Concord University Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Concord University Has Rare Crystal That Can Help Identify Rare Earth Elements

Concord University will be one of two places in the world to have a certain type of X-ray diffracting crystal. The manufactured crystal is capable of capturing invisible light wavelengths, known as X-rays, to determine the chemical makeup of certain materials.

This crystal is used as part of an electron microscope, and can collect information from materials at sizes as small as 1/1000th of a millimeter — to put that in perspective, a fine grain of sand is 1/10th of a millimeter.

Concord officials said this is the first of several federally-funded upgrades to Concord’s lab and a key step to the development of Concord Materials and Rare Earth Element Analysis Center.

Stephen Kuen, associate professor of Geology and Earth Science and director CU Electron Microprobe Laboratory, is managing this project. Kuen said that often the rays of light given off by different materials mix, and become muddled so that it’s hard to determine the different chemical components.

“So this crystal is able to better separate those X-rays so that we can get much better measurements of the individual elements,” Kuen said. “And that also helps to better detect things that are present at very, very low concentrations.”

Kuen said this technology could be useful to industries that depend on sourcing rare earth elements.

“People are looking to develop sources of those elements,” Kuen said. “If we’re able to measure them better and source materials, that can help people looking for for those [materials]”

Students at Concord will be the major users of this technology and will have learning experiences that they won’t be able to get anywhere else, according to Concord officials.

The project to develop these instruments as part of a new lab at the university cost just under $1 million, most of which was federally earmarked funds allotted to this project.

Kuen said funding was the biggest challenge in procuring this instrument and in adding to Concord’s scientific facilities.

“We were just delighted,” Keon said. “I think, when this most recent attempt at funding went somewhere, and went somewhere in a big way, it’s really opening a lot of doors and unlocking a lot of possibilities.”

Concord Esports Team Wins National Championship

One of West Virginia’s first collegiate esports teams won a national championship in December.

In 2019, Concord University was the first public university in the state of West Virginia to develop an esports competition program.

The Concord University Esports Maroon Team, one of 12 teams at the university, won a national championship in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Elite Division.

Austin Clay is the Esports director at Concord University and said the Rocket League match was won with intelligence and planning.

“Because of our research and because we better prepared for the match, and we understood how they played we were able to come out on top and take that victory though, which is why it’s so impressive,” he said.

The team went 7-1 in the ECAC regular season, only losing to Brewton Parker College, of Georgia. In the Grand Finals, the Maroon team played Brewton-Parker College once again, and consisted of Chase Koger, Ethan Tucker and Will Jackson.

Tucker, whose gamer tag, or nickname is “E.T.” is a sophomore who transferred from Brewton Parker College. He is a computer science major at Concord.

Jackson, whose gamer tag is “Pancakes” is a senior who has been playing for concord since the founding year of Rocket League in the fall of 2022 and is finishing his bachelor’s degree in computer science. Jackson is the captain of the team.

Koger, whose gamer tag is “Helix” is a freshman and the only in-state player for the varsity Rocket League team from the town of Iager in McDowell County. Koger is also pursuing a computer science degree.

Clay said he is not only proud of the team for their win, but their academic achievements as well.

“From an academic standpoint, our three players that play on that roster had an average GPA of 3.31,” Clay said. “So they are really intelligent, while also competing.”

Online Academic Resources Now Available For Southern W.Va. Students

Students in some southern counties will soon have access to online academic help.

Students and their families from Mercer, Monroe, Summers, Raleigh and Wyoming counties currently enrolled in 7th or 8th grade can now access 24/7 academic support via Tutor.com. Students and parents can connect with a live tutor during sessions, drop off writing samples or assignments to get direct feedback on assignments, prepare for tests and more.

The online resources are made available to students via a partnership between Tutor.com and GEAR UP Southern West Virginia (SWV).

Program Director Kristen O’Sullivan, said GEAR UP is a national Department of Education program to help young people in economically challenged areas to reach post-secondary education.

“GEAR UP Southern West Virginia is a grant that, through Concord University, we just received in 2022-2023,” she said. “We work with a cohort of students that started with the sixth and seventh grade last year, and now they’re in seventh and eighth grade. We will follow them all the way through until their first year of post-secondary education, whether that be a four-year school, a two-year degree, the military, and we just do everything possible with them to help them be prepared and to believe that they belong and have a plan for the future.”

Tutor.com is also a resource to help parents gain confidence while helping students with schoolwork. As a native of southern West Virginia, O’Sullivan said she would have loved this kind of support when raising her own children.

“I can just remember those nights when they were struggling with something in math or struggling with certain pieces of papers they were working on, where I didn’t feel I had the capacity to be able to help them much,” she said. “Parents will no longer have to worry about that, they will have those experts right there at all times to be able to help.”

