Moe Spring 2018

I AM ELON

BY KIM WALKER

Jourdan Parham ’19 arrived on Elon’s campus as the first Maker Hub was opening in the Colonnades Neighborhood. A computer science major with a keen interest in creating, she got involved with the space within a matter of weeks. She helped to open the new Maker Hub – Downtown in 2017, participating in its planning and development, and is now using 3D printers to build a robotic arm.

Jourdan says it’s easy to pinpoint her favorite class at Elon. She took elementary Chi-

nese with lecturer Binnan Gao during her first Winter Term. “It was a good challenge early on at Elon that set the tone that I can do and overcome anything.

After struggling at the beginning of the course, I did well, and even Dr. Gao was amazed by my growth.”

Three years later, during Winter Term of 2018, Jourdan traveled to China as part of the “China: The Flying Dragon” course. There she began her undergraduate research on cybersecurity, interviewing students in Shanghai about China’s internet firewall and maneuvering around it. She presented her research at this year’s Spring Undergraduate Research Forum.

Personal connections between students and faculty, as well as peers across diverse circles on campus, make Jourdan’s experience at Elon special. “I really enjoy the faculty involvement and availability.

My professor and academic adviser, Dr. Dave Powell, for example, is so dedicated to preparing us for graduation.

He invites alumni to speak to classes and just obviously cares about his students’ success. I really appreciate that.”

Jourdan is Elon.

Visit elon.edu/magazine to see more stories that are part of our “I Am Elon” series.

CONTENTS T M of E |  

16 THE TRANSCENDENCE OF YOGA

BY SARAH COLLINS ’18

Scholars at Elon are taking a closer look at the meaning of yoga in modern society.

18

COVER STORY

OWNING OUR FUTURE

BY KEREN RIVAS ’04

Connie Ledoux Book starts her tenure as Elon’s ninth president.

26

FROM THE ARCHIVES

TURNING THE PAGE

BY SARAH COLLINS ’18

Now part of the School of Communications, the Iris Holt McEwen Building once served as the home of Elon’s library.

27 MIND MATTERS

BY ROSELEE PAPANDREA TAYLOR

As the number of U.S. college students visiting counseling centers increases, Elon is developing new strategies to cope with mental health issues.

31 A BOOST FOR YOUR BRAIN

BY ALEXA BOSCHINI ’10

Psychology professor Rachel Force studies the role of biology and behavior in mental health and wellness.

32 REBOOTING HER LIFE

BY OWEN COVINGTON

After a seven-year battle with a neurological illness, Kimberly Bari ’06 has found the middle ground.

2 Under the Oaks 11 Long Live Elon 14 Phoenix Sports

34 Point of View 35 Alumni Action 39 Class Notes   I

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▶ from the PRESIDENT

Beginning Together

S facebook.com/ElonConnieBook twitter.com/ElonConnieBook

ince beginning work at Elon on March 1, I’ve been reminded almost daily about the importance of having a strong foundation.

I often think of Elon’s founders, whose vision was to establish a “college for the world”—a commitment that continues to guide us to this day.

I’ve spent much of my time these first several weeks talking with a broad range of Elon stakeholders to get a sense of what’s important. What gives people the most pride? What can we improve and what should be the next steps in developing our university? With each conversation, I am reminded of the power of our collective community and reassured about the brightness of our future. When a community understands who they are and what they value, and care enough to attend to it, anything is possible.

On my first day on campus, the community came together to give me a warm welcome. We planted

an oak tree in the Global Neighborhood and I asked those in attendance to share personal messages about their hopes for Elon’s next decade. These handwritten notes of aspiration for our community stage a strong beginning for my presidency and Elon’s future. With this column, I am sharing a few of the more than 140 received.

Each note provides a special reminder to me of the generosity and commitment of our powerful Elon community, which so deeply values our mission and our future. With this strong foundation, I have enormous gratitude and respect for the people of Elon and will hold her with great care as the university’s ninth president.

Connie Ledoux Book President

My hope for Elon’s future: Elon exists to educate students and my hope for the future is to find ways to do so better and better.

Engaged learning. Lots of experiences for students. A faculty and staff filled with mentors. We are in Elon’s Golden Age, and may the Golden Age last for decades more.”

My hope for the Elon of the future is to take scholarship to the next level. We are already an outstanding teaching institution, but I think it is time to put time, thought and resources into making scholarship a priority both for undergraduates and faculty.”

