Thursday, May 14, 2026
Over the summer the Herald will publish a weekly newsletter every Thursday The newsletter will return to daily publication at the start of the fall 2026 semester
WKU to reopen Normal and Regents halls this fall
Normal and Regents Halls under repair on May 13, 2026. (Joshua Baumgardner)
Normal and Regents halls, which closed in May of 2025 due to structural and engineering flaws, are set to reopen for the fall 2026 semester, officials said.
WKU announced it was shutting down its two newest dorms on May 16, 2025, after multiple structural design flaws were found, according to a report by Brown+Kubicon Structural Engineers. The two dorms cost $48 million to build but, according to a contract between the Student Life Foundation and the facilities management company Sodexo, cost $55 million to repair
WKU begins demolition of Hilltopper Hall
Construction workers tear down Hilltopper Hall on Tuesday, May 12, 2026 after it closed in 2024 due to structural issues. (Joshua Baumgardner)
Demolition began on Hilltopper Hall on Tuesday, more than two years after the building was closed because of construction flaws and
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engineering deficiencies.
Hilltopper Hall was initially closed in February 2024 after large-scale issues were found both externally and structurally during an investigation of the building.
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Global learning chief Sunnygard retires from WKU
John Sunnygard gives a speech thanking coworkers and WKU for his time on the hill on Monday, May 11, 2026. Sunnygard retires officially at the end of May, 2026. (Joshua Baumgardner)
After eight years of working forWKU, John Sunnygard, the associate provost for global learning and international affairs, celebrated retirement in the Mahurin Honors College and International Center on Monday
Sunnygard worked at WKU for eight years before his retirement at the end of May.
“I love our students,” Sunnygard said. “It’s really special creating opportunities for Kentucky students to be able to study abroad.”
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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