RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — NASA astronaut Christina Koch is one of eight recipients to receive the North Carolina Award this year, which honors individuals who have made significant contributions to their respective fields, including public service, literature, science, and the arts.

Koch, who set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman, is being recognized with the highest civilian honor awarded by the state.

North Carolina State University alumna Christina Koch will be honored with the state's highest civilian award, the North Carolina Award. This prestigious honor recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the state and nation.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has commuted what have been lengthy sentences served by six criminal offenders in state prisons and granted pardons to two others

Governor Roy Cooper has issued pardons for two men who were wrongfully convicted. One of them is from the Piedmont Triad. Mark Crotts was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder in Alamance County in 1992.

Late Wednesday, Governor Roy Cooper announced he had commuted the sentences of six people in North Carolina prisons and granted pardons of innocence to two others. According to the governor's office,