Features

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NEWS 11/14/23 11:04am

Fire engulfs abandoned mill in Graham as nearby homes evacuated

By Jenna Manderioli and Joseph Navin

Fire crews from across central North Carolina, including Alamance, Guilford and Orange Counties responded to afire at 300 E. Parker St. in Graham. This marked the second major fire at the complex in roughly a year after an October 2022 fire. According to Graham Fire Chief Tommy Cole, the fire began the night of Nov. 12 and continued into the morning on Nov. 13. Fire crews are continuing to work to put out remaining hot-spots around the facility. The source of the fire has not been identified, according to Beau Russell at the Graham Fire Department.

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NEWS 11/14/23 7:58am

Elon University students welcome Wawa expansion into North Carolina

By Lilly Molina

For Emma Puleo, an Elon senior from Maryland, Wawa was her life. Wawa is a major gas station chain that sells food and beverages such as hoagies, club sandwiches, milkshakes and smoothies.The company originated in Pennsylvania and has since expanded all over the East Coast but has bypassed North Carolina, until now. Wawa announced its expansion into North Carolina on Oct. 25 at the Greenville Convention Center and Casita Brewing Company in Wilson. In a statement, Wawa said they plan to open 15 more stores in North Carolina by 2025 and are investing $7 million for each store.  

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NEWS 11/13/23 11:24am

Elon University biology major fights to keep senior year alive

By Mason Willett

Senior Mandi Lichtenstein started to feel symptoms during the first week of school. As symptoms got worse Lichtenstein knew something was wrong so she decided to drive herself to the hospital on Aug. 29. After sitting in the emergency room waiting area for six hours, Lichtenstein was finally able to get the exams she needed. “They gave me a CT scan of my kidney and bladder and they found a shadow on the bladder scan, which could have been anything," Lichtenstein said. "But the doctor who came in was like, ‘No, you probably have cancer.’”

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LIFESTYLE 11/12/23 10:11pm

Elon Watches: “Killers of the Flower Moon”

By Tucker Price

Two of this year’s most acclaimed films are not only dramatic retellings of historical events but are created by two of the most prolific directors of all time. While Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” may have beaten Martin Scorcese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” at the box office, “Flower Moon” towers over Oppy as a masterclass in storytelling and directorial achievement. “Killers of the Flower Moon” follows Ernest Burkhart, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, and Molly Berkhart, played by Lily Gladstone, as they navigate life under the pressure of a series of murders in a territory during an intense dispute driven by jealousy.

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SPORTS 11/11/23 12:03pm

Elon University men’s basketball head coach takes on 2nd year leading the Phoenix

By Mason Willett

With the men’s basketball season arriving, head coach Billy Taylor looks to lead the team as he starts year two. For the first season of Taylor’s era, the team finished last spring with 8-24 and 6-12 in conference play. Taylor said he doesn’t believe the record told the full story as the team was shorthanded with a small roster and then some injuries. Now the team brings in six new freshmen and two transfers. The Phoenix won its home opener against East Tennessee State University on Nov. 9 and look to take on North Dakota at 2 p.m. on Nov. 12 in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

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NEWS 11/11/23 11:47am

Elon residential students can now access Max with university accounts

By Nia Bedard

Elon Residence Life announced that the streaming platform Max is now accessible to residential students through their Elon University accounts. Assistant Dean of Campus Life and Director of Residence Life Kristen Carrier announced the update in an email that was sent out to students living on-campus on Nov. 8. In February 2023, Elon students lost the ability to use Max — formerly HBO Max — with their university logins, following a change in cable providers from Philo to Streeme. After nine months without the streaming service, Max is now back at Elon.

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LIFESTYLE 11/10/23 11:13am

Students make directorial debut in Renegade’s fall play at Elon University

By Sarah T. Moore

Elon seniors Brynn Lackey and Janie Chamberlin met for the first time six weeks ago; now, the two are co-directing Renegade Productions’ fall play “Peter and the Starcatcher.” The play will have three runs in the Center for the Arts Black Box Theatre: 5:30 p.m. Nov. 10, 5 p.m. Nov. 11 and 10 p.m. Nov. 11. Tickets are free for all attendees and can be reserved online through Renegade’s Eventbrite page. Renegade is a student theater organization at Elon that is open to all students, regardless of major or theater background.

