Trista Panagakos

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Recent Articles

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 10/29/25 9:39am

North Carolina Republicans approve new congressional map

By Trista Panagakos

The North Carolina state legislature approved a new congressional map. This change comes after the Trump administration has been pressuring Republican states to change their congressional maps to ensure Republicans continue to control Congress after the 2026 midterm elections. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, North Carolina senate leader Phil Berger said, “The NCGA is ready to help Republicans secure Congress and move Donald Trump’s agenda forward.” The North Carolina House of Representatives voted 66-48 in favor of the new map on Oct. 22. This will affect voters in the 1st and 3rd congressional districts.

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NEWS 10/29/25 9:39am

Los republicanos de Carolina del Norte aprueban un nuevo mapa congresional

By Trista Panagakos

La legislatura del estado de Carolina del Norte aprobó un nuevo mapa congresional el 22 de octubre. Este cambio llega después de que la administración de Trump presionó a los estados republicanos para que modifiquen sus mapas congresionales y aseguren que los republicanos continúen controlando el Congreso después de las elecciones de medio mandato de 2026. La Cámara de Representantes de Carolina del Norte votó 65-48 a favor del nuevo mapa, que afectará a los votantes de los distritos congresionales 1 y 3. El representante Don Davis, demócrata, es el representante del distrito 1, que ganó en 2024 por solo dos puntos. El nuevo mapa aumentaría las posibilidades de que los republicanos obtengan un escaño en las elecciones de medio mandato del próximo año.

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NEWS 10/1/25 1:32pm

Gov. Stein signs executive order to implement AI in North Carolina government

By Trista Panagakos

As artificial intelligence becomes more prominent in the lives of students, workers and everyday citizens, the North Carolina state government is tapping into the transformative technology. Gov. Josh Stein signed an executive order Sept. 2 that focused on how artificial intelligence can enhance the state government and technology sector of North Carolina. The executive order established an AI leadership council, an AI accelerator, oversight teams for each state agency and training programs for AI literacy and fraud prevention.

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NEWS 9/21/25 4:57pm

Elon University student organizations react to new funding request model

By Trista Panagakos

As student organizations prepare to host events and welcome new members, many have already been affected by the new funding model the Student Government Association is utilizing for funding requests. SGA receives a portion of the student activity fees students are charged to distribute to organizations.  The funding request model was changed last spring to follow a quarterly system, where organizations will have to request money in advance for events and celebrations they wish to hold. The previous model allowed for organizations to request funds on a rolling basis. 

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NEWS 9/5/25 5:36pm

Elon University SGA announces priorities for the year in first meeting of semester

By Trista Panagakos

The Student Government Association held their first meeting of the semester, which brought the executive council, made up of Executive President Anya Bratić, Vice President Sammy Azúa, Vice President of Communications Kennedy Steiner, Vice President of Finance Ian Brecker and Speaker of the Senate Selma Maric in front of the senate to detail the five priorities they worked on over the summer. “In several years past with other execs, we’ve had really, really, wonderful priorities, but not one that necessarily been all cohesive and or surrounded around one another. That’s where we really succeeded. This year we decided that it was really important for us to all have a common goal.” 

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NEWS 8/26/25 6:11pm

Elon University student activity fees fund various organizations, campus events and traditions

By Trista Panagakos

As students prepare for the 2025-26 academic year, they might notice a $146 fee for student activities as part of their fall tuition bill. This fee is charged every semester to full time students, providing funding for different events, traditions and organizations on campus. Part time students are charged $73 each semester. The Student Government Association receives a large portion of the fee — $440,000 annually. They allocate this money to various organizations and activities through funding requests.

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LIFESTYLE 8/26/25 6:53am

Elon University Living-Learning Communities host kickoff event

By Trista Panagakos

One of the last events of orientation weekend for members of Elon’s Living-Learning Communities is the LLC Kickoff, hosted in McKinnon Hall. There, all 27 of Elon’s LLCs gathered to engage with each other, play trivia, learn about upcoming events and engage in breakout groups. “I think definitely the community at Elon played a huge part in me coming here,” Emma Luckman, a member of the Communications LLC, said. “I think that the learning living community was kind of an addition to that, in knowing that I was obviously going to have a community and a strong family.”

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NEWS 8/22/25 10:48am

Elon University class of 2029 arrives to Historic Neighborhood for move in

By Kate Gray and Trista Panagakos

Student volunteers welcomed the class of 2029 to Elon's Historic Neighborhood Aug. 22. Student volunteers stood outside residence halls to unload arriving cars. Rylan Shibley, a member of the football team, is an incoming freshman who already moved into his dorm. He spent his morning helping other freshmen move in and said he was looking forward to meeting fellow freshmen.“On the football team, we had a little bit of a head start, so I kind of know what everyone’s going through, kind of what to expect, but I think it’s good that we get to meet and greet other people."

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NEWS 5/26/25 10:45am

6 Elon University faculty members retire

By Trista Panagakos , Megan Walsh and Ruby Burckle

With the 2024-25 academic year over, six Elon University faculty members are retiring. The retiring faculty members include Martin Fowler, Nancy Harris, Betty Garrison, Pieter Swanepoel, Joyce Davis and Mary Jo Festle. These faculty members have worked at Elon University teaching classes, sitting on committees and leading Winter Term trips. As the six retiring faculty members prepare to leave Elon University, they reminisced on their time at Elon Univeristy and how Elon has changed and shared their plans for their future. 

