With news apps, Instagram stories, and TikTok influencers dominating how young adults consume information, traditional journalism is being replaced by fast, often biased content. The constant stream of information can feel overwhelming, blurring the line between truth and opinion and leaving many anxious and fatigued.

Selah Greer, Editor-in-Chief of The Spark This photo essay highlights a community-made quilt created in remembrance of Hurricane Helene. It can be accessed here .

This photo essay highlights two new clubs at the high school.

Soap-powered boats, roller coasters, and paper helicopters. Those are just a few of the many exciting things kids in Watauga have had the opportunity to create through STEMKids.

You probably already know about Mountain Alliance, or their afterschool program, School’s Out.

You stroll onto the green grass of Sanford Mall at App State. You stretch your arms out wide as you take in the beautiful scenery on a sunny afternoon. You take a deep breath of fresh air and smell… matcha?

On September 14, 2025, students from all across the High Country came together for a night of fellowship and worship.

Located in the heart of downtown Boone, the Junaluska neighborhood is a historically black community that is not well-known to many people who have lived in Watauga County their entire lives.

Stickboy Bread Company, a beloved fixture of the Boone, NC community, has been family-owned and operated for over twenty years.

During the fall semester of the 2024-25 school year, the Pioneer Playmakers worked tirelessly to create their fall play, which they would perform at the North Carolina Theater Conference in November.

Saturday is awaited all week. We all take time to relax and enjoy ourselves, but for our local adaptive needs community, it’s a time where they get to engage with others and play a game of Adaptive Baseball. 

For the average student at Watauga High School, a typical day of class follows a conventional schedule, learning algebra, writing essays in English, and taking notes in history. However, stowed away in the CTE hallway on the first floor, the students in the Nursing Fundamentals class are learning how to save lives.

As Watauga students stepped off the plane in a foreign country, they were met not only with the excitement of the journey, but also with an immediate preview of the challenges ahead.

The town of Boone is a bustling atmosphere for college students originating from places far and wide, with lives just as vivid and complex as our own.

Sometimes, in the marathon that is high school, a change of scenery or a bite to eat is the best way to give yourself a well-deserved break.

It is no secret that Watauga High School is full of wonderfully gifted students. So the idea to start a club promoting not only the mental acuity of its students, but also their ability to create, test, and perfect their products feels like a natural progression.

The CTE department at Watauga High School has been seeing unprecedented change over the last few years. New and developing technologies are forcing society to adapt, but concerns over moral and technical issues continue to persist.

Most wouldn’t think of summer school as a fun way to spend your vacation, but those who attended Governor’s school might beg to differ.

Staring at a blank page at midnight, anxious senior students struggle to make their college essays unique.

We polled the student body about how they spent their Spring Break.