Eberly News

Approximately 900 Eberly College students will graduate in Spring 2026. Meet some of our graduates from across Eberly disciplines.

The Eberly College of Arts and Sciences recognized its highest-achieving students during the 2026 Eberly Student Awards Ceremony, celebrating Outstanding Seniors, Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistants and Eberly Scholars.

Driven by a love for his home state and gratitude for the opportunities West Virginia University has provided him, Reese Allen will don the buckskins and coonskin cap as the next Mountaineer mascot.

The senior dual mechanical engineering and data science major from Bridgeport was named the 2026-27 Mountaineer mascot Saturday (Feb. 28) during the men’s basketball game in the Hope Coliseum.

Finalist Amelia Bolden, a communication sciences and disorders junior in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, will serve as the alternate Mountaineer mascot.

Isabella Linton, a senior in the WVU Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, is a Mountaineer from way back. Her family has deep roots in West Virginia, and she grew up in the house her grandparents built. Linton has turned a lifelong curiosity about the brain into meaningful, hands-on research. Through lab work and faculty mentorship, she has explored how maternal stress impacts development while building a strong foundation in scientific inquiry.

First-generation faculty from West Virginia University’s Eberly College of Arts and Sciences and FirstGen Initiatives, housed within REACH Student Success, are playing a central role in expanding mentorship and support systems for first-generation students, contributing their expertise to a statewide initiative funded by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission.

For a second consecutive year, the West Virginia University student body will be led by Collin Street, triple majoring in political science, environmental and energy resources management and multidisciplinary studies, and Rozaireo Jones, majoring in journalism with minors in history and political science.

Discover how the Eberly Writing Studio and Speakwrite support students in becoming stronger writers and communicators, learn about the Appalachian Scholars Contest and more.

WVU undergraduate student Sam Stalnaker and faculty member Thomas Steinberger use lasers to study gases and predict how they’ll behave in outer space. Mentoring relationships like this one help students graduate and thrive.  Stalnaker reflects, “Watching everything happening in the lab and having that guidance from the grad students and postdocs is really cool. I’m helping them with their work, but I’m also asking questions and learning about the science behind what they’re doing. They’ve helped me understand how our experiments work and to develop the skills I’ll need in grad school.”

WVU maintains a site license for ArcGIS software, managed by the Department of Geology and Geography and the West Virginia GIS Technical Center. “This is a phenomenal step forward in giving our students access to the same technology used by leading researchers and industry professionals,” said Aaron Maxwell, director of the West Virginia GIS Technical Center. “Students can now build critical geospatial skills that will give them a competitive edge in their future careers.”

West Virginia University undergraduates Shelby Cavender and Tyler Jeffries started small, collaborating to sell fashion finds on social media — WVU gear, graphic tees, sneakers and more. Then their resale operations grew. And grew. And grew.