Hurricane Florence Coverage

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NEWS 12/3/24 9:07am

School of business dean prepares for departure from Elon after 13 years

By Lilly Molina

Despite his departure as dean of the Love School of Business, Raghu Tadepalli won’t be gone for long. He will return after a yearlong sabbatical in 2026 and work remotely as dean emeritus and special assistant to Elon University President Connie Book. According to the American Conference of Academic Deans, the average time spent as a dean at a university is 5 years or less, which makes Tadepalli a clear outlier after 13 years. Because of this, he said he hopes whoever fills his shoes knows the importance of growth.

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LIFESTYLE 12/2/24 9:51am

TikToker, Elon student known as judyhoppsl0vr69 releases debut single

By Sarah T. Moore

With over 2.1 million followers on TikTok, Elon University senior Nik Salah — also known as judyhoppsl0vr69 — expanded his digital presence by releasing original music. Salah’s TikTok page primarily features satirical comedy videos, often centered around the Zootopia character Judy Hopps. However, Salah began posting snippets of his songwriting over the summer. He released his debut single, “Midwest’s Best,” on Nov. 1, and it garnered over 165,000 streams in its first four days on Spotify. As of Nov. 29, the song has 366,290 streams and has been added to over 33,000 playlists on Spotify.

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NEWS 12/1/24 4:00pm

Elon’s Lights and Luminaries to focus on community, student traditions

By Neil Parmar

Ahead of the Festival of Lights and Luminaries, the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life is working with multiple groups on campus to ensure those on campus can see a reflection of who they are amongst the lights of the night. Hosted by Elon’s Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life, the Festival of Lights and Luminaries is set to take place Dec. 3. This event has been an Elon tradition for longer, but this will be its fourth year called Lights and Luminaries.

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SPORTS 11/30/24 12:55pm

New Eastern Alamance athletic director hopes to keep community connected

By Kathan Gandhi

Brad Costa, a former three-sport athlete from a small town near Buffalo, New York, always knew he wanted to pursue a career in sports. At first, he thought having a career in sports would be playing professional football. But after an underwhelming stint as his high school’s quarterback, he realized professional sports may not be feasible. Still, he wanted to keep the competition.  Eastern’s 15-year athletic director, John Kirby, decided to retire this spring. Costa was given the chance to fill his shoes.

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SPORTS 11/29/24 11:39am

Southeast Alamance High School athletic program continues to evolve in second year

By Benjamin Berfield

When Southeast Alamance High School opened in 2023, BJ Condron had been considering joining the athletic administration. He had coached women's basketball at Orange High School for 10 years, but started to have interest in the athletic department. Condron said he wanted to establish multiple principles after being named the athletic director. He listed one of his goals as forming a beneficial experience for all students playing sports. In doing so, Condron said it’s necessary to prioritize setting a culture around the sports program.

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SPORTS 11/28/24 1:51pm

Elon University punter has historic year amid return to Phoenix

By Miles Hayford

Many football teams look to their quarterback, running back, wide receiver or maybe a player on defense to be their star. Redshirt junior punter Jeff Yurk has been a bright spot for Elon in a position that often goes unnoticed and underappreciated. Yurk has had a great year so far with 20, 50+ yard punts, including a season-long of 72 yards. As of November, Yurk led the FCS in yards per punt with 48.9, which is on pace to break the FCS single-season average record. Yurk’s career average is also in the top 20 in FCS history.

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NEWS 11/27/24 3:25pm

Alamance County Behavioral Health center open for five months, plans for 24/7 expansion

By Madison Powers

The Alamance County Behavioral Health Center served 723 individuals last month, Donald Reuss, vice president of behavioral health and intellectual/developmental disability network operations at Vaya Health, said at a Nov. 18 Alamance County Board of Commissioners meeting. The center officially opened June 19 after a two-year-long collaboration between Vaya Health, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, RHA Health Services and other community partners, according to Reuss. He said conversations revealed a need to support the crisis system in Alamance County to divert people with mental health and substance abuse issues from jail.

