Alex Nettles

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Recent Articles

OPINIONS 9/26/25 8:51am

OPINION: The Elon Empire: Why the Queens University merger shows deeper problems

By Alex Nettles

History is paved with confusing announcements. Elon University broke national news when it announced a merger with Queens University of Charlotte on Sept. 16. Both boards of trustees approved the motion unanimously, but the general alumni and student body had little time to digest before the announcement. The Queens-Elon merger shows Elon's overconfidence in its geographic fixation. Elon uses strange terms to define success. We build new buildings and acquire instead of focusing on the endowment. Welcome to the Elon Empire. The motherland of the bird is expanding.

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LIFESTYLE 8/23/25 7:07pm

Town of Elon Mayor says students make the town different each year

By Alex Nettles

As summer comes to a close in the Town of Elon, migratory freshmen burst into town with new rooms and new questions. Town of Elon Mayor Emily Sharpe witnessed the seasonal turning of the student population since 2021. She said she has hopes for the new Elon students to plant roots here. “I think it is easy to come here and think, ‘Oh, it’s just little Elon.’ But if you don’t care about this you won’t make this your home. You won’t see all of the opportunity that is here,” Sharpe said. 

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NEWS 5/30/25 7:48am

LinkedOut: Elon University students face uncertain job market

By Alex Nettles

Elon’s University’s class of 2025 confronts adulthood in a job market influenced with technological development and cautious hiring. Elon seniors graduate to a period of economic uncertainty with less job openings and more applications across most careers. Openings for jobs are down 15%, while applications per job are up 30%, according to a report by the job search website Handshake. The report indicates an environment of “heightened anxiety and competition,” and students applying at a higher rate than years before.

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LIFESTYLE 3/19/25 2:12am

Limitless trailblazes hip-hop out of scarcity

By Alex Nettles

Limitless started at Elon University because of a drought of hip-hop and R&B on campus, now it has blossomed into a scene running alongside an institution where 78% of Elon Undergraduates are white. Nailah Ware and Chris Murphy brought culture and creativity to Elon despite barriers of doubt. Limitless is Elon University’s student rap and R&B organization. It took two years for Limitless to grow from a handful of beatmakers, rappers and stage technicians to a community of 40 members. After its genesis in a predominantly white institution, Limitless seeks to expand to other North Carolina colleges. 

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NEWS 2/4/25 8:36am

Elon Haggard corridor project finalizes grant plan during federal cutbacks

By Alex Nettles

Elon’s Haggard Avenue corridor project submitted its plan in hopes of federal grant funding this week. The project is the result of years of community feedback and would require an estimated $7.6 million. This move coincides with a government vocalization for cutbacks and a now-rescinded memorandum freezing all federal aid. The corridor plan was approved by the town council on Jan. 14. The Haggard Avenue corridor project proposes enhanced safety, increased visibility and looks to encourage multiple types of transportation. The plan places an emphasis on connectivity and safety with pedestrian and bicycle routes.

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NEWS 10/31/24 5:53pm

Hurricane Helene relief through lens of Black Hawk mission

By Alex Nettles

After Hurricane Helene, rural communities continue to struggle with isolation in western North Carolina. A National Guard Black Hawk crew delivered generators to the Bull Creek community, a valley banding together in the aftermath of the storm, on Oct. 8. The National Guard has been working to sustain the recovery of western North Carolina’s fragmented pockets. After Hurricane Helene hit Sept. 27, much of the infrastructure throughout North Carolina was severed. At the storm's peak, there were hundreds of closures. Sections of I-40 still face significant damage, while power and clean drinking water are still issues.

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OPINIONS 5/11/24 6:53pm

OPINION: Looking for God at Burlington's Biker Church

By Alex Nettles

After class, I found myself driving to a McDonalds on Interstate 87 to meet with Tony — a former member of an outlaw biker club. Tony said he met God when he was in a coma, and there was a point in the afterlife where he had to choose between heaven and hell. In his vision, God asked him, “Do you want heaven and me, or do you want hell?.” I first met Tony at Broken Chains Biker Church, a church devoted to worship that aims to save bikers from the sinful life.

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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 3/17/24 1:49pm

OPINION: Elon University's silent streets: Closer look at lack of public activism

By Alex Nettles

On a small corner of green in Young Commons lies the Speakers’ Corner. All public demonstrations are supposed to be concentrated here. Events can be planned and registered to the university, but it rarely happens. The corner is virtually always empty. The campus is too. In 2024, we face an election and global upheaval. There has been the occasional protest, but they are not part of the daily rhythm of the university. Elon’s administration has fostered debate, but you don’t see overwhelming input from the students.

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OPINIONS 3/2/24 3:52pm

OPINION: Victims of imagination: how does tech use affect loneliness at Elon?

By Alex Nettles

Gen Z is the loneliest generation to ever attend college. In 2023, A Cigna report found that Gen Z was “far lonelier” than older generations, in Cigna’s most recent loneliness index, 79% of young adults feel lonely. For many of us, this is not surprising at all. One explanation is that we are the generation with the most media at our fingertips. According to dcdx, a Gen Z advocacy organization, our average daily screen time is seven hours and seven minutes. We spend well over one-third of our waking hours on our phones.