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Sharing our hopes for Elon’s future

I hope that Elon will be a beacon for brave work: For asking hard questions—for preparing students for long futures and not just first jobs—for fostering a hunger to learn more deeply. I hope Elon will do better for more people. I hope we will stand strong against the short sell. I hope Elon will be a beacon for brave work.”

I hope that one day students will not have to turn down the opportunity to come to Elon because of the cost. The more students that can make the choice to attend Elon because of fit, rather than finances, the more successful we will be!”

My hope for Elon’s future is to foster a community of change-makers and inspire creativity for all students, not just the ‘creatives.’”

My hope is that we never ‘arrive.’ We are a community that proudly moves to the next challenge after accomplishing the previous one. My hope is that we never lose that forward-looking perspective, while simultaneously focusing on the people around us and nodding to those who came before.”

My hope for Elon’s future is that we will continue to produce global, hardworking citizens! That we will acknowledge areas we can improve and work tirelessly to make Elon more inclusive and diverse. That we will go further, reach higher and become stronger together. That we will honor existing traditions and build new ones! That we can turn engaged learners into engaged leaders. That we create a university where students and faculty can grow!”

LEGENDARY COACH MORNINGSTAR HONORED

C

oach and mentor William T. “Bill” Morningstar Jr. ’64 was awarded Elon’s highest honor, the Elon Medallion, at the 11th Annual Night of the Phoenix in February.

Morningstar, who served under three Elon presidents as a coach across multiple sports, has been an active member of the Elon community for more than 40 years. Hailing from South Boston, Virginia, Morningstar became a standout basketball player and garnered a winning four-year record by the time he graduated in 1964 with a degree in physical education. He received his master’s degree at Lynchburg College prior to returning to his alma mater in 1972 as assistant men’s basketball coach under head coach Bill Miller.

Morningstar was known for his “can-do” philosophy and willingness to take on new duties, such as when he was asked to fill the role as Elon’s men’s golf coach. That decision launched an unparalleled run of success that saw Elon advance to the NAIA national tournament 16 times and place in the top 10 each year before winning the national championship in 1982, a year Morningstar was named NAIA National Coach of the Year. He also played a key role in establishing equal opportunities for female student-athletes by developing and coaching women’s teams in cross country and golf and helping to level the playing field for all student-athletes.

The Elon Medallion was the latest recognition for Morningstar, whose long list of accolades includes a spot in the Elon Athletics Hall of Fame, the NAIA Coaches Hall of Fame, the South Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame and the Halifax South Boston Sports Hall of Fame, as well as being named conference golf coach of the year 15 different times and the 2011 recipient of the Distinguished Service in Sports Award by the Alamance County Sports Development Council.

Elon Medallions are awarded at the discretion of the president to those who have contributed outstanding service to Elon over many years.

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The Magazine of Elon   | . , .  The Magazine of Elon is published quarterly for alumni, parents and friends by the Office of University Communications. © , Elon University EDITOR

Keren Rivas ’ DESIGNERS

Garry Graham Bob Nutt Billie Wagner PHOTOGRAPHY

Kim Walker E D I T O R I A L S TA F F

Alexa Boschini ’ Owen Covington Roselee Papandrea Taylor CONTRIBUTORS

Belk Library Archives and Special Collections Sarah Collins ’ Madison MacKenzie ’ Oliver Fischer ’ Morgan Collins ’ Noah Zaiser ’ V I C E P R E S I D E N T, U N I V E R S I T Y C O M M U N I C AT I O N S

Daniel J. Anderson EDITORIAL OFFICES

The Magazine of Elon  Campus Box Elon, NC - () - www.elon.edu/magazine

Celebrating our Elon

T

he Elon community around the world came together March 13 to support the university in honor of Elon Day, contributing 5,370 gifts and raising $1,840,378 to support students, scholarships, academic and athletics programs.

The day’s totals surpassed each previous Elon Day celebration to become the single-greatest day of giving in the university’s history. Engagement on social media also hit a peak, with people around the world showing their pride using #ElonDay. “Elon Day’s momentum and impact has grown year after year, and the driving force of that growth is the engagement of the entire Elon community,” said John H. Barnhill ’92, assistant vice president for university advancement. “Elon Day’s continued success exemplifies what can happen when we come together to make a difference for our Elon.”