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LIFESTYLE 11/27/24 11:38am

Man with a silver thumb: 91-year-old Elon alum crafts silverware creations

By Lilly Molina

With shaky hands, Bob Rice '61 opened one of the various tall, plastic storage cabinets in his garage. Some are labeled vintage spoons, forks and coins, but that’s not what he is looking for. He eventually finds a box labeled knives, which are perfect for making rings. Instead of relaxing in his retirement, Rice sells hand-made jewelry at The Main Line, an artisan goods shop located in downtown Graham. Over the past five years, Rice estimates that he’s made around $50,000 in profit from this side hustle.

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NEWS 11/26/24 3:44pm

Elon uses peer institution as a benchmark, has one mutual peer

By Avery Sloan

Elon has 15 peer institutions and 47 colleges and universities chose Elon as one of its peers, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics’ Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. Yet, none of Elon’s peers deemed Elon as one its peers, as of data from IPEDS for 2022-23. Many colleges and universities have not updated their peer institutions since then, with the exception of Furman University, where Elon is now one of its peers, according to its website. Elon selected its peers in 2022, Jason Husser, chair of Elon’s Long Range Planning Committee, said.

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SPORTS 11/26/24 11:48am

Elon University men’s basketball coach returns to alma mater, captures historic victory

By Miles Hayford

When Elon University men’s basketball head coach Billy Taylor arrived at Purcell Pavilion for the team’s Nov. 22 matchup against Notre Dame, he led the team through the back garage door — walking through the tunnel like all visiting teams do when they come to play the Fighting Irish. But as Taylor walked through the tunnel, he noticed his old locker room on his right — the locker room that had held his jersey, shoes and all the gear he needed for the four years he spent playing for the Irish in the 1990s.

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NEWS 11/25/24 4:41pm

North Carolina Student Legislature empowers students to shape state politics

By Gaby Maldonado

The North Carolina Student Legislature is a nonprofit organization that gives students firsthand experience of the legislative process at Elon University. Through debates, students enhance their public speaking skills and work on real-world policy ideas. Junior Eva Farmer, who serves as the vice president of Elon’s NCSL, explained that members bring resolutions to meetings — written proposals for new laws or changes to existing ones — sparking debates among the group.  Every Monday, NCSL holds meetings where members propose resolutions on various topics, ranging from education to abortion and other pressing issues. 

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SPORTS 11/24/24 7:17pm

Women’s basketball player looks to build off successful freshman campaign

By John Houlahan

Within team environments, there has to be a leader to step up to the task. Sophomore Maraja Pass said she hopes to step up to the role this season. Pass, coming off of an extremely strong freshman season, found herself on the Coastal Athletic Association All-Rookie team. She also earned three CAA Rookie of the Week honors. The 5-foot-4 guard averaged 8.6 points per game, along with 4.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists across 30 games played. She led all CAA freshmen in assists. She found her career high in points in a game against Marshall last December where she notched 21 points for the Phoenix.

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SPORTS 11/24/24 2:50pm

Senior forward for Elon women’s basketball transfers experience to team’s younger players

By Benjamin Berfield

With the 2024-25 collegiate season underway for the Elon University women’s basketball team, senior forward Iycez Adams represents the only senior on the team. Adams is in her second year with the Phoenix having transferred from East Carolina University at the end of her sophomore year. Last year, Adams started in all 27 games played. She made an immediate impact leading the Phoenix in points per game with 10.3 and rebounds per game with 7. Adams enters her senior year with five first-year players on the roster and said she embraces the opportunity to provide veteran experience to the team.

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SPORTS 11/24/24 12:47am

Elon University men’s basketball captures historic win over Notre Dame

By Miles Hayford

The Elon University men’s basketball team captured a historic victory by beating Notre Dame 84-77 on Nov. 22 for the program’s first Power Four win since 2012. It was a monumental victory for the men’s basketball program as it was their first ever win over Notre Dame and their first win over an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent since 2005. The win was also significant for head coach Billy Taylor, as it was his biggest win in his time at Elon so far and was his first win over his alma mater after playing and coaching at Notre Dame in the 1990s.

