Hurricane Florence Coverage

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NEWS 11/6/25 11:38pm

Elon University President, Vice President of Student Life answer SGA questions

By Fiona McAllister

Elon University President Connie Book and the Vice President of Student Life Jon Dooley answered a multitude of questions from Elon’s Student Government Association about general university inquiries. On top of SGA’s questions, Book answered additional questions from Elon News Network about the Roberts Academy. Book did say that Elon University is not paying for any of the academy’s expenses. “If you're talking about cash, we're not doing cash,” Book said in an interview with Elon News Network. “We're definitely giving leadership time and the faculty time to help partner to get this set up. So, from a strategic effort, the university is participating in that.”

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NEWS 11/6/25 3:02pm

Elon University announces establishment of private school for children with dyslexia

By Charlotte Pfabe and Anjolina Fantaroni

Elon University President Connie Book announced that Elon will welcome the Roberts Academy at Elon University to campus in fall 2026. The Roberts Academy will be a private school for children with dyslexia. It will be the first private school in North Carolina located on a university campus and dedicated to serving students with dyslexia. The Roberts Academy will open in a temporary location on West Trollinger Avenue, enrolling children in third and fourth grades. A new facility on East Haggard Avenue is set to open in fall 2028, expanding enrollment to include students in first through sixth grades. 

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NEWS 11/6/25 2:17pm

Mental Health First Aid training aims to build compassion, awareness at Elon

By Lily Mosbacher

As new research from Boston University’s Healthy Minds Study shows signs of improvement in college student mental health, with rates of severe depression and suicidal ideation dropping in the past year, universities like Elon University are continuing to expand their efforts to promote student well-being. At Elon, students and staff can participate in Mental Health First Aid training, a program offered through the National Council on Mental Wellbeing. The course teaches participants how to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges among peers and colleagues.

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NEWS 11/6/25 9:45am

Q&A: SGA vice president of finance prepares for quarter 3 funding

By Fiona McAllister

As Elon’s Student Government Association’s quarter three funding requests are due 11:59 p.m. Nov. 7, SGA’s Vice President of Finance Ian Brecker said student organizations getting their budget requests in earlier will help both himself and SGA’s finance board when it comes to making decisions. "We try to say, get them in early, and I’ll be more than happy to review it. And you can even, I even offer this to everyone, any org., any exec. member, to come to our office hours, my office hours and I could walk through with you, 'Is this descriptive enough? Is this good enough?'” Brecker said.

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SPORTS 11/5/25 11:26pm

Transfer additions guide Elon men’s basketball to dominant opening victory

By Benjamin Berfield

The newest transfer additions for the Elon University men’s basketball team wasted no time making an impact in their debuts for the Phoenix. Sophomore guard Bryson Cokley, graduate student guard Ja’Juan Carr and junior guard Randall Pettus II, Elon won its season opener 99-51 against Belmont Abbey College. Head coach Billy Taylor said he views the transfer portal as a great opportunity to grant players the chance to impact the game in different ways. “The hard part about the transfer portal is you lose really good kids that you recruit but it also presents opportunities for new young people,” Taylor said. 

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NEWS 11/5/25 1:47pm

El Concejo Municipal de Burlington nombra a un nuevo administrador de la ciudad

By Alannah Klingsporn

El Ayuntamiento de Burlington nombró a Bob Patterson como nuevo administrador municipal, tras la jubilación del anterior administrador, Craig Honeycutt. Según la página web del Ayuntamiento de Burlington, el puesto de administrador municipal es de designación y supervisa las operaciones diarias de la ciudad y todos los departamentos municipales, implementa las políticas del Ayuntamiento y mantiene a este informado sobre las finanzas y los asuntos de la ciudad. "Nuestros objetivos a corto plazo son mantener la plantilla, salarios competitivos, garantizar que contamos con empleados cualificados para seguir ofreciendo un excelente servicio a nuestros ciudadanos en todos los departamentos y, además, proporcionar el mejor uso posible de sus impuestos", declaró Patterson.