The day started with a $100,000 scholarship challenge sponsored by the Elon Alumni Board, followed by two matches announced at College Coffee: the “Join Jeanne” match, in which Elon Trustee Jeanne Robertson P’89 GP’17 and husband Jerry matched dollar-for-dollar gifts to all athletics designation up to $100,000, and the “Our Elon” match from Stephen and Susie Paneyko P’20 and several anonymous donors, which matched dollar-for-dollar gifts to the Elon Greatest Need’s fund. This momentum led to the Midday $250,000 Scholarship Challenge sponsored by Rob and Lisa Heaton P’16 P’18, Alan and Susan Tivoli P’21, and Mike and Marjorie Brennan P’19. The final chal-

{ John H. Barnhill ’92 & President Connie Ledoux Book during a special Elon Day College Coffee. }

lenge, sponsored by the Robert and Mary Cobb Family Foundation, called for donors to reach 5,000 gifts by midnight to unlock a new $500,000 Odyssey Program Scholarship. Donors successfully completed every challenge of the day, surpassing the final goal of 5,000 by 370 gifts.

In addition to College Coffee, on-campus events included a Senior Toast for the Class of 2018 and an Elon Day All-Student Party later in the evening. In total, three events on campus and 43 alumni chapter events around the world drew more than 3,880 attendees. Other donors who generously sponsored Elon Day giving challenges and matches included Jill Rose ’00 and T.J. Rose ’00, Shawn and Robbie Ellsworth P’20, John and Theresa Soffronoff P’19, and Josh McIntosh ’97.

For more photos from this year’s celebration, check this issue’s inside back cover.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES, CHAIR

Kerrii Brown Anderson ’

Columbus, Ohio

ELON ALUMNI BOARD, PRESIDENT

Chris Bell ’

Raleigh, North Carolina YO U N G A LU M N I C O U N C I L , P R E S I D E N T

Kelly Smith ’ Oxford, Mississippi

PAR E NT S CO U N C I L , CO  PR E S I D E NT S

John & Kristin Replogle ’ Raleigh, North Carolina SC H O O L O F L AW ADV I SO RY B OAR D, C H AI R

David Gergen

5,370 GIFTS

57% FROM ALUMNI AND 26% FROM PARENTS GRANDPARENTS 9% FROM FACULTY AND STAFF 6% FROM STUDENTS

Cambridge, Massachusetts S C H O O L O F C O M M U N I C AT I O N S ADVISORY BOARD, CHAIR

Michael Radutzky ’ ’ Summit, New Jersey

MARTHA AND SPENCER LOVE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS BOARD OF ADVISORS, CHAIR

William S. Creekmuir ’ ’

Atlanta, Georgia

PHOENIX CLUB ADVISORY BOARD, CHAIR

Mike Cross

Burlington, North Carolina

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TOTAL AMOUNT RAISED

$1,840,378

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HONORING THE ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT

M

itch Kapor, partner at Kapor Capital and the Kapor Center for Social Impact, was awarded the Elon University Medal for Entrepreneurial Leadership on April 12. The annual honor supported by the Doherty Center for Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship is bestowed upon individuals who possess integrity, innovation and creativity, a passion for lifelong learning and a commitment to building a dynamic community.

In his remarks after receiving the medal from Elon President Connie Ledoux Book, Kapor walked the audience through his professional journey— from a neophyte who threw himself into the personal computer following its invention in the 1970s to now a savvy investor who backs startup

tech companies seeking to uplift underserved and minority populations. “Distinct experiences, life experiences, are what give rise to different ideas,” Kapor said. “When there is a diversity of backgrounds that are contributing to defining possible futures, it’s going to create a richer mix and more opportunities.”

As partners in venture capital firm Kapor Capital, Kapor and his wife, Freada Kapor Klein, have made diversity a priority and have sought out entrepreneurs who might be passed over by other potential backers, such as women or people of color. “We know that who has a seat at the table and a voice really matters, and that’s particularly true in investing,” Kapor said.

Elon’s Doherty Center for Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship is named for Trustee Ed Doherty and his wife, Joan, entrepreneurs from New Jersey whose daughter, Kerry, graduated from Elon in 2007.