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NEWS 10/21/23 5:36pm

Toasty Kettlyst Beer Garden opens in downtown Elon

By Alex Nettles

The Toasty Kettlyst Beer Garden introduced an outdoor beer garden on North Holt Avenue. The outdoor drinking spot is an expansion of the Toasty Kettlyst Beer Company in Gibsonville. Sitting behind the College Street Taphouse, the addition expands the town of Elon’s social district, which launched in April. The bar opened its space Oct. 12, and is open Thursday through Sunday. Outdoor lights are strung over picnic tables and craft beer is served from a kiosk on a small patch of green.

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NEWS 10/12/23 2:22pm

Burnout trend poses challenges for Elon University’s school of education

By Alex Nettles

Following concerns about the Alamance-Burlington School System mold problems and high rates of teachers quitting their jobs, senior education major Ally Shibata said she has doubts about entering the field of teaching due to burnout. Shibata teaches part-time at Central Park School for Children in Durham. She said she often feels flustered as a student teacher, and balancing an education along with a college social life she feels is already difficult. K-12 workers showed the highest rates of burnout of all professions in the U.S., according to a 2022 Gallup Survey.

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LIFESTYLE 9/22/23 2:06pm

El Centro kicks-off Hispanic Heritage Month at Elon University in celebration

By Alex Nettles

El Centro welcomed the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month at a kick-off event in Medallion Plaza. The student-planned surge of culture marks the beginning of the celebration Hispanic Heritage Month on Elon’s Campus. Hispanic Heritage Month is a national celebration of Latinx and Hispanic culture that includes the independence days of many Hispanic countries, running from Sep. 15 to Nov. 15. The event’s planning was spearheaded by a group of passionate student coordinators, including sophomore Cristina Mariné. Mariné said she started volunteering with El Centro because it gave her a reinforced sense of identity. 

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NEWS 8/22/23 12:45pm

Harris Teeter introduces 10% discount, 20%-off sale day for Elon University students

By Alex Nettles

Harris Teeter, a grocery store chain located along the East Coast, announced a 10% brandwide discount for various university students — including Elon University — that will run through Oct. 3. To claim the offer, students must bring their Phoenix Card. The local location on south Church street in Burlington will also host a College Night Aug. 30 from 5 to 8 p.m., at which the store will provide any student with a college ID and VIC card 20% off on all store goods. The event will also feature a gas discount, a live DJ, wine and food samples and 10% off all Starbucks drinks.

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NEWS 8/18/23 1:08pm

Colonnades and Danieley neighborhoods welcome Elon University freshmen in the heat

By Alex Nettles

With about 41% of Colonnades occupants being freshmen, Colonnades and Danieley neighborhoods welcomed a smaller batch of Elon University incoming freshmen on Aug. 18. In the 85-degree heat and nearly 50% humidity, members of the class of 2027 transitioned into their residence halls and reflected on their personal goals for their first academic year at Elon. “It is a new experience with new people. I am looking forward to that,” freshman Wrigley Koch said.

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LIFESTYLE 4/27/23 1:00pm

Elon University Department of Performing Arts debuts Deep Water Ballad

By Alex Nettles

On the April 28, the department of performing arts will debut a workshop of “Deep Water Ballad,” an original musical that has been over a decade in the making. “Deep Water Ballad” is set in the fictional coal mining town of Deep Water, West Virginia. When a devastating mining disaster happens the area spirals into the paranormal and the residents struggle to rebuild. The story follows a girl who tries to reconnect with her broken family in both the spirit world and natural world. 

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OPINIONS 4/21/23 12:26pm

OPINION: Future educators have a disproportionate burden to bear

By Alex Nettles

Editor's Note: The content of this editorial includes discussion of gun violence in schools. The national climate has rendered mass shootings an inescapable reality. These situations illustrate the horror of gun violence that educators face today. Teachers are shouldering some of the biggest problems in the country — from the COVID-19 pandemic creating an educational rift to gun violence increasing in classrooms. 

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LIFESTYLE 4/7/23 11:50am

Christian, Muslim community members break-fast together in interfaith iftar event

By Alex Nettles

Muslim, Hindi and Christian Elon University students and community members broke their fasts Tuesday evening. The interfaith celebration of Muslim iftar was organized by the Truitt Center for Religious Life and the Global Neighborhood in collaboration with the Burlington Masjid, Alamance County’s only mosque. While eating, the religious communities reflected on their faith together.  

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LIFESTYLE 3/21/23 2:19pm

Printmaker visits Elon University, displays gallery

By Alex Nettles

Amos Kennedy filled the walls of Arts West Gallery 406 with hues and aphorisms Monday evening. The artist spoke to a room full of students and faculty, discussing the life, process and meaning behind his art. 

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LIFESTYLE 2/11/23 3:32pm

Comedians Katherine Blanford, Caleb Elliot perform at Elon University

By Alex Nettles

Comedians Caleb Elliot and Katherine Blanford visited Elon University and performed at McKinnon Hall on Friday for Late Night Laughs. During both performances, the comics used new material. 

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