News

---

NEWS 10/4/24 4:00pm

North Carolina small towns rebuild after Hurricane Helene

By Monika Jurevicius

Fairview, North Carolina, residents Cory Weller ’20 and Shelby Sizemore were not concerned about Hurricane Helene when they got notice of a flash flood warning for their town. They didn’t fill their car with gas. They moved their basement furniture and prepped their sand bags like they usually do for storms. Hurricane Helene made landfall on the Florida Gulf coast on Sept. 26 and impacted the Southern Appalachian region the most. The Category 4 hurricane has raised the death toll to 72 in Buncombe County, where Asheville and Fairview are located, since Oct. 3.

---

NEWS 10/3/24 2:31pm

Hurricane Helene leaves mark on Western North Carolina, recovery efforts underway

By Anjolina Fantaroni

Western North Carolina is picking up its pieces following the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which swept through the region in a 500-mile-wide path Sept. 27. The Category 4 hurricane left over 292,000 people without power and caused severe property damage. According to the Associated Press, the death toll has reached 200. Asheville, Boone, Canton, Lake Lure, and Rutherford Counties experienced extreme flooding from the French Broad River — with water levels rising over 20 feet. The flooding caused water to run through many buildings, including Asheville Community Movement Gymnastics. Co-owner Rebecca Hall said that the flooding lifted up the flooring of the gymnasium.

---

NEWS 10/2/24 10:05pm

Elon’s Chinese Club to host karaoke, game night

By Megan Walsh

Karaoke, traditional games and unique snacks — all things students can expect from the Chinese Club’s karaoke and game night. Elon University’s Chinese Club will host its karaoke and game night from 9:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Oct. 4 in the Center for Race, Ethnicity and Diversity Education located upstairs in the Moseley Center. This is the third year the Chinese Club has hosted the event. The club’s vice president of communications senior Bryn Hall said after the event,  Chinese club has many other events planned for the semester.

---

NEWS 10/2/24 9:14pm

Elon Jewish community prepares to celebrate Rosh Hashana 1 year after Hamas attack

By Alice Morrissey

Now almost one year after the start of the Israel-Hamas war, Rabbi Mendy Minkowitz — director of Elon Chabad — said he was initially concerned students would not want to participate in celebrating Rosh Hashana this year. But instead, Minkowitz said he noticed "a renaissance in Jewish pride" throughout the Elon community. Rosh Hashana is the celebration of the Jewish new year. This year, Rosh Hashana falls from Oct. 2 to 4. Throughout the rest of this week, Elon's Truitt has partnered with Elon Chabad and Hillel groups to host several events for students.

---

NEWS 10/1/24 11:22pm

Elon Votes hosts vice presidential debate watch party in Moseley Student Center

By Trista Panagakos

Elon Votes hosted a watch party for the vice presidential debate between Sen. JD Vance and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Oct. 1 in Moseley Student Center. Director of Outreach for Elon Votes and senior Allison Durand said she believes the organization can help to create a community on campus by providing a place for students to gather and talk about issues involving the election. Student turnout was only about half of the presidential debate watch party at around 50 — with many leaving before the end of the debate.

---

NEWS 10/1/24 10:51pm

Elon alumna returns to campus to discuss career in politics

By Nia Bedard

Elon University alumna Austin Moore ’22 returned to campus Oct. 1 as a part of the speaker series titled “Alumni Voices: Conversations with Political Insiders on the 2024 Elections.” The speaker series was organized by professor of political science Jill Auditori and professor of journalism Israel Balderas as a way to inform students about the upcoming 2024 elections. The first speaker in the series, Moore graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science and international and global studies. She currently works as the deputy field director for Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s campaign and decided to return to be a resource for current students.

---

NEWS 9/30/24 12:22pm

2024 Elon University security, fire safety report shows increase in substance violations

By Nia Bedard

Over 100 more liquor law violations were referred for disciplinary action than the year before, according to Elon University's 2024 security and fire safety report. This report details reported crimes that occurred on campus and within buildings owned by Elon, and pulls from data from 2023. As part of the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990, institutions that participate in student financial aid programs under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 are required to disclose campus crime statistics and security information.