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SPORTS 11/9/23 11:16pm

Elon University men’s basketball wins home opener in thrilling finish

By Miles Hayford

The Elon University men’s basketball team defeated East Tennessee State University 79-76 in its home opener Nov. 9 at the Schar Center, fueled by first half dominance and last second heroics. This was their first win over the Buccaneers since 2005, and avenged a brutal loss against ETSU in the Asheville Championship last year. The Phoenix got off to a rocky start, plagued by early turnovers and superb defense by ETSU. In the first three minutes, Elon found themselves having committed four turnovers. ETSU quickly found themselves up by 10. However, sophomore LA Pratt helped Elon get back on track with back-to-back 3-pointers.

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NEWS 11/9/23 6:30pm

Alamance County Board of Elections results show incumbent wins, first Black Burlington city council member

By Madison Powers

According to the Alamance Board of Elections on Nov. 9, results for the Nov. 7 elections will be unofficial until Nov. 17 at 11 a.m. Polls closed at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 7 for municipalities in Alamance County. Incumbent Jim Butler has a lead in the election for Burlington mayor, beating Beth Kennett. Dejuana Bigelow and Bob Ward are the top two candidates for City of Burlington council members. If elected, Bigelow would be the first Black woman to hold the position. For the Town of Elon council election — of which three seats are available — incumbents Quinn Ray and Monti Allison are the top two candidates with Michael Woods in third.

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NEWS 11/9/23 8:21am

Elon University students to host CANstruction event Nov. 11

By Madison Powers

Three students in EGR 2210: Engineering Design for Service are partnering with Southern Alamance Family Empowerment to promote the nonprofit, collect canned goods and spread awareness about food insecurity in Alamance County. On Nov. 11, the group of Elon engineering students will deconstruct four structures made of canned goods to be donated to SAFE. Griffin Chase, a senior majoring in entrepreneurship with a minor in engineering design, is one of three students partnering with SAFE. Chase said through this project, he has learned about food insecurity in Alamance County.

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NEWS 11/8/23 1:39pm

Elon University’s Phoenix Policy Institute hosts sustainability discussion

By Ryan Kupperman

Elon University's Phoenix Policy Institute hosted a sustainability discussion where speakers Kelly Harer, Elon University’s associate director of sustainability for education and outreach, the Rev. Donna Vanhook ’07 — Alamance County’s soil and water conservation district supervisor — and professor of political science and policy studies Julianne Liebenguth spoke to nearly a dozen students about barriers to sustainability at Elon and in the community. Vanhook emphasized the importance of race and policy in local change, while Liebenguth related efforts to a global, political scale and Harer reviewed Elon’s sustainability goals and challenges.

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SPORTS 11/7/23 6:59pm

Elon University men’s basketball falls to Wake Forest in season opener

By Jack Prahinski

The Elon University men’s basketball team did not break its 101-year long losing streak to Wake Forest University in its season opener Nov. 6. After Elon led by 21 points during the first half, the Demon Deacons dominated the second half at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum — coming out on top 101-78. Wake Forest’s scorching second period was led by combined scoring efforts from senior forward Andrew Carr, redshirt sophomore guard Kevin ‘Boopie’ Miller and junior guard Cameron Hildreth.

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NEWS 11/7/23 12:08pm

Elon University SGA sees failed impeachment attempt

By Abigail Hobbs

Elon University’s Student Government Association’s Vice President of Finance senior Gabby Gutiérrez faced an impeachment vote Nov. 2 after Student Body President Britt Mobley and Speaker of the Senate Chloe Higgins filed a formal judicial complaint, according to a statement sent to Elon News Network Nov. 7 from the SGA executive team. A student in SGA, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the participants at the hearing were told not to talk about it and the time between when the complaint was filed on Oct. 26 to the hearing on Nov. 2 was not long enough for proper deliberation.

