Alamance County navigates ongoing statewide drought
With much of North Carolina having faced drought conditions for several months, Audrey Thompson, a farmer at T5-Farms, said the drought has added extra steps to work on the farm.
With much of North Carolina having faced drought conditions for several months, Audrey Thompson, a farmer at T5-Farms, said the drought has added extra steps to work on the farm.
As North Carolina remains the only state without a budget, it is also the only state where teacher salaries have decreased since last year. According to a report by the National Education Association, North Carolina’s average teacher salaries decreased by 0.58% in the last year. The national average salary increased by almost 3%.
The North Carolina A&T State University Army ROTC program held its spring 2026 commissioning ceremony May 8. The program is commonly referred to as the Aggie Battalion and includes several colleges and universities in the Greensboro area, including Elon University. Elon senior Erin Hroncich was among twelve cadets who transitioned to second lieutenants in the United States Army.
Seventy-three graduating students donned rainbow stoles May 8 at Elon University's 14th annual Lavender Celebration run by the Gender and LGBTQIA Center. The ceremony honored LGBTQIA students for their contributions to inclusion on campus ahead of commencement later this month. The celebration, held in Alumni Gym, recognized both undergraduate and graduate students. Luis Garay, director of the Gender and LGBTQIA Center, has coordinated the event for the past six years and said the ceremony has grown significantly.
Learning management platform Canvas, which will be used by Elon University beginning fall 2026, was affected by a nationwide cyberattack May 7. The hacking group, known as ShinyHunters said in a ransom letter on May 3 that it accessed data from more than 275 million people across nearly 9,000 schools. Canvas’ parent company, Instructure, announced May 1 that it had experienced a “cybersecurity incident.” Instructure said this attack compromised personal identifying information such as names and student ID numbers, but only Elon faculty data was impacted, according to Associate Vice President of Information Technology Christopher Waters.
The North Carolina Treasurer’s Department announced it will integrate artificial intelligence into its daily operations. The department wrote that the decision comes after an AI pilot program from spring 2025. The team held weekly calls with engineers at its partner, OpenAI, to troubleshoot and develop the program. The pilot program ran for 12 weeks and the team saw a 10% increase in productivity, according to analysis conducted at North Carolina Central University.
The Elon University Honors Program hosted a senior banquet for graduating honors fellows May 7 in upstairs Lakeside, where students joined their mentors to reflect on their time at Elon.
When sophomore Emily Wright was a freshman, then-president of Elon’s Asian-Pacific Student AssociationIvan Nguyen encouraged her to become involved in the organization. Now, as Vice President of APSA, Wright helps others connect to their heritage, just like Nguyen did for her.
From being kicked out of her college newspaper to working as a New York Times investigative reporter and author, Jodi Kantor shared her wisdom and work with audiences at the Elon University School of Law’s Distinguished Leadership Lecture Series on May 6.
Under the glow of light in Alumni Gym, circular tables were arranged in rows. Each one held fragments of a larger story. The Elon Anatomy Teaching Assistant Program Students and faculty gathered for the annual Human Donor Memorial on May 5, a ceremony on gratitude, reflection and remembrance for those known as “silent teachers.”
In Elon’s first game of the Coastal Athletic Association softball championship tournament, it was a battle to the finish against No. 3-seeded Campbell University. Elon returns to the tournament this year as the defending champions, after winning the CAA for the first time in program history last year. This time, the tournament is hosted at Hunt Park in Elon.
As graduation approaches, members of the Class of 2026 are taking part in a long-standing campus tradition with a more hands-on experience. From noon to 5 p.m. on May 6, seniors gathered under the Oaks to place personalized bricks engraved with their names and graduation year. While the university has offered commemorative bricks for years, allowing students to physically lay their own bricks is a more recent addition.
Performing arts students were told early Wednesday afternoon that professor and chair of the Department of Performing Arts Fred Rubeck died May 6. Co-chair of the performing arts department Kirby Wahl notified students via a Moodle announcement.
The new HealthEU building, recently named the Slattery Center, has reached its tallest point as it nears its anticipated grand opening in fall 2026. On the north side of the building, facing the Colonnades Neighborhood, workers have begun laying the traditional Elon red brick on the structure's outer walls. The south side has a finished structure, but no exterior walls have been added as of May 5.
The Elon Phoenix took over championship weekend. Both Elon men’s and women’s tennis captured titles at the Colonial Athletic Association Championships on April 19, marking a program sweep defined by breakthrough moments and a shared emphasis on team energy.
With landfill debates and local boards, the Alamance County board of commissioners makes decisions that shape policies affecting residents across the county. The board is made up of five elected officials: Chair Kelly Allen, Vice Chair Steve Carter, Ed Priola, Sam Powell and Pamela Thompson. Commissioners are elected to four-year terms, with seats appearing on the ballot during general election cycles.
Despite nationwide concerns over the job market, North Carolina’s economy has remained strong, and requires 5,000 to 10,000 more degrees each year from North Carolina universities, according to a report from the University of North Carolina System.
A report from The North Carolina Advisory Council on Cannabis’s recommends to lawmakers the legalization of marijuana, allowing adults to legally purchase, possess and use cannabis through state-licensed retail outlets.
After just one year of being launched, the newest majors at Elon University, neuroscience and digital content management, are already gaining traction among students and faculty. They reflect both long-standing interest and rapidly changing industries.
2026 marks 70 years of service for the Alamance County Rescue Unit. Founded in 1955, the unit is the primary and rescue provider for Alamance County and its municipalities.