O’Sullivan said that teachers will also benefit with access to the same resources, as well as reports on what the students have been getting tutoring on.

“A teacher, let’s say in a math class, may want to be able to look back and see what are the areas the students are continuing to have questions about, so that they can then address them again in the classroom,” she said.

O’Sullivan acknowledged that internet access continues to be an issue in southern West Virginia and across the state, but implementation of COVID-19 era strategies can help to bridge the gap.

“I can tell you that Tutor.com is fully accessible from cell phones as well as from computers,” she said. “I know a lot of families, that is their internet is using their cell phone, they don’t have internet services in their homes. There’s also the things that we have learned through COVID to help people in our rural communities. They can access internet in our community libraries, in the schools, a lot of times this program will be used not just at home, but will be used in after school programming, lunchtime programming sometimes before school.”

Students younger than 13 must submit a signed permission slip before accessing the online resources.

Intermediate Court Of Appeals Brings Arguments To Concord

The Intermediate Court of Appeals of West Virginia will hear three arguments at Concord University this Thursday, Sept. 21 as part of a new judicial educational initiative called ICA On-Campus.

The state’s newest court is taking their work on the road this week.

The Intermediate Court of Appeals of West Virginia (ICA) will hear three arguments at Concord University this Thursday, Sept. 21 as part of a new judicial educational initiative called ICA On-Campus.

The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals regularly hears arguments at West Virginia University and Marshall University, including a tradition of visiting Marshall every few years in mid-September to honor the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution on Sept. 17, 1787.

Intermediate Court of Appeals Chief Justice Dan Greear said his court wanted to do something similar but include the state’s other four year institutions.

“We just wanted to share that experience and broaden the students that we can reach with that,” he said. “Students at Shepherd or West Virginia State or Concord or Bluefield State, or wherever, ought to have the same kinds of opportunities if we can do it. We just thought it’d be a much better use of resources to kind of expand the universe of students who are able to see that versus just repeating the same old thing to the same old students.”

Greear said the ICA will host one on-campus argument day during each term of court moving forward – once in the fall and again in the spring. The Chief Justice of the court chooses the venue for each term.

“I got the first pick, and my son graduated from Concord last spring, so that’s why I chose Concord,” Greear said. “Judge (Thomas) Scarr will be chief beginning in January, so it’ll be up to him to choose where we’re gonna go in the spring and fall next term.”

The court invites students to witness the branch of government and observe what happens.

“Hopefully, the prelaw students or students in other majors that relate to the law that might be interested in that will get to come out and see firsthand what happens,” Greear said.

After each argument at Thursday’s hearing, the ICA’s three judges will step aside so students and the public can have a short question and answer session with the attorneys about the cases they argued. After the argument docket is over, the judges will be available informally to answer questions about the judiciary.

Concord To Host Run For Heroes 5K Race

Organizers say the challenging and fun course was designed to honor the hard work and sacrifices endured by U.S. military personnel. The race proceeds will benefit veterans attending Concord University. The Concord Office of Veterans says this will help veterans attend college.

The Office of Veteran Services (OVS) at Concord University will be hosting the “Run For Heroes 5K Race” for the first time since 2014. The race will be held at Callaghan Stadium at Concord’s Athens campus.

At 9 a.m., there will be a moment of silence for fallen soldiers and injured veterans. Immediately after that, the race will begin.

“Student veterans are often non-traditional, juggling a family, work and school. The OVS assists veterans and their dependents in all facets of higher education, from application and academics to financial and social support,” George Williams, Concord’s Veterans Advocate, said.

Participants who pre-register will receive a discount and are guaranteed a race shirt.

State’s Highest Courts Take Arguments To Universities

West Virginia’s highest courts are hitting the road this month as part of Constitution Day events at Concord and Marshall universities.

The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia will hear oral arguments in Huntington at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 13, at the Joan C. Edwards Performing Arts Center.

Attendance is free and open to the public; advance registration is requested. The proceedings will also be webcast live on the West Virginia Judiciary YouTube.

The Supreme Court has a tradition of visiting Marshall every few years in mid-September to honor the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution on Sept. 17, 1787.

“I’m thrilled to bring the court back to the Marshall campus,” Chief Justice Beth Walker said. “Our last visit was in 2019 before COVID-19, so it’s exciting to resume this great tradition coinciding with Constitution Day.”

Marshall University is named for former U.S. Chief Justice John Marshall. He was the longest serving chief justice in court history from 1801 to 1835.

Concord University will host the West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 21, in the Main Theater. The court will hear three arguments.

The event is open to the public and will allow people to see the inner workings of the court and learn about the legal process.