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SPORTS 11/23/24 2:38pm

Women’s basketball duo returns to court after season-ending injuries

By Monika Jurevicius

Elon women’s basketball guards Kamryn Doty and Raven Preston sat on the Elon bench for a full season, recovering from injury. They watched their teammates score 3-pointers, run across the court and imagined the day they could come back to contribute to the team. After a season of healing, the time for a comeback is here. They return to the basketball court after both suffering season-ending injuries last year and wish to keep the specifics of those injuries private. The experience has helped them grow as a power duo as they prepared to come back to play this women’s basketball season.

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SPORTS 11/23/24 10:07am

From tall to taller: Elon University men’s basketball towering duo prepares for season

By Miles Hayford

Reinforcements have arrived in the frontcourt for senior forward Sam Sherry. After being the primary big man for the Elon men’s basketball team the last couple of years, Sherry is ready to share the load this year with transfer Matthew Van Komen, who at 7-foot-four, is the third tallest player in the NCAA right now. Sherry, who stands at 6-foot-11, and Van Komen form a towering duo in the paint that will certainly have an intimidation factor. Van Komen joined Sherry to bolster the team’s interior defense and prowess on the glass, relieving Sherry of the sole responsibility of Elon’s control of the paint.

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SPORTS 11/22/24 4:26pm

Additions from transfer portal provide spark to Elon University men’s basketball

By Miles Hayford

From 2021 to 2023, the amount of NCAA athletes entering the transfer portal increased from 6,749 to 8,767. Since the creation of the transfer portal in 2018, the college sports scene has rapidly changed with teams’ use of transfers dictating their success and failures. Despite losing star guard Max Mackinnon to the transfer portal this past offseason, Elon men’s basketball has a bright season ahead thanks to an impressive cast of four transfer acquisitions. The 2024 signing class includes redshirt sophomore Andrew King, junior Jameel Rideout, sophomore TJ Simpkins and graduate student Matthew Van Komen.

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NEWS 11/22/24 1:14pm

Split ticket voting increases across the country

By Erin Martin

Split-ticket voting occurs when an individual chooses candidates from different political parties for different races on the same ballot. In the 2024 election, North Carolina upheld its tradition of split-ticket voting, where North Carolina voted for a Republican president and a Democratic governor. Steven Greene, a professor of political science at North Carolina State University, sat down with Elon News Network to discuss the revival of split-ticket voting in the 2024 elections. From North Carolina's history of divided voting for president and governor to the potential influence of independent voters, Greene provides insights into how this electoral behavior shaped outcomes at both state and national levels.

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NEWS 11/21/24 8:58pm

Transgender Day of Remembrance and Resilience prompts reflection

By Katharyn MacDonald

Beaten. Stabbed. Shot. Suicide. Run over by car. These words seemed out of place next to the names, ages, photos and heartfelt stories of the 67 transgender and genderqueer people memorialized in Numen Lumen. Elon students, staff and community members honored National Transgender Day of Remembrance with a Remembrance and Resilience ceremony, during which people could read stories and see faces of those whose lives have been lost to transphobic violence or suicide in 2024 so far.  Transgender Day of Remembrance was first established in 1999 on the last day of Transgender Awareness Week in memoriam of Rita Hester, a trans woman who was killed in Massachusetts.

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SPORTS 11/21/24 11:51am

Elon University women’s basketball enters season with high expectations, healthy roster

By Miles Hayford

If the Elon women’s basketball team’s 9-21 and 11-21 records over the past two seasons taught them anything, it would be resiliency, according to head coach Charlotte Smith. It’s been a tough couple of years as the Phoenix only won eight home games over the last two seasons. Last season was marred by the season-long injuries of two of the team’s brightest stars: redshirt sophomore Raven Preston and redshirt junior Kamryn Doty. Smith said the absence of Doty and Preston taught the team some valuable things.

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