career and has been unwaveringly passionate and dedicated to both the crew and her crew mates her entire time at Warren Wilson College.

We love her so much on this crew and are going to miss her with as much fervor as she brought to her work.

R.I.P Emily Cobb, another editor lost to the world of adulthood. 💗

The transgender athletes forum hosted by the History of Gender, S*x and S*xuality class is happening TOMORROW NIGHT! Com...
03/30/2026

The transgender athletes forum hosted by the History of Gender, S*x and S*xuality class is happening TOMORROW NIGHT!

Come eat good food, meet your peers and join a discussion where everyone can learn and grow.

Meet in Canon Lounge at 6:45pm on Tuesday, March 31st to get signed in and join your small group.

You can read more about the event on The Echo News at https://wwcecho.news/news/trans-athletes-forum-wants-your-voice

03/04/2026

Fitted up at the NCCMA’s 🦉

Orchids to...Winter Break (officially only one week to go!)Everyone who worked so hard to put on Winter SaleThe Library ...
12/13/2025

Orchids to...

Winter Break (officially only one week to go!)

Everyone who worked so hard to put on Winter Sale

The Library for having tea and hot cocoa again

Onions to...

The new Gladfelter dish rules

Finals :(

Closing Gladfelter Dining hall for five hours on Sunday to put up Winter Formal decorations

Our winter break is approaching steadily as the fall semester comes to a close. Soon, a majority of us will be going hom...
12/13/2025

Our winter break is approaching steadily as the fall semester comes to a close. Soon, a majority of us will be going home to our loved ones to celebrate the upcoming festivities and get the chance to curl up by a real or metaphorical fire, finally watching the shows and movies you’ve been meaning to watch. Now there is what some would call a ‘classic collection’ of mostly Christmas movies. I’m here to share them to help you get in the festive spirit.

Starting with the iconic king of Christmas, who has no fear of calling out the capitalist values it holds, you know him, you love him: The Grinch from the classic film “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (2000). The film is an adaptation of Dr. Seuss’s tale of the reclusive, grouchy Grinch (Jim Carrey), who decides to ruin Christmas for the citizens of Whoville, accompanied by his dog, Max. The Grinch plans to steal any holiday-themed items from the Whos, only to have his plans interrupted by the kind Cindy Lou (Taylor Momsen), who shows him compassion and the true meaning of Christmas.

Moving on to an equally chaotic film, “Elf” (2003), which I will, hesitantly, say has a message about family amidst it all. The film follows Buddy (Will Ferrell), who was accidentally brought to the North Pole as a baby and raised by Santa’s elves. After he is all grown up, he starts feeling out of place and tries to find his biological father, Walter Hobbs (James Caan), in New York. Buddy learns that his father is a cynical businessman who refuses to believe that Buddy is his son. Still, after a quick DNA test proves his paternity, Hobbs reluctantly tries to form a relationship with his son. But mayhem ensues as Buddy isn’t quite used to acting like a regular adult.

Read more at wwcecho.news!

Story by Marshal Alvarado!

We’ve nearly made it to winter break, Warren Wilson! In lieu of a more complex article discussing very serious matters (...
12/13/2025

We’ve nearly made it to winter break, Warren Wilson! In lieu of a more complex article discussing very serious matters (like coffee shops), I come to you one last time with a little piece about holiday rituals and traditions, and a bit of news from my end.

Living with the seasons is a lost art these days, with work, friends and phones draining all of our attention. It’s easy to feel like the joy of the holidays is lost as we get older, but if you tune into your surroundings and take a moment to fully experience them, I have a feeling you’ll discover that at least a little magic still exists.

To find out more about students’ winter holiday celebrations, I sent out a small survey last week. At the time of writing, it only has seven responses, all very sweet. The survey is open to responses if you feel inclined to reminisce on winter seasons past. If not, I hope this article will serve as a reminder to make time for yourself to breathe when things get hectic throughout the next month and beyond.

All of my survey respondents chose to remain anonymous, so I’ve structured this article as a question-and-answer piece. Holiday inspiration abounds!

***

As a child, what holidays did you celebrate during the winter, if any?

Eighty-five percent of respondents celebrated New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, 71% celebrated Christmas, 28% celebrated Hanukkah and 14% celebrated Kwanzaa and the Winter Solstice, respectively.

Did you look forward to the holidays as a child? Do you still look forward to the season now?

While 100% of the respondents agreed that they looked forward to the holidays as children, only 71% still fully look forward to the holiday season today.

Read more at wwcecho.news!

Story by Mallory Wallace-Usry.

Warren Wilson College (WWC) students may have noticed an increase in the number of bears roaming around campus, and many...
12/13/2025

Warren Wilson College (WWC) students may have noticed an increase in the number of bears roaming around campus, and many may be asking why there have been so many active near residence halls and other populated areas of campus. The BearWise crew specializes in understanding how to make the WWC campus safe while being cautious of the bears that have taken residence, helping to manage inevitable run-ins between students and wildlife.

Jacob White, a sophomore on the BearWise crew, has been taking steps to ensure the safety of students when they interact with bears. His role in the crew is to focus on community outreach, public education and reducing bear interactions through training.

“[The BearWise crews] main goals are to reduce bear activity on campus and to get bear-proof trash kits on campus,” White said.

Bear sightings on campus have increased exponentially because Hurricane Helene stirred up debris and trash, which resulted in drawing bears from their natural habitat.

“There’s always been an influx of bears,” White said. “This year they’ve been a little bit bolder than usual.”