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NEWS 5/5/25 2:56pm

Elon University SGA president works to create connections, plans for next year

By Trista Panagakos

Student Government Association’s Executive President and junior Anya Bratic said during her campaign that she wanted to be a connector for students on campus. After being elected, Bratic still believes her role as executive president is to be a liaison between students and the resources Elon University offers. Together with the senate, Bratic said she wants to better communicate with the student body on information they may not be aware of. After the election, some of the senate seats were left vacant, but Bratic has appointed 10 senators who have all been unanimously voted on by the senate.

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LIFESTYLE 4/30/25 11:56am

Elon University’s Gender and LGBTQIA Center to hold Spring Pride

By Trista Panagakos

Elon University’s Gender and LGBTQIA Center is holding its Spring Pride event from 5 to 7 p.m. May 1 in Young Commons. The event will feature tabling from other organizations and on-campus services such as the Center for Race, Ethnicity, and Diversity Education, Disability Services, and Counseling Services. This year Spring Pride will be Western themed which is  different from previous years, when the theme would center around spring or flower power. Part of the GLC’s plans for Spring Pride is to ensure students are aware of the community building efforts of the organization. 

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NEWS 4/29/25 3:26pm

Elon Poll finds Americans expect higher prices due to tariffs

By Trista Panagakos

A poll conducted by Elon University Poll surveyed 1,000 U.S. adults and found 80% of respondents anticipate higher prices due to President Trump’s trade policies. On April 2, Trump announced 10% tariffs on all countries and separate tailored tariffs on other countries such as China, who Trump has placed 145% tariffs on. Elon Poll found partisan divides among respondents about how higher tariffs will impact respondents' financial situations. The poll found 90% of Democrat respondents had much higher concern compared to 41% of Republican respondents. 

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NEWS 4/24/25 11:26pm

Democratic representatives hold town hall in N.C. 9th Congressional District

By Trista Panagakos

Democrat U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost and Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy hosted a town hall at the Haw River Ballroom in North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District Thursday April 24. The town hall was part of the Democratic National Committee’s “The People’s Town Hall” campaign. The campaign aims to go into Republican controlled districts and host town hall meetings with representatives from the Democratic Party. The campaign is a reaction to congressional Republicans being advised to not hold in-person town hall meetings in their districts by North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District Rep. Richard Hudson in a closed door meeting on March 4.

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NEWS 4/15/25 6:08pm

Elon University organization holds peaceful walk around campus

By Trista Panagakos

The Students for Peace and Justice organization held a peaceful protest walk outside Moseley Student Center on Young Commons on the morning of April 15. According to event attendees, Together We Walk for Peace and Justice was an event held for students to join in the fight against oppression around the world. Many of the attendees came to the event with their own signs about a number of issues including transgender rights, Palestinian freedom and free speech. There was no chanting during the walk, but members spoke among themselves about the signs they were holding and why they were walking.

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NEWS 4/11/25 10:51am

Elon University Student Government Association appoints vice presidents of communications, finance

By Trista Panagakos

Elon University’s Student Government Association appointed its vice president of communications and finance at its business meeting Thursday, April 10. Juniors Kennedy Steiner and Ian Brecker were selected by executive Student Body president Anya Bratic to be vice president of communications and finance, respectively. Unlike the senate, executive president and vice president, these roles are not elected by the student body and instead go through an application and interview process. After the president selects a candidate, the senate must vote on their approval.

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NEWS 4/9/25 4:38pm

SGA to choose vice presidents of finance, communications

By Trista Panagakos

While the new Student Government Association executive president and vice president prepare to be sworn in on Thursday April 10, an SGA interview committee is deciding who will take over the roles of vice president of finance and vice president of communications. Unlike the senate, the president and vice president positions, the two executive roles of vice president of finance and communications are not voted on by the student body. After interviews, the chosen applicants are selected by the incoming president and approved by the new senate.

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NEWS 4/3/25 8:17am

Elon University’s Love Business School rises to 38th in national undergraduate rankings

By Trista Panagakos

The Martha Love School of Business has risen to 38th in the country for undergraduate business rankings from Poets&Quants, an online platform that ranks undergraduate and graduate business schools. This is a two spot improvement from 2024. The 2025 rankings had the highest number of participating schools with 104 business schools completing the survey. Poets&Quants ranked undergraduate schools based on three categories: career outcomes, admission standards and academic experience. For the categories, the business school has also improved to 24th for career outcomes and improved 10 spots in admissions standards to 54th. 

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LIFESTYLE 3/13/25 12:27pm

US Navy Concert Band celebrates centennial anniversary with tour, stops at Elon University

By Trista Panagakos

Elon University hosted the United States Navy Concert Band in Alumni Gym on March 12. This is the second show in the band's southeastern tour to celebrate the 250 year anniversary of the Navy and the 100 year anniversary of the Navy Band. Throughout the concert, narrators introduced a new era within the Navy by describing advancements in technology, traditions and the Navy’s presence on the world stage. The band will travel to South Carolina next and finish in Washington D.C. The concerts are free to all attendees. 

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NEWS 3/11/25 9:32pm

SGA announces election results for the 2025-26 school year

By Trista Panagakos

Over 2,000 students voted in the SGA elections for the 2025-26 school year, only 28% of the student body. A higher turnout from last year's election which saw only 1,308 ballots cast. Anya Bratic was elected student body president with 1,382 votes. Sammy Azua was elected executive vice president with 1,082 votes compared to Morgan Minoff’s 838 votes. In the election, three semi-finalists were chosen for senior class commencement speaker: Craig Brandstetter, Drew Fetterolf and Marques Walker. The three semi-finalists will share their speeches with a selection committee who will make recommendations to Elon University President Connie Book.

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