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NEWS 11/5/25 1:42pm

Burlington City Council appoints new city manager

By Alannah Klingsporn

Burlington City Council appointed Bob Patterson as the new city manager, as former City Manager Craig Honeycutt retired. The Burlington City Manager is an appointed position that oversees daily city operations and all municipal departments, implements council policies, and keeps the council informed on the city’s finances and affairs, according to the City of Burlington’s website. “Near-term goals are to maintain our staffing levels, competitive wages, make sure we have good quality employees to provide that continued excellent service to our citizens across all of our departments, and also provide the best value for our citizens’ tax dollars,” Patterson said.

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NEWS 11/5/25 12:20am

Alamance County Democratic Party hosts watch party on Election Day

By Trista Panagakos

As polls closed at 7:30 p.m. on election day, candidates, supporters and family members gathered at the Alamance County Democratic Party watch party awaiting results of the 2025 municipal election. Supporters filled Alkimia Mexican Bar and Grill in downtown Burlington to wait for the results to come in. Burlington mayoral candidate Beth Kennett had supporters and family members join her with many wearing sweatshirts and t-shirts from her campaign. “We’ve done all the things, shown up at places in the community,” Kennett said. “If hard work wins an election, we got this, if money, the influence of money wins, we’ve done the work.”

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NEWS 11/4/25 11:47pm

Gibsonville Board of Aldermen member elected as mayor

By Miles Hayford

Bryant Crisp, Gibsonville board of aldermen member, has been elected as mayor of Gibsonville, with 599 votes. The other mayoral candidate, Darian Smith, only received 94 votes, which is fewer than the write-in candidates. Crisp said that it was a tough race but that he was happy with the result. “I believe in doing it the right way, just hard work, hitting every neighborhood, knocking on every door, and we were successful,” Crisp said. “I’m ecstatic right now and just happy to get back to work.”

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NEWS 11/4/25 11:44pm

Burlington elects first female mayor

By Miles Hayford

Newcomer Beth Kennett has won her bid for election in the Burlington mayoral race becoming the first female mayor of Burlington. She earned 4,237 votes, compared to Ronnie Wall’s 3,640. Former Burlington Mayor Ian Baltutis was one of two candidates elected to city council, earning 4,099 votes. Former chief of police in Burlington Jeffery Smythe was also elected with 3,687 votes. Incumbent Harold Owen received the least amount of votes among the four candidates.

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NEWS 11/4/25 11:22pm

Haw River town council candidates elected unopposed

By Miles Hayford

Incumbent Shawn Riggan will rejoin the Haw River Town Council along with newcomer Debbie Brown, who was also elected to the council on Nov. 4. Brown won 57.75% of the vote and Riggan trailed with 41.55% of the vote. Riggan and Brown did not respond to Elon News Network’s immediate request for comment. 

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NEWS 11/4/25 11:16pm

Three incumbents rejoin Mebane Town Council

By Anjolina Fantaroni

Incumbents Montreena Hadley, Tim Bradley and Jonathan White will rejoin the Mebane Town Council following municipal elections on Nov. 4. Hadley received the most votes with 33.27% to reclaim her seat on the council. Hadley said she is looking forward to the next four years. “Continuing the work that I've started with the community, and making my community proud of me, making sure that the citizens of Mebane and all citizens of Mebane have a voice,” Hadley said.

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NEWS 11/4/25 10:55pm

Ossipee Town Council incumbents reelected

By Nia Bedard and Miles Hayford

Incumbents Jim McAdams and Richard Overman were reelected to Ossipee Town Council on Nov. 4. Overman received 14 votes and McAdams won 16 votes. Overman did not respond to Elon News Network’s request for comment. McAdams declined Elon News Network’s request for comment. 

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NEWS 11/4/25 10:40pm

Two incumbents rejoin Green Level Town Council

By Anjolina Fantaroni

Following municipal elections on Nov. 4, incumbents Patricia Jones and Jose McBroom will rejoin the Green Level Town Council. Jones received 33.61% of the votes to re-secure her seat, while McBroom received 29.51% to re-secure his.  Newcomers Lesley Sanders-Carter and Theodore Howard fell more than 10% short of securing a seat. Jones said she is excited for her next term. “I'm looking forward to the next four years of love, spreading more love around our town, more growth, and trying to bring new business to the town of Green Level,” Jones said.