COR 470: Design Thinking Studio in Social Innovation

BY MADISON TAYLOR

P

roblem-solving in an increasingly complex world requires new ways of approaching the issues that plague society. That’s why a group of Elon students is being groomed to become community leaders through a pilot program that helps develop the skills needed to define problems and solve them in innovative, creative ways.

The “Design Thinking Studio in Social Innovation” course is in the second year of a two-year grant. The spring immersion semester program brings together students and faculty from across campus who work in teams with a goal of developing ideas and projects to address a community problem through a partnership with the Alamance County Wellness Collaborative, a coalition of

representatives from public health, planning, business, education, parks and recreation and nonprofit organizations. “At the end of the semester they should have some sort of valuable community project. That can take different forms,” says Rebecca Pope-Ruark, an associate professor of English who leads the immersion semester.

Students receive 16 credit hours by taking four courses in a block schedule. Four professors facilitate the studio course—Pope-Ruark, Assistant Professor William Moner and Associate Professor Phillip Motley in the School of Communications, and Joel Hollingsworth, senior lecturer in computing sciences. Each brings certain expertise to the students that will be useful in shaping projects, which can range from a visual presentation to a mobile app. The process begins with

reading, discussion and practice in the principles of design thinking, professional communication and theories in asset-based community building.

From there students begin learning about the community outside the Elon campus. They shadow officials in health care, parks and recreation and city planning. “They are familiarizing themselves with the community and how people live,” Pope-Ruark says.

Students form their own groups and determine what project they wish to undertake.

Pope-Ruark says learning a higher level of brainstorming and problem-solving is the ultimate goal of the program. “You can’t make social change in just 14 weeks. But we want them to understand how to define problems and then go about solving them,” Pope-Ruark says.

ABOUT THE PROFESSORS Rebecca Pope-Ruark is an associate professor of English who joined Elon in 2007 and uses service-learning projects with Alamance County organizations as a way of encouraging students to apply what they are learning in real world situations.

William Moner has taught at Elon since 2016. He is an assistant professor of communications and specializes in interactive media production, web scripting and communications media theory.

Phillip Motley Jr. began teaching at Elon in 2009 and is an associate professor of communications. He specializes in visual presentation and interactive design.

Joel Hollingsworth started teaching at Elon in 2001 and is now senior lecturer and chair of the Department of Computing Sciences. He specializes in mobile computing, computing systems, algorithm analysis and high-performance computing.

RECOMMENDED READING • “Where Good Ideas Come From”

by Steven Johnson • “Empathy: Why it Matters and How to Get It” by Roman Krznaric • “Curious: The Desire to Know and Why Your Future Depends on It”

by Ian Leslie   5

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Construction of ‘The Inn at Elon’ approved

E

lon University’s board of trustees has approved plans for a new on-campus hotel, with several trustees making personal contributions to provide lead funding. Tentatively named the “Inn at Elon,” the three-story, 80-room facility will be located next to the Ernest A. Koury, Sr. Business Center on North O’Kelly Avenue. Construction is expected to start this summer with completion projected for fall 2019. The inn will be a high-quality hotel similar to others found at more than 80 private and public colleges and universities across the nation. It will meet a long-standing need for on-campus lodging and conference facilities, providing a place for alumni, parents and others to stay while attending events throughout the year.

The inn will also provide lodging for people attending academic

conferences, visiting scholars and speakers, prospective students and travelers who want a campus-centered stay in the unique environment of Elon’s botanical garden campus. A ballroom and meeting rooms, along with a restaurant and outdoor gathering spaces, will be open to the public and available for family celebrations such as weddings, reunions and holiday parties.

Generous funding for the project from several members of the Elon board of trustees includes a lead gift of $2.5 million by Mark Mahaffey p’97 p’01 and his wife, Marianne p’97 p’01. Other trustees providing major gifts are Chris Martin ’78 p’13 and his wife, Nicolette p’13; Dave Porter p’11 and his wife, Jen p’11; Vicky Hunt and her husband, Sam, and Tom Chandler and his wife, Lynn. Elon Parents Council co-presidents John and Kristin Replogle p’18 also made a major gift, and several other donors from the Elon community were making commitments as fundraising continued this spring.

The inn will be owned by the university and revenue beyond operating costs from the inn will be directed to fund student scholarships. This is a new and creative way to generate additional financial support for scholarships at Elon.

The inn will be managed by Charlestowne Hotels, a hospitality management company based in Charleston, S.C., that operates independent, lifestyle and franchise hotels in college towns, urban centers and resort locations across the nation.

