News

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NEWS 5/2/24 12:07pm

Elon University names first-ever nominated student commencement speaker

By Ellie Reasbeck

Grace Ackermann was driving to Boston for apartment hunting when she got the call from Elon University President Connie Book saying that she would be the student commencement speaker for the graduating class of 2024. In the past, the speaker has always been the student body president, but in February 2024, the Student Government Association changed the requirements. This new change allowed for all seniors to apply for the speaker position — granting the final decision to a special committee composed of SGA members and students. With graduation on May 24, Ackermann said she is excited for the opportunity to speak for the class of 2024.

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NEWS 5/1/24 2:11pm

Elon University hosts record-breaking SURF Day

By Miles Hayford

Elon University’s annual Spring Undergraduate Research Forum had record-breaking participation this year. There were a total of 322 presentations this year, a 19% jump from last year and the highest in the forum’s 31 year history. According to Jen Hamel, associate director of undergraduate research, this is the result of an upward trend she has noticed over the past several years. Hamel attributes this growth to increased participation in SURF from the School of Communications and the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business. The 322 presentations were divided into 168 poster presentations, 154 oral presentations and 35 creative performances.

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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 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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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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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 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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NEWS 4/24/24 11:35am

Elon announces 2024 Lumen Scholar winners

By Elon News Network

The Lumen Advisory Committee has announced Elon University’s 2024 Lumen Scholar winners. Lumen Prize winners are granted $20,000 to support their mentored research and creative projects over the next two years. “The competitive level was extraordinary this year and these winners deserve admiration for the creativity, thoroughness, and potential impact their proposals represent,” Mike Carigan, director of the Lumen Prize, wrote. There are 15 prize winners for the 2024 Lumen Scholarship.

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NEWS 4/24/24 10:57am

Pilot program passes through SGA Senate, brings Narcan to campus

By Aidan Powley

Legislation to fund a $5,000 pilot program unanimously passed Elon’s Student Government Association, bringing Narcan to the campus in the fall of 2025. Generically known as “Naloxone,” Narcan is a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose. The commonly referred to as “opioid antagonist” quickly restores normal breathing to a person whose breathing has slowed or stopped due to an opioid overdose. The legislation is still in the approval stage with campus leadership. Chief of Campus Safety and Police Joe LeMire declined to comment until a final approval is set.

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NEWS 4/24/24 8:12am

Elon Earth Week 2024 events calendar

By Elon News Network

For earth week, the office of sustainability gets a lot of attention for its events. But, Elon’s office of sustainability plans events throughout the year in collaboration with other student organizations, Kelly Harer, associate director of sustainability for education and outreach, said. The goal of collaborative events is to help make sustainability accessible across campus, Harer said. This year, earth week takes place April 21 to April 27. In addition to events it hosts throughout the year, Elon University is hosting a variety of environment-themed events for the university and town communities.

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NEWS 4/22/24 6:23pm

Elon University collaborates on large-scale solar facility

By Elon News Network

Elon announced on April 22 that it will be collaborating with eight other universities and colleges to create a large-scale solar facility supported by a Power Purchase Agreement. The project will be located in Robards, Kentucky and will power roughly 24,000 homes each year. The site is set for construction in early 2025. Elon joined the project, which has been deemed “Sebree Solar Project II”, in hopes of reaching its goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2037. This goal is just one of many parts under Elon’s Sustainability Master Plan 2025.

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NEWS 4/19/24 6:21pm

Elon Board of Trustee member honored with Elon Medallion, renaming of Colonnades E in his honor

By Avery Sloan

Noel Allen, after serving 40 years on the board of trustees, was honored with an Elon Medallion on April 19, the highest honor given by the university. Allen grew up in the town of Elon and then was a student at Elon where he served as the student body president.  Allen has witnessed Elon’s growth as an institution, joining the board when enrollment was under 3,000 students. Allen has been a part of every long range strategic plan, since he was a student member of President Emeritus J. Earl Danieley’s first planning committee in 1966, University President Connie Book said. Allen also served as board chair from 2001 to 2003, when Elon transitioned from a college to a university and adopted the Phoenix as its mascot, Book said.

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NEWS 4/19/24 4:12pm

Elon University expansions leave off-campus residents scrambling

By Avery Sloan

Her first night at Elon, junior Kelsey Eshleman was invited by members of Elon Young Life to a bonfire event at an off-campus house, affectionately nicknamed Full House. That night, Eshleman said she remembered thinking how cool it would be to live there with her newfound friends. Now, Eshleman is still close with many students she met her first night and is one of five people living in Full House. But after living in the house for this past year and signing her lease renewal for next academic year, Eshleman and her roommates received a message from their landlord in February — the house that had been a pass down in Elon’s Christian community for 15 years was no longer available to rent. 

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