Students planning to head home for Memorial Day should start thinking about how they're going to get there. With gas prices near all-time highs, they may need to find alternative ways to and from campus to save some money this spring.
As part of Western Washington University Residence Association’s “Go for the Green” initiative, a campus Thrift Swap event will take place in Alma Clark Glass Hall 452 on Thursday, April 23 from 4 to 6 p.m. The Thrift Swap invites students to bring and exchange items they no longer have use for, promotes sustainable ideals of community recycling and offers free food and eco-advice.
On Saturday, April 18, Western Washington University’s music department will host the 2026 Western Washington Percussion Festival. The percussion festival was founded in 2011 and hosts over 200 high school percussion students from across Washington.
Western Washington University is putting in a new building on the south side of campus that will serve as a welcome center and student resource facility. Construction started at the beginning of spring quarter and is slated to take 18 months, with completion not expected until fall quarter of 2027.
Created by two Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies students, the Preservation Station brings together the Outback Farm and Western's Native American Student Union. The project will move to the House of Healing longhouse once it opens.
The skies are getting hazier each day in Memphis, Tennessee, as the world’s largest supercomputer, Elon Musk’s Colossus, drinks up water and spits out pollutants. Large data centers use lots of energy and can consume 5 million gallons of water per day to cool down their computers. More big data centers are being built to keep up with the growth of artificial intelligence, which increases the risk of data centers tapping into freshwater supplies.
Bellingham City Council unanimously passed a resolution that called for an end to “lawless” immigration enforcement in a “moment of fear, grief, anger, and uncertainty” on Feb. 23, 2026.
The Whatcom County unemployment rate increased from 4.6% to 5.2% in December 2025, following a broader decline in jobs countywide.According to the Washington State Employment Security Department, employers reported 300 fewer payroll jobs in the county. Sectors such as manual labor and service providing industries have lost jobs.
Housing affordability has been a hotly debated topic among Bellingham residents for years. According to a 2025 study by Construction Coverage, Bellingham had the fourth highest home price-to-income ratio out of 375 observed areas, making it one of the least affordable cities in the nation. One way the city planned to solve the issue is through investing in affordable housing as detailed in 2025’s Bellingham Comprehensive Plan.
Third graders at Happy Valley Elementary School remain quiet, grasping onto every word coming from Jason LaClair. They are enthralled he is here. Allied Arts, a gallery and leader in the Whatcom County art scene, has partnered with LaClair to bring his knowledge to the classroom.
The Western Washington University women’s basketball team took on Western Oregon University in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships semifinals Friday, March 6, at WECU Court at Carver Gym in front of a home crowd of 1,127 fans.
On Jan. 29, 2026, Western Washington University held a celebration of not just athletic achievements, but the relationships and history that defines Viking athletics as a whole. Coaches, former athletes, families and supporters gathered at Carver Gym in Bellingham, Wash. to honor the newest batch of Hall of Fame inductees: Wade Gebers, Cim Hanson, Marc Hill, Herm Nelson and Mike Palm.
Western Washington Women’s basketball defeated Seattle Pacific University 72-43 in their second-to-last regular season game on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026.
Every third Saturday in March, up to 600 runners from across the world gather in Bellingham to race the Chuckanut 50k ultramarathon.
Who is the Red Square Preacher? His street preaching tactics cause a divide in opinion among Western students.
The first time I enrolled at Western Washington University in 2019, I was freshly out of high school, homesick, unfocused and unmedicated. I flew home for spring break at 18 years old. I wouldn’t return to Western as a student until I was 23. COVID-19 wrecked what I thought my college experience was going to look like, leaving me dejected and without motivation for years.
The words “otro mundo es posible” are painted onto a quilted tapestry banner that hangs on Community to Community’s front window. Adorned with strawberries and roses, it is a form of artful protest that reminds those who pass by that another world is possible. The organization — dedicated to the intersection of farmworker rights, immigrant rights, climate justice and democratic participation — has been working toward community solidarity and a response to ICE’s increased presence in Whatcom and Skagit counties. In doing so, a definition of solidarity has developed.
Much like exam anxiety or Sunday morning hangovers, messy dating is a disconcerting reality for many college students. In navigating these relationships, we learn through trial and error: what is fun and what is not, and who we should or should not be with.
Solutions by The State News