Professor of Religious Studies Rebecca Todd Peters explores women’s reproductive rights in her third book. Published by Beacon Press, “Trust Women: A Progressive Christian Argument for Reproductive Justice” interweaves political analysis, sociology, ancient and modern philosophy, Christian tradition and medical history, and grounds its analysis in the reality of women’s lives and their decisions about sexuality, abortion and child-bearing.

The Colonial Academic Alliance has awarded grants to two teams of Elon researchers. Amy Overman, associate 6   of 

professor in the psychology department and neuroscience program, and J. Todd Lee, professor in the mathematics and statistics department, received a $34,000 grant to support an initiative that seeks to equip students with an evidence-based toolkit of how their own brains function and learn in various hi-tech learning environments.

Associate Professor of Sport Management Tony Weaver and Professors Caroline Ketcham and Eric Hall in the Department of Exercise Science will partner with the university’s nine fellow Colonial Athletic Association member institutions to study

access issues for studentathletes to high-impact educational practices with the support of a $40,000 grant.

Lauren Kearns, professor of dance and associate chair of the Department of Performing Arts, has written a textbook, “Somatics in Action: A Mindful and Physical Conditioning Tool for Movers.”

Published by Handspring Publishing, the book describes a Pilates, yoga and dance-inspired movement system that helps movers achieve optimum strength, skeletal alignment and body-mind engagement.

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Alexa Darby

BY PAIGE KELLOWAY ’16

I

Alexa Darby is a role model for service-learning and civic engagement at Elon. The 2014 recipient of the Periclean Award for Civic Engagement and Social Responsibility, the professor of psychology has taught more than 30 sections of academic service-learning courses since joining Elon’s faculty in 2005. In that time, she also has established a meaningful partnership with the Alamance-Burlington School System. Her passion to serve is also apparent in the countless students she has mentored through the Civic Engagement Scholars Program.

first met Dr. Darby when I joined the Harvey Newlin Elementary School mentor program in the spring of my first year at Elon. It was one of the first organizations I joined, and I instantly felt welcomed by Dr. Darby’s warm spirit. The next year, I became one of the program leaders, which in turn gave me the opportunity to become a Civic Engagement Scholar, again under Dr. Darby’s leadership.

I quickly came to know that Dr. Darby is truly the essence of a student-first mentality. She consistently demonstrates her gracious care for others and is always willing to take the extra step to help her students. I’ll never forget when she offered to take me grocery shopping after I complained about eating on my college student budget. Or when my mentee at Newlin Elementary, with whom I developed a strong relationship over three years together, moved away without notice. Dr. Darby made sure to call me immediately and reassure me we would figure it out together. She worked tirelessly with me to contact the school system and locate my mentee so we could reunite before I graduated. I have never felt more supported.

During the final semester of my senior year, I was able to have Dr. Darby as a professor for the “Educational Psychology” course. As a service-learning course, we dedicated 20 hours of service to the classrooms at Newlin Elementary throughout the semester. Dr. Darby continually challenged us to draw direct parallels between our class discussions and readings to our time spent in the elementary school. She was my first professor who did not teach theoretically about future practice, but instead encouraged us to put our knowledge to the test the very next day.

What inspires me about Dr. Darby is her ability to empower and champion students to become future agents of change. It is clear she believes so strongly in the interconnectedness of both the local and global communities that surround us, and gives students the confidence to play an active role in those areas. While I am in more of a “corporate America” setting than I anticipated, my career in human resources and recruiting centers on the belief that our world hinges on human connection, a belief Dr. Darby instilled in me. I am grateful to Elon for a multitude of things, but Dr. Darby’s lifelong mentorship is at the very top of that list.

Paige Kelloway is a corporate recruiter at ROI Revolution, Inc. in Raleigh, North Carolina. She graduated from Elon in 2016 with a degree in human service studies and minors in psychology and communications. She was a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, the national leadership honor society; Rho Lambda, the Greek leadership honor society; Pi Gamma Mu, the national social sciences honor society; and Alpha Xi Delta sorority.   7

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Lamberts recognized In tribute to President Leo M. Lambert and his wife, Laurie, for their  years of service, the Elon University Board of Trustees created two special honors that were announced during a celebratory College Coffee in Alumni Gym in February.

