Amid reports from outlets like PBS in 2024 and NPR in 2018 of a slow decline in home economics classes, Ragfinery provides a free class every month to learn these essential skills outside the traditional education system.
Officially established in 1991, Western Washington University’s Ethnic Student Center has spent over three decades being a safe space for BIPOC students and clubs, but budget cuts are straining the center. Since its inception, the ESC has worked alongside the Office of Multicultural Student Services to provide room for students to study, curate and run events, and provide resources to clubs.
After almost two years of development, Western student Alex Hines launched his own app, a mood-based to-do list designed to help users with ADHD overcome task paralysis and complete their work.
If it had been raining on June 1, 2025, Western alum Taiana Round would be summiting Mount Baker for the very first time this year. Instead, despite frozen boots and rain-soaked layers — a result of the trek to basecamp the day prior — Round pushed through the physically demanding climb and reached the top.
As demonstrated at the annual International Career Development Conference, Western shows that collegiate DECA is thriving. Open to all students with varying interests and career goals, DECA at Western helps members develop professional skills in areas such as entrepreneurship, marketing, hospitality and tourism, finance, and business management. Through competitions and workshops, students learn how to network, build professional connections, deliver presentations and solve problems in workplace settings.
In the dead of night, a band of first-year students creeps across Western Washington University’s campus. Their pockets jingle as they pass through Fairhaven College, full of lucky pennies. They are headed toward a secluded sculpture, widely recognized by Western students under a humorously vulgar pseudonym.
Bellingham’s Design Review Board reviewed the Boardmill Block project on May 5 to receive early design guidance. The architect, Charles Morgan & Associates LLC, proposed repurposing the existing waterfront property into a three-story hotel and a 166-unit residential building.
In March, project engineers with the city of Bellingham completed a 60% design mockup of a new roundabout connecting Squalicum Way, Birchwood Avenue and Meridian Street near Cornwall Park. Multiple traffic projects have been completed in Whatcom County over the past few years, including a roundabout at James Street and Bakerview Road, a roundabout on West Illinois and Meridian Street, and a bike and pedestrian lane reroute project on Holly Street downtown.
Whatcom County Councilmember Jon Scanlon spent almost 12 hours listening and engaging with constituents in Whatcom County on May 13, 2026. The county council is the main legislative body for Whatcom and is made up of seven members, including two at-large positions. Jon Scanlon has been an at-large representative for Whatcom County since January 2024. The Front followed Scanlon for a day on May 13.
April is Fair Housing Month in the United States, commemorating the passage of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, signed on April 11 of that year. The law prohibits housing discrimination based on race, national origin, religion, sex, familial status and disability. To commemorate the month, the City of Bellingham hosted an information session on April 28 to educate residents about city and state rental laws.
Collegiate sports are a commitment for student athletes, but the devotion to the sport doesn’t end with the regular season. The offseason is important to athlete success and overall skill work as well. No matter the sport, collegiate athletics require a big commitment of time and effort.
The Brain Bowl building crew woke up in the Mt. Baker Ski Area parking lot on May 11 to a grim scene. With flooded tents, soggy garments and pouring rain, hopes of completing the sixth annual Mt. Baker Brain Bowl course were dwindling.
Athletes from Western Washington University’s Track and Field team are heading to Emporia, Kansas, this week for the NCAA Division II Track and Field Outdoor Nationals meet. The Vikings sent off 15 athletes to represent at the meet.
Despite Birch Equipment taking first place for the last four years, Boomer’s Drive-In’s Ski to Sea team doesn’t let it affect them. They approach the race with a mindset focused on going out and having the best race day they can after coming in second the previous three years.
Since the beginning of the digital age, which began in the early 1970s and grew quickly from there, physical media has been used less and less. The introduction of the internet and mobile technology has made practically every form of media available all on one device, yet – in recent years – analog media has had a revival, particularly in the music industry.
Thrifting has been around for over 150 years, at least the modern idea of it. The Salvation Army launched its ‘Salvation Brigade’ in 1897 to gather used items and sell them to those in need. Since then, secondhand buying has grown immensely, becoming extremely popular and almost trendy in the age of social media. However, thrifting, which was originally advertised as a sustainable and affordable way to get necessities, has now become a new form of consumerism.
Women have always been underrepresented in film. Since 1929, only five women directors have been nominated for the Academy Award for best director, according to a study done in 2020. While representation has increased since then, the number of women directors is shockingly inferior to that of male directors, continuing the cycle of women being under-recognized.
When wandering the tightly woven one-way streets of Bellingham, you’re never more than a stone's throw from a music venue, with venue being a loose term for anywhere people have figured out a way to plug in an extension cord long enough to run an amp through. The gatherings of music often start in the funky houses of the York Neighborhood and Garden Street, with rattling windows and crowded porches overflowing with thick smoke and baggy jeans. The house show is the perfect stomping ground for fresh bands hoping to entertain burnt-out college kids, but the short-term reality of rental leases and college degrees creates inconsistency for concertgoers and musicians alike.
Solutions by The State News