Crab apple trees have been an attraction for bears, as well as blueberry and blackberry bushes located on campus. With the increase of bears on campus, according to USA Today’s article, it is suggested by the state of North Carolina for WWC’s Public Safety officers to use paintball guns to deter their presence, according to hazing guidelines. Many locals mentioned in the article have used rubber balls opposed to paintballs for the safety of the bears, but that is not a legal requirement.

Mazzy Carroll is a junior who works on both the Bio/ENS Crew and the BearWise Crew. Their role consists of communicating with crews and the community about being aware of bears, sometimes accomplished by donning a bear suit. Most of the information shared during these presentations is provided to BearWise from WWC’s Outdoor Leadership Crew. Carroll emphasized the impact of Hurricane Helene’s destruction on the increase in on-campus bear sightings.

Read more at wwcecho.news!

Story by Solie Lawson.

The Winter Sale has been a popular end-of-the-semester event at Warren Wilson College (WWC) for well over a decade. This...
12/13/2025

The Winter Sale has been a popular end-of-the-semester event at Warren Wilson College (WWC) for well over a decade. This event was hosted in Bryson Gym and spearheaded by Herb Crew, a sub-crew of Garden Crew, on December 6. This year, the Winter Sale had hundreds of attendees and dozens of vendors, a stark difference from the two vendors from the first-ever Winter Sale.

Vera Sole Pandolfo, a junior on Herb Crew, led the charge in planning the event, collaborating with Business Crew, Facilities and Public Safety to ensure success, safety and set-up.

“This was my first semester really having this role, and developing and organizing [the sale],” Pandolfo said. “Last year, with all the chaos of the hurricane…no one was really trained on how to run [it].’”

Pandolfo relied heavily on information left behind by Ian Ibarra and Rosemary Thurber and started the process of organizing the event in October. Completing a wide range of tasks like emailing vendors, getting approval to host in Bryson Gym, sourcing volunteers and confirming vendors and payments.

“It was so lovely to have put in so much work and time into [the Winter Sale], and then be met with so much enthusiasm,” Pandolfo said. “People were super excited to be there, and vending and super grateful for the opportunity. Just to be surrounded by so many lovely people that were willing to help and support me through that [has] been super great.”

Read more at wwcecho.news!

Story by Emily Cobb.

As the fall semester comes to an end, The Echo wanted to take a moment to reflect on some of the biggest things that hav...
12/13/2025

As the fall semester comes to an end, The Echo wanted to take a moment to reflect on some of the biggest things that have happened on campus since August.

Warren Wilson College (WWC) celebrated its biggest freshman class since 2018, with almost 260 students. The college also finished its first full semester with reduced tuition, making the estimated cost of attendance around $39,990. The animal science major was christened, and WWC welcomed new staff like Ian Smith, the director of operations and facilities, and visiting faculty like professor of English and communication Sarah Sgro, history professor Cris Culton and professor of environmental science Hayley Joyell Smith. The college also welcomed back John Davidson as the assistant director of Public Safety.

The Nielsen Big Ideas lecture series brought activist and podcaster Chenjerai Kumanyaki to WWC to talk about “Police, Podcasts and Politics”, while WWC also hosted the “Borders and Bodies” film screening and panel discussion about the intersection of transgender and immigration rights. WWC also brought Katy Schafer, actress and activist Hunter Schafer’s mother, to campus to discuss her experiences as the parent of a transgender child and her role as a faith leader.

September saw the college honoring the first anniversary of Hurricane Helene with a week of events culminating with a tree planting on Cowpie Lawn.

Bears were a consistent feature of the semester, with many making regular appearances near Sunderland Hall in dumpsters in the Kitteredge Parking lot, and sleeping in the large tree behind Mitchell. Mold was also a persistent problem on campus, with students like Grace Kalinowski advocating for better remediation practices as some, like residents in the basement of Sunderland Hall, were forced to evacuate their spaces.

Read more at wwcecho.news!

Story by Clara Shirley & Ryleigh Johnson.

For the last 40 years, Asheville’s Black population has been in decline. On Nov. 12, the Asheville Watchdog sponsored a ...
12/13/2025

For the last 40 years, Asheville’s Black population has been in decline.

On Nov. 12, the Asheville Watchdog sponsored a panel discussion at the Dr. Wesley Grant Southside Community Center to address the question: Why are so many Black people leaving Asheville? Leading up to the event, reporters Dan DeWitt, John Boyle and Sally Kestin interviewed dozens of current and former residents of the city to produce a four-part news series, “Losing Our Soul.”

In 1981, one in every five Asheville residents was Black. According to census data retrieved by the Watchdog, this ratio dropped to one in 13 by 2024.

Boyle led the panel and posed the first question of the evening to Dr. Dwight Mullen, former chair of the Asheville Community Reparations Commission and professor emeritus of political science at UNCA—Why should all residents of Asheville care about this?

“For those who do care, I think your attention has to be gained by looking at Black folk as the virus canaries…in that if Black folk can be priced out of the city, if we can be gentrified away for a variety of reasons, [then] we can be pushed for social-cultural reasons.” Dr. Mullen said. “If Asheville becomes a site of oligarchy rule—guess what’s waiting for you?”

In 2017, Realtor.com ranked Asheville as the second fastest gentrifying city in the country. Beginning during the urban renewal projects of the 1960s, this process has transformed large sections of the historic Southside neighborhood into the current River Arts District. In 2025, the average rent for a studio apartment in Asheville was $1,559, 12% higher than in 2024. The average two-bedroom apartment costs $1,916 per month; however, the majority of listed apartments in Asheville are priced at over $2,100 per month.

Read more at wwcecho.news!

Story by Catherine Lang.

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701 Warren Wilson Road
Swannanoa, NC
28778

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