Hurricane Florence Coverage

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NEWS 5/1/24 1:43pm

Elon’s Speakers’ Corner finds another voice

By Fiona McAllister

Elon sophomore Noelle Vaught said she finds students at Elon University are “politically sleepwalking.” On April 25, Vaught stood at the Speakers’ Corner holding an upside down American flag with the words “there is no flag large enough to cover up the shame of killing innocent people” written on it. Vaught also said she feels Elon is very “cloistered,” or secluded from the rest of the world. Vaught said her second reason is that she is opposed to the United States’ involvement in the Israel-Hamas War.

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NEWS 5/1/24 9:23am

Elon junior dies of brain cancer

By Avery Sloan and Ryan Kupperman

Elon junior Talia Malinsky died around 5 p.m. on April 29 at the age of 21 surrounded by family. Her mother Irit Malinsky said she died from a recurrence of brain cancer. She has been on leave from Elon since last spring. The family is currently raising money to transport and bury Talia in Jerusalem. As of May 1, they were able to raise upward of $17,000 and will be leaving tonight for Israel. Talia, raised in an Israeli family, wanted to move to Israel after graduating from Elon, according to her dad Mark Malinsky.

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NEWS 4/30/24 10:49pm

Chapel Hill pro-Palestinian camp continues amid arrests, counter protests, pepper spray

By Joseph Navin

For a total of five full days, students at UNC Chapel Hill hosted on-campus encampments to protest the Israel-Hamas war and connections to the Israeli government. The initial camp, which ran from April 26 to 30, was organized by the “Students for Justice in Palestine at the University of North Carolina." This protest remained mostly peaceful and is not to be mistaken with the protest against the administration's response, which took place later in the day on April 30. This led to more arrests, counter protests and physical aggression — as well as UNC Chapel Hill canceling classes for the day.

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NEWS 4/30/24 9:12am

Elon University increases amount of fellows for 2024-25 academic year

By Reagan Sizemore

Next year, Elon University will add 100 spots to its various fellows programs — raising cohort sizes. Elon will accept over 300 fellows across eight programs for the 2024-25 academic year. The Business Fellows program will accept around 60 new fellows, compared to the 52 for the class of 2027 and 40 for the class of 2026. The increase is leaving current fellows worried about what it means for the programs. Kate Rohan, a sophomore in the business fellows program, is concerned about the problems that she feels will come with the larger incoming class cohort.

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NEWS 4/29/24 9:36pm

Elon Town Council discusses fire inspectors, changes to fire lanes

By Miles Hayford

The Elon Town Council met on April 29 and focused on changes to the fire department and new policies the department will be enforcing. Previously, inspections were done by county inspectors at no cost. However, Elon is implementing a new method to directly hire inspectors. The council discussed how this change would force Elon citizens who own businesses to now need to pay for fire inspections out of their own pockets. Town of Elon Fire Chief Landon Massey said the town will be implementing a tiered system of charging inspections, which is currently being utilized by Durham’s fire departments. 

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NEWS 4/29/24 5:33pm

Campus police confirm no fire on, near campus

By Ryan Kupperman

Following several reports of smoke in the air and a potential fire near campus, Elon Chief of Campus Safety and Police Joe LeMire issued an E-Alert stating there is no fire danger near Elon University. According to the statement, a control burn is taking place in another county and a shift in wind has begun to blow smoke toward the Alamance County area. LeMire stated the smoke will dissipate over time, and it may be helpful to close vents or windows to reduce smoke smell. LeMire closed the alert with cautioning those who have difficulty breathing to remain inside while the smoke dissipates.

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LIFESTYLE 4/29/24 4:04pm

Elon, Eastlawn elementary school gardens act as outdoor classrooms

By Charlotte Pfabe

Tucked behind Elon and Eastlawn Elementary are over 20 plant beds growing fruits and vegetables. In the gardens, the crops are ready for the peak spring season. Created and maintained entirely by volunteers, many Elon University students are involved in the efforts that go into taking care of the space. Both gardens work with the North Carolina School Garden Network, which connects schools from across the state with resources to build their own gardens. Elon Professor Scott Morrison is a founding member of the network and sees the gardens as extensions of the classroom.

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NEWS 4/29/24 1:17pm

Entrepreneurship group pitches digital Phoenix Cards

By Michael Leung

Freshman Ethan Shapiro, junior Brody Hender and sophomore Caitlin Price decided to pitch to their Entrepreneurship class the idea of turning Phoenix Cards digital. The cards would be held in the digital wallet of phones but would retain their functionality. While the project is only for class, the group hopes to pitch the idea to Elon University and possibly digitalize Phoenix Cards. Shapiro said he and his group got the idea from the concept of digital credit cards and would function in the same manner. Phoenix Cards allow students access to phoenix cash, meal plans, dorms and other services.

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SPORTS 4/28/24 2:37pm

Game, set, match: Elon University men’s tennis coach retires after 20 years, leaves behind lasting legacy

By Miles Hayford

Elon University Men’s Tennis Coach Michael Leonard will retire after 20 years of coaching at Elon following the 2024 season. Leonard is the winningest coach in Elon men's tennis history with a record of 295-173 over his 20-year career. He is a seven-time conference Coach of the Year and led Elon to six regular season championships. With a win on April 20 in the semifinals of the 2024 CAA Men’s Tennis Championship, Leonard reached the significant milestone of 300 career wins. Under Leonard's mentorship, the program had 74 all-conference selections, six conference Players of the Year and six conference Rookies of the Year.

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OPINIONS 4/27/24 5:45pm

OPINION: Elon University alienates itself from the South

By Alex Nettles

You rarely hear a southern accent around the Moseley Student Center or Alamance Building. If a drawl echoes, it’s usually a campus employee. Each time there is an accent, I think of growing up in the South and feel that mix of dread and nostalgia. Time in the South gets you acquainted with those two feelings. The South is both a good memory and a bad one. Once I heard a friend say, “I know about the South, I go to Elon.” As a South Carolinian, that phrase struck me as a little strange. I crunched some numbers.

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OPINIONS 4/27/24 5:44pm

OPINION: We close our eyes

By Syd Danziger

I am looking. I am looking for liberated people. I look and look and I find no one. It is Passover. Pesach. A holiday formed to commemorate liberation from oppression. It is with a scarred and sad and heavy, no, leaden heart, that I watch people who are MY people commit massacre upon massacre unchecked and then JUSTIFY it. All during the holiday of Pesach. A time to acknowledge those who are not yet free. And a time to free them. At my home Passover Seder, we used to remind ourselves that no one is free until we all are.

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NEWS 4/26/24 2:21pm

ENN: Exclusive Interview with Ginna Claire Mason

By Mason Willett

Elon News Network sat down with the class of 2024 commencement speaker Ginna Claire Mason ‘13 ahead of the 2024 graduation ceremony. Mason toured all around campus and saw all the changes that have been made since her time as an undergraduate at Elon University. Mason spoke about her experiences at Elon, from mentorship from her professors to having many opportunities on campus, and said she is grateful for the chance to come back.

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NEWS 4/26/24 1:28pm

Elon Dining celebrates Earth Week with Earth Festival

By Ruth Cruz

Elon University Dining Hall celebrated Earth Week with its annual Earth Festival to highlight important aspects of the environment. The community came together for an afternoon of fun and dining services collaborated with local vendors and student organizations. Elon students had the opportunity to enjoy live music, local food and pet farm animals. The Earth Festival took place on Medallion Plaza on April 25. The event also featured environmental education and entertainment to inform Elon students about the Earth. Tables were set up with information on how to manage students’ ecological footprint and minimize resource consumption.

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NEWS 4/26/24 9:48am

Elon seniors launch STEM Outreach program for ABSS high schoolers

By Liya Rike

Elon University seniors Samuel Ramirez, president of the Biology club, and Chris D'Inzeo, president of the American Chemical Society Club, led an outreach program aimed at inspiring local Alamance-Burlington School System high school students. The initiative was funded by Elon’s Student Government Association and Elon Innovation Fund. This resulted in 41 undergraduate volunteers and faculty. The program exposes ABSS high schoolers to STEM fields to spark interest and potential career paths. Offered on Saturday, April 20, the free event included transportation and meals to ensure accessibility for all participants. They’re hoping it becomes a once-a-semester event called “Stem Saturday.”

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NEWS 4/25/24 4:06pm

SGA aims to increase student awareness under Cote Administration

By Nia Bedard

After 20.4% of the student body voted in the 2024-25 student body elections — compared to the 29.9% that voted in the 2023-24 elections — junior Ella Kucera, vice president of communications, said she hopes to increase awareness of the function of Elon University’s Student Government Association. With the decrease in voter turnout for this past election, members of SGA, both current and former, said they hope they can increase voter turnout in future elections by educating the student body about what student government does and making itself more present on campus.

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LIFESTYLE 4/25/24 12:37pm

Elon Performing Arts presents “Myths and Hymns” for spring musical

By Nia Bedard

After learning “Myths and Hymns” would be the spring musical, Elon professor and director Alexandra Joye Warren knew she would have to add some sort of story into the song cycle. Song cycles are a group of individually complete songs designed to be performed in a sequence without having an overarching narrative. “Myths and Hymns” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. on April 26, at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on April 27 and at 2 p.m. on April 28 in Roberts Studio Theatre in Scott Studios. Tickets are $15 at the door or free with an Elon ID.

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LIFESTYLE 4/25/24 10:56am

Elon University students reimagine classic fairytale in original musical

By Sarah T. Moore

A kickline, a love song, a villain monologue and a cardboard cutout of Mark Sloan from Grey’s Anatomy — these were all elements in “Sleeping Beauty,” a student-written reimagining of the classic fairy tale. NewWorks, a student organization that produces original student works, hosted three showings of a workshop production. “Sleeping Beauty” was the first musical NewWorks has produced, written by Elon senior and acting major Graham Cole. The workshop production took place in the Center for the Arts Isabella Cannon Room with a full run of the first act and a short collection of scenes and songs from act two.

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NEWS 4/25/24 10:27am

Elon continues DEI commitments despite national backlash

By Lilly Molina

After a recent national trend of defunding Diversity, Education and Inclusion efforts, Naeemah Clark, associate provost for Academic Inclusive Excellence, wants to ensure Elon’s DEI efforts remain strong. Clark specifically said she is frustrated with institutions such as the University of Florida which are now defunding or taking away DEI departments or initiatives entirely. Last week the UNC Board of Governors Committee voted unanimously to strip away its DEI policies. Some people fear learning about DEI will further the “divide” of this idea of the oppressed v. the oppressor, but when students embrace DEI they can feel empowered, Clark said.

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NEWS 4/24/24 10:49pm

2024 Earth Week keynote speaker offers advice on coping with climate anxiety

By Lilly Molina

Britt Wray, author of “Generation Dread: Finding Purpose in the Age of Climate Anxiety,” spoke to Elon University on April 24 as the 2024 keynote speaker for Earth week. Wray began by linking the idea that major fossil fuel companies, powerful lawyers and lobbyists choose to ignore damages inflicted by businesses. These efforts, according to Wray, have hindered people from taking action to stop them — which Wray deemed a global crime scene. She said by 2070, an estimated 19% of the planet will be inhabitable due to increases in global warming.

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NEWS 4/24/24 3:34pm

Office of sustainability hosts events across campus

By Avery Sloan

Elon’s office of sustainability plans events throughout the year in collaboration with other student organizations, according to Kelly Harer, associate director of sustainability for education and outreach. Elon is focusing on improving sustainability efforts specifically waste reduction. A system Elon uses to measure its sustainability efforts is the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System. Based on data from Elon’s submission Feb. 11, 2022, which is valid until March 16, 2025, Elon received a silver rating, earning 59.12 points out of 100. The points are broken down in different categories across academics, engagement, operations, planning and administration and innovation and leadership.

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