Herald Newsletter 04-08-2026

Wednesday,April 8, 2026

Proposed state budget includes $1.5 million funding drop forWKU

WKU could lose $1.5 million in state funding next fiscal year if House Bill 500, the Kentucky legislature’s budget bill for the next two years, becomes law

Kentucky’s legislature agreed on a budget bill last Wednesday,April 1, that is now awaiting Gov.Andy Beshear’s approval. In HB 500, the budget bill for the 2026 and 2027 fiscal years, WKU is slated to receive a 2.18% cut to just over $69 million from $70.6 million the year prior. This number is “unrestricted” funds in the 2026-27 fiscal year, which will also decrease the following year.

Who will own WKU’s dorms?

WKU unveiled phase one renderings of its Elevate WKU dorm plan in February

Editor’s Note: This story was originally published in volume 101, issue 5 of the Herald’s magazine.

The Collegiate Housing Foundation will soon own all WKU dorms in a first-of-its-kind deal for both organizations.

The move is a milestone for the nonprofit organization, founded in 1996, which has never acquired all the housing on a single campus. The most dorms on a single campus owned by theAlabama-based Collegiate Housing Foundation are five of the 53 dorms at the University of California, Irvine. Of the 53 universities partnered with the Collegiate Housing Foundation, 42 host just one dorm owned by the foundation. Across the 53 universities, the foundation has completed 70 projects.

WKU Baseball defeats Belmont after eighth-inning comeback

WKU Baseball completed the 9-8 comeback win over the Belmont Bruins at Nick Denes Field, Tuesday night.

The Hilltoppers moved to a 17-16 record on the season, including 15-10 at Nick Denes Field.

“The big thing when you’ve got a little bit of struggling going on with your team right now, trying to win some games and to not just shut it down,” Head Coach Marc Rardin said.

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by David Quintanilla

Softball to sixth straight win

Western Kentucky University pitcher Rylan Smith (17) looks up at the Lipscomb batter during WKU’s 5-1 win over Lipscomb University at the WKU Softball Complex on Tuesday,April 7, 2026.(Summer Crawford)

Afull-team effort powered WKU Softball over Lipscomb 5-1 Tuesday night at the WKU Softball Complex.

The Hilltopper offense outmatched the Bison, going 8-24 at the plate and 4-6 on leadoffs. Lipscomb went just 5-27 and 1-10 with runners on base.

“(Our) offense came out on fire,” Head CoachAmy Tudor said. “We shut it down in the circle (and) played good defense.”

Read more byAdrianna Lein

Rally in the valley: WKU Housing and Residence Life hosts Valleypalooza

Valleypalooza began in 1993 to help alleviate stress surrounding the end of the semester, and went on hiatus in 2020 before returning in 2023.

This year’s event featured several activities for attendees, including yard games, a dunk tank and a tie-dye booth with handkerchiefs and tote bags.

Read more by Fiona Jones

The College Heights Herald is the independent, student-run news organization operating on the campus of Western Kentucky University, emphasizing accuracy and truth while being a public forum for the fair display of diverse opinions and viewpoints. The Herald works to be steadfast and unwavering in its pursuit of truth while being true to the tenets of the WKU Student Publications mission to grow exceptional journalists and innovative leaders through real-world experiences and a strong educational and ethical foundation centered on principled journalism. All creative and editorial decisions are made by the Herald’s student leadership, and all consequences of those decisions are the sole responsibility of these student leaders. While editorially and operationally independent from the university, the Herald participates in the mission of WKU to prepare students of all backgrounds to be productive, engaged and socially responsible citizen-leaders of a global society, both within and outside of its newsroom. Views expressed are diverse and, as an independent publication, should not be taken as representative of views of WKU and any of its administration, faculty, staff, student body or other constituency

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