---

NEWS 9/28/24 6:11pm

Happiness expert shares ‘tricks’ for college success at Elon's Fall Convocation

By Cassie Weymouth

Arthur Brooks, social scientist, bestselling author and columnist for The Atlantic, spoke at Elon’s 2024 Fall Convocation on Sept. 27. Brooks is the author of 13 books as well as a professor at Harvard where he teaches courses on leadership and happiness. Prior to convocation he spoke to Elon News Network about the key to setting yourself up for happiness and success during college. Brooks opened convocation by speaking about expectations that college students have about happiness.

---

NEWS 9/28/24 3:16pm

Elon anatomy lab opens space for Family Weekend

By Avery Sloan

This year is the second year the program had permission from Elon to invite families to see the students’ work in the lab over Family Weekend. During the open house Sept. 28, parents could come by the lab and see a human brain, spinal cord and heart; tools for dissections; and models of bones and parts of the body. The human brain on display was one students had used in a craniotomy a couple of weeks ago, removing the brain from a donor. Elon’s anatomy lab uses human donors, through Elon’s Anatomical Gift Program, allowing students and professors to study human bodies after death.

---

NEWS 9/27/24 4:51pm

Fallen tree closes entrance to campus off O’Kelly Avenue

By Nia Bedard and Monika Jurevicius

The O’Kelly Avenue entrance to the university, also leading to the Inn at Elon, has been closed due to a fallen tree. A campus security car has been damaged, according to Elon Campus Security Police Chief Joe LeMire. There are no reported injuries. At 3:52 p.m., an E-Alert announced that the entrance was blocked and to avoid the area. The tree fell to the left of the Inn at Elon. Rain and wind damage from Hurricane Helene is a possible cause for the tree’s fall. At 5 p.m., an E-Alert announced the road to O’Kelly Avenue was reopened.

---

NEWS 9/27/24 4:45pm

Elon’s Fall Convocation speaker speaks on finding happiness

By Abigail Hobbs

Arthur C. Brooks is speaking at Fall Convocation at 3 p.m. Sept. 27 in Alumni Gym. Brooks is the Parker Gilbert Montgomery professor of the practice of public and nonprofit leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School and professor of management practice at Harvard Business School. Brooks writes The Atlantic column “How to Build a Life” and has written 13 books including the 2023 #1 New York Times bestseller “Build the Life You Want: The Art and Science of Getting Happier ” with co-author Oprah Winfrey, and the 2022 #1 New York Times bestseller “From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life.”

---

NEWS 9/27/24 1:16pm

Photo gallery: Rain sweeps Elon to kick off Family Weekend 2024

By Elon News Network

The start of Elon University’s 2024 Family Weekend was met with heavy rains the morning of Sept. 27 as Hurricane Helene continues to send gusts of wind as high as 33 mph — with chances of thunderstorms hitting the Elon area after 2 p.m., according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A wind advisory and flood watch are in effect until 6 p.m. Elon’s Director of Facilities Management declined to comment on the university’s plans in the event of power outages or flooding. The Town of Elon’s Director of Public Works did not respond to Elon News Network’s immediate request for comment.

---

NEWS 9/26/24 9:19am

New HealthEU center features new amenities

By Megan Walsh

The new Health EU building will be constructed in the field near the Innovation Quad and is set to open in 2026. HealthEU Director Anu Räisänen said groundbreaking will hopefully occur late this year or early 2025, as soon as the final details of architecture renderings are completed. The new HealthEU building will be the second largest building on campus below Schar Center at 135,000 square feet. Fundraising goals for the building aim to be around $25 million, surpassing the $20 million needed to build the Schar Center — making it the most expensive building on campus. 