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NEWS 11/7/23 10:42am

El Centro brings back conversation class program at Elon University

By Lauren Winslow

After a hiatus due to COVID-19, El Centro revived its Spanish conversation class program, which has been rebranded as Conversa Conmigo. El Centro — Elon’s Latinx and Hispanic center — is offering five levels of classes, including new beginner, beginner mid, intermediate low, intermediate high and advanced. All classes except for the advanced class will be taught by student leaders. Classes will take place in El Centro at different times throughout the week. Remi Shook, senior student team leader of Conversa Conmigo, said one of the first steps to restarting the program was recruiting teachers.

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NEWS 11/6/23 7:48am

Elon University celebrates NAHM, continues a heritage language revitalization process

By Madison Powers

Elon University, which is situated on land originally occupied by the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi nation, is beginning a process to revitalize the tribe’s heritage language: Yesa:sahį. Randy Williams, vice president for inclusive excellence, said the university is partnering with the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation to revitalize the tribe’s heritage language. The language revitalization is the university’s 14th institutional priority for the 2023-24 school year. November is Native American Heritage Month in the U.S. and was established in 1990. Elon’s Center for Race, Ethnicity and Diversity Education hosts events throughout the month including a kickoff, artist showcase and beading workshop.

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SPORTS 11/5/23 2:46pm

Elon University sophomore guard pulls from international experience

By Jack Prahinski

Even though it is halfway across the world from his home in Australia, sophomore guard Max Mackinnon said he knew he was making the right decision when he committed to Elon University. Mackinnon played professionally in Australia’s National Basketball League when he was 17. During his professional career, he played in the International Basketball Federation, also known as FIBA. Mackinnon said because FIBA play does not involve a lot of isolation, it has been a rather smooth adjustment to the offense head coach Billy Taylor has used dating back to his coaching days at the University of Iowa.  

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LIFESTYLE 11/4/23 11:57am

Elon University art festival showcases local art

By Lilly Molina

The Alamance Artisans Guild hosted its annual Art Extravaganza at the Inn at Elon University. The free art show gave 21 local Alamance County artists the opportunity to display their artwork to the community. The festival took place Oct. 28 and 29 and was Elon’s first time hosting the event. Cindy Biles, an artisan who founded her sculptures and hypoallergenic jewelry business called Out of Fire, said her artistry journey started at Elon when she signed up for a pottery and ceramics class. She said that she has been a part of the Art Extravaganza since the beginning.

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LIFESTYLE 11/3/23 8:25pm

‘Spring Awakening’ brings 19th century cautionary tale to Elon University

By Sarah T. Moore

When performing arts professor Kim Shively was approached about directing Elon University’s fall main stage musical, “Spring Awakening,” she said she thought about how the musical's message applies to the world today. “Spring Awakening” is a rock musical set in 19th century Germany that follows young teenagers navigating their society and sexuality. Elon’s closing performance is at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 4 and tickets are available through the university’s ticketing website for $15 or free with an Elon ID. Shively said beneath the layers of teen angst, the musical serves as a cautionary tale of what happens when people don’t cultivate curiosity, conversation and understanding. 

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LIFESTYLE 11/3/23 10:32am

Elon University showcases art exhibition connecting humanity, consumerism

By Abigail Hobbs

Every time Elon exhibiting artist Joshua Newth went for a walk around his Missouri neighborhood in 2019, he would pick up a piece of trash. Bridging his degree in biology and interest in painting, Newth created “Confessions of the Consumer,” a collection of paintings and sculptures that reuse litter to get his audience to think about the connections between nature and humanity. The collections will be on display in Arts West until Dec. 1. In his works, Newth, an art professor at Southeast Missouri State University, said he uses the human form “accessorized” with litter to explore humanity’s relationship with consumerism in a non-confrontational way.

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LIFESTYLE 11/2/23 8:10pm

Elon University Percussion Ensemble celebrates shared spaces

By Nia Bedard

Music instructor Isaac Pyatt directed his percussion ensemble students and other instructors in a fall concert at the Yeager Recital Hall on Nov. 1. In his first semester at Elon University, Pyatt taught the ensemble of five students who enrolled in the Percussion Ensemble class this fall, all of varying ages and majors. In addition to the five students, professor Mariana Poole,  drumline instructor for Elon’s marching band — the Fire of the Carolinas — Alex Richard and Pyatt also participated in the concert.

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