Trustees renamed the Academic Village section of campus the Lambert Academic Village. The seven-building quad was built from 2002 to 2013 and includes the anchor building, Martha S. and Carl H. Lindner III Hall, on the south end and six pavilions: Cannon Pavilion, Kenan Honors Pavilion, Gray Pavilion, Spence Pavilion, Belk Pavilion and the Numen Lumen Pavilion, Elon’s multifaith center. The north end of the Lambert Academic Village is occupied by Phi Beta Kappa Commons, symbolizing Elon’s chapter of the nation’s most prestigious honor society focused on the arts and sciences. In making the announcement, trustee Kebbler Williams ’98 said the Academic Village “ideally represents all that President Lambert has meant to Elon.”

During the event, Lambert was also presented with the Ward Family Excellence in Mentoring Award. The award is given annually to a faculty or staff member who has demonstrated a sustained commitment to Elon students through outstanding mentoring.

Trustees also established the Laurie Lambert Scholarship, which will be awarded annually to an outstanding member of the women’s basketball team. Williams noted that Laurie Lambert has supported every facet of university life. “She has welcomed thousands into her home, represented Elon around the country and world, and has served the communities of Elon and Burlington with distinction and with an eye toward making life better for those who live at the margins,” Williams said.

Leo and Laurie Lambert were joined by their family at a special trustee dinner in their honor Feb. 23, during which an official Haley Brengartner ’20, Noor Irshaidat ’20, Yousaf Khan ’20 and Regan O’Donnell ’21 have been accepted into the University Innovation Fellows program administered by Stanford University’s Hasso Plattnew Institute of Design. They are among 258 fellows selected from 64 higher education institutions in nine countries for the program, which aims to empower students to become agents of change at their schools and make a positive impact on the world. The team of fellows from Elon will be focusing on how to increase student engagement with innovation and entrepreneurship on campus.

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portrait of President Lambert was unveiled. The painting by artist Lisa Egeli will join Elon’s art collection, which includes portraits of other previous presidents.

{ Leo and Laurie Lambert were joined by their family at a special trustee dinner in their honor Feb. 23. } Zahm is part of a cohort of 268 fellows selected for the 2018-19 academic year that will receive a variety of learning and networking opportunities as well as pathways to exclusive scholarship and post-graduate opportunities.

{ Fiona Zahm ’20 } Campus Compact has named Fiona Zahm ’20 a recipient of a Newman Civic Fellowship, which recognizes and supports community-oriented students, in recognition of her investment in finding solutions for challenges facing communities and her passion for enacting social change.

Several students in the School of Communications were recognized in the spring for their student media work. The Pendulum, the student-run newspaper of the Elon News Network, and Phi Psi Cli yearbook were awarded individual and Best of Show awards by the North Carolina College Media Association. Students and alumni recognized for their work included John Curtis ’17, Rachel Echevarria ’17,

Tommy Hamzik ’17, Kimberly Honiball ’17, Paige Pauroso ’17, Alex Simon ’17, Bryan Anderson ’18, Caroline Brehman ’18, Stephanie Hays ’18, Olivia Ryan ’18, Hannah Sicherman ’18, Elena Hernandez ’19, Deirdre Kronschnabel ’19, Jordan Levine ’19, Emmanuel Morgan ’19, Diego Pineda ’19, Ree Plumley ’19, Lane Pritchard ’19, Laurel Wind ’19 and Alex Toma ’20. Also, “Elon Local News,” ENN’s broadcast news show, captured first place in the 2018 Broadcast Education Association’s Festival of Media Arts. Elizabeth Bilka ’18, Perry Elyaderani ’18, Paul LeBlanc ’18, Brooke Wivagg ’18 and Rachel Ellis ’19 worked on the winning entry. “30 Minutes,” the news program part of the school’s “60 Minutes” Master Class, earned

Rochelle L. Ford named dean of the School of Communications

F

ollowing a national search, Elon University has named Rochelle L. Ford as the new dean of the School of Communications. She will succeed the school’s founding dean, Paul Parsons, on June 30.

Ford comes to Elon from Syracuse (N.Y.) University, where she has been a chair and tenured professor in the public relations department of the SI Newhouse School of Public Communications, as well as provost faculty fellow. She previously spent 16 years in the School of Communications at Howard University, Washington, D.C. “Rochelle Ford is a nationally recognized leader and scholar who brings to Elon