---

NEWS 9/25/24 8:46am

2024 Family Weekend events calendar

By Elon News Network

Elon University is hosting its annual Family Weekend celebrations from Sept. 27 to 29, bringing parents and siblings to campus to reunite with their students. Elon departments and organizations such as Parent Engagement and Student Union Board are involved in planning for this year. SUB Vice President of Events and junior Josh Tobin declined Elon News Network's request for interview, but sent a statement to Elon News Network stating SUB is approaching family weekend event planning differently this year. Here is a comprehensive calendar of all family weekend events.

---

NEWS 9/24/24 8:26pm

Pulitzer Fellows to arrive on campus, discuss global deforestation issues

By Audrey Geib

In New York, 4,000 miles north of the Amazon, Andrew Lehren, a Pulitzer Prize and Emmy-winning journalist for the New York Times and NBC News Investigations, wanted to find a new way to connect U.S. readers to global deforestation issues. As part of Elon’s partnership with the Pulitzer Campus Consortium, Pulitzer Rainforest Investigations Network Fellows Lehren and Wenzel will visit campus from Sept. 24 to 26 to discuss the impact of investigative journalism. On Sept. 25, they will participate in a discussion panel at 5 p.m. in the Jane and Brian Williams Studio in the McEwen Communications Building.

---

NEWS 9/24/24 3:02pm

Elon University explores integration of AI in classroom

By Cassie Weymouth

AI has become a topic of debate on college campuses, from professors encouraging and designing projects around the use of AI to others banning it from their classroom. Some classes, such as COM 3340: Politics and Mass Media, have introduced projects that utilize ChatGPT asking it to write analyses based on a student’s notes, while other classes ask that their students refrain from using any AI. Tom Kerr, a political science professor, asks students to refrain from using AI to write papers. Elisa Edwards, a sophomore in international global studies, said she is very nervous about the use of AI.

---

NEWS 9/24/24 11:14am

Elon University moves up 12 places in 2025 national university rankings

By Avery Sloan and Ryan Kupperman

Elon placed 121st — climbing  12 places from last year’s 133rd ranking in the U.S. News and World Report 2025 national university ranking, released  Tuesday, Sept. 24. Elon was also notably named No. 1 in undergraduate teaching for the fourth consecutive year and also topped the charts this year for learning communities and first-year experiences. Elon also continues to rank low in social mobility. Having placed 345th out of 433, the social mobility category measures how well schools graduate economically disadvantaged students.

---

NEWS 9/24/24 10:51am

Elon Poll finds Attorney General Josh Stein 14 points ahead Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson in governor race

By Avery Sloan

The governor race would have been close if Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson wasn’t an unpopular candidate, Jason Husser, director of Elon Poll, said. The most recent Elon Poll came out Sept. 24, showing 49% of voters favor Democrat Attorney General Josh Stein over Robinson. In contrast, the presidential race is still close and are polling less than one point apart. The poll surveyed 800 registered voters in North Carolina between Sept. 4 and 13 — before inflammatory comments Robinson had written on a pornographic site came to light Sept. 19.

---

NEWS 9/23/24 11:27am

North Carolina Latino organizations work to mobilize community

By Abigail Hobbs

From 2010 to 2020, the Latino population in North Carolina grew by almost 40%, far more than the national growth of 23%. However, in 2022, Latino voter turnout actually decreased after having increased in the past two midterm elections, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections. Kelly Morales is co-director of Siembra NC — a grassroots organization defending the North Carolina Latino community, particularly with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and wage theft. The organization has registered 5,600 Latinos by touring across the state.

---

NEWS 9/23/24 9:09am

Red Cross reports lowest blood supply in 20 years

By Charlotte Pfabe

Heather Frazee still remembers the first time she donated blood. Frazee, the executive director of the Piedmont Triad Chapter of the American Red Cross, said she shares her experience to inspire others to donate blood, especially during the current blood shortage. In July, the American Red Cross reported a 25% decrease in its blood supply. According to Frazee, the summer is typically a slow time for blood collection because people are away for summer vacations or school breaks; however, this is the lowest the Red Cross’s blood supply has been in 20 years.

---