WVSU College of Arts & Humanities

05/01/2026

Congratulations Sophia!!

Congratulations to our student worker, Sophia King, on being named Communications Student of the Year! We’re so proud of all she has accomplished and grateful for the great work she has done in our communications office. Please join us in celebrating Sophia and this well-deserved recognition!

05/01/2026

🎭🎶 Big applause to our amazing students! 🎶🎭

Our Communications and Music departments have been hard at work these past two weeks, and it truly shows! From an outstanding play to beautiful recital performances, our students have delivered incredible talent and dedication all semester long.

A huge shoutout as well to our faculty and staff who work tirelessly behind the scenes to make it all happen.

Go STATE! 💙

04/13/2026

Please join us in congratulating the outstanding staff and faculty within our college on their years of dedicated service for 2025! 🎉

Twenty-Five Years 2️⃣5️⃣
Karen Anderson

Twenty Years 2️⃣0️⃣
Dr. Jeffrey Pietruszynski
Dr. Miguel Zapata

Fifteen Years 1️⃣5️⃣
Micah Peggs

Ten Years 1️⃣0️⃣
Dr. Michael Harris
Dr. Lan Wang-Hiles

Your commitment, passion, and contributions make a lasting impact on our students and community. Thank you for all that you do!

04/06/2026

Great having Kandi Workman from the West Virginia Creative Network visit Dean Wallace’s poetry writing workshop today. Her work—building an artists directory, launching a virtual marketplace, and creating new opportunities through coaching and micro-credentialing—is opening real doors for creatives across the state. Grateful for the insight and inspiration she shared with our students.

03/17/2026

It’s WVSU Day of Giving!

Join us in supporting the College of Arts & Humanities at West Virginia State University. Every gift—big or small—directly helps our students succeed, grow, and reach their full potential.

Your support creates meaningful opportunities for the next generation of artists, writers, and performers to thrive.

Let's make a difference together in the lives and future of our students! 💛

Click the link below!
https://www.givecampus.com/s/j9xs0s

02/28/2026

02/20/2026

Looking back at our time last week when we swarmed the state capital! Our college has some amazing students, faulty and staff who were present that day.

02/09/2026

It’s WVSU at the state Capitol today!

02/07/2026

Our condolences go out to his loved ones.

We are saddened to share the passing of legendary film maker and long-time WVSU faculty member Danny Boyd.
For more than 30 years, Danny inspired generations of Yellow Jackets as a professor of media studies, filmmaker, author, and mentor. His creativity and passion left an enduring mark on our community.
Please join us in keeping Danny’s family and loved ones in your thoughts during this difficult time.

01/30/2026

Paula Clendenin devoted many years to West Virginia State University as one of its most inspiring and beloved professors, sharing her passion for art and the Appalachian landscape with generations of students. She continues to inspire us all with her amazing work!

Paula Clendenin was born on June 22, 1949, in Cedar Grove, Kanawha County, and her work feels inseparable from the mountains that raised her. Nationally recognized for her paintings, Clendenin creates richly colored, textured landscapes where West Virginia’s ridgelines blend with spiritual and mystical symbols, turning familiar terrain into something deeply internal and almost sacred.

She studied at West Virginia University, earning both her bachelor’s degree and an MFA. Late in her undergraduate years, a printmaking class changed her direction and pushed her fully toward art. While she continued printmaking, she soon moved to canvas, and by the mid 1980s had developed a signature style built on layered surfaces and abstracted mountain forms. Oil stick on paper became her preferred medium, allowing her to build dense, luminous textures that feel both grounded and otherworldly.

Clendenin’s work has appeared in more than a dozen solo exhibitions and countless group shows, including The Spirit Within, Four West Virginia Artists, sponsored by the National Museum of Women in the Arts. Her paintings are held in over 25 public, corporate, and private collections, including the Library of Congress, the Dallas Library Commission, and Fleet Boston, formerly the Bank of Boston.

Her achievements include three Governor’s Awards in the West Virginia Juried Exhibition and an Award of Excellence at the Huntington Museum of Art’s Exhibition 280. Based in Charleston, Clendenin has taught at West Virginia State University and has shared her knowledge at institutions across the country, including Marshall University, West Virginia Wesleyan College, the University of Houston, and the Governor’s School for the Arts. Her work stands as a powerful example of how Appalachian landscapes continue to shape contemporary American art.

Check out her work at http://www.paulaclendenin.com