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NEWS 11/4/25 10:18pm

Newcomer candidate wins over 56% of vote in Graham mayoral race

By Miles Hayford

Newcomer Chelsea Dickey defeated incumbent Jennifer Talley in Graham’s mayoral race, winning 56.77% of the vote. Dickey’s campaign manager Hadden LaGarde said Dickey is happy about the results and ready to get the ground running in a statement to Elon News Network. “We were cautiously optimistic during early voting and cautiously optimistic today,” LaGarde said. She said people should expect a statement from Dickey on Nov. 5. Incumbent Bobby Chin was reelected to his seat on the city council, along with newcomer Jim Young. Young won 25.68% of the vote and Chin won 26.92%.

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NEWS 11/4/25 10:08pm

Newcomer candidate secures most votes in Swepsonville Town Council election

By Nia Bedard

Following the Nov. 4 municipal elections, Lee Walls, John Andrews and Henry Carrouth will fill the open seats on the Swepsonville Town Council. First-time candidate Lee Walls secured 27.47% of the vote, the most out of any candidate for the Swepsonville race. Incumbent John Andrews followed close behind with 26.74% of the vote and former mayor Henry Carrouth received 25.64%. “There were some things that we had started on the council and that I really wanted to have an opportunity to be a part of finishing up,” Carrouth said.

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NEWS 11/4/25 9:53pm

Newcomer secures most votes in Elon Town Council race

By Miles Hayford

Current Town of Elon Mayor Emily Sharpe won her unopposed bid for reelection, winning 98.18% of the vote. Newcomer Steve Exum and incumbent Randy Orwig were elected to the town council. Exum received the most votes out of the three town council candidates, receiving 39.81% of the vote. One of Exum’s main focuses of his candidacy was increasing the town’s usage of sustainable practices, including more solar panels and electric vehicles. Orwig said that he was glad to hear the news of his win. “I’m happy I can continue the work that we’ve been doing,” Orwig said. “I feel good about that.” 

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NEWS 11/4/25 9:40pm

Village of Alamance Board of Aldermen incumbent secures win by four votes

By Miles Hayford

Incumbent Don Tichy has been reelected as mayor of the Village of Alamance following municipal elections on Nov. 4. Tichy received 54.98% of the vote to secure reelection. He ran unopposed but write-in candidates secured 45.02% of the vote. Incumbents Gayle Andrews and Dale Hunt, along with newcomer Ken Cass, were elected to the board of aldermen. Hunt won by four vote with a total of 137 votes, compared to incumbent Philip Cheap’s 133 votes.

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NEWS 11/4/25 8:46am

Election Day 2025: municipal elections in Elon and across Alamance County

By Elon News Network

Polls across Alamance County opened at 6:30 a.m. Nov. 4 for municipal elections. Ten elections will be held in Alamance County for mayoral, city council and aldermen positions, across Elon, Burlington, Gibsonville, Graham, Green Level, Haw River, Mebane, Ossipee, Swepsonville and the Village of Alamance. Forty-two candidates are running for positions across the county, with 27 positions up for grabs. Early voting for municipal elections kicked off on Oct. 16 with 3,251 ballots turned in between Oct. 16 and Nov. 1. Polls will be opened until 7:30 p.m.

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LIFESTYLE 11/3/25 3:57pm

Waves of Puppetry: Paperhand Puppet Project spreads environmental awareness to North Carolina

By Anne Thyfault

Paperhand Puppet Project took over the Forest Theatre to present their annual show throughout August and September 2025. The show this year, “The Gift,” highlights stories surrounding water, its power and the importance of preservation, told through North Carolina water protectors and activists. This year marks the 25th anniversary of Paperhand Puppet Project’s production. The organization, recently turned nonprofit, officially began when Donovan Zimmerman met co-founder Jan Burger in 1998, starting the process of curating Paperhand Puppet Project into the production it has become today. Paperhand Puppet Project is set to continue and close out their production of “The Gift” in Asheville from November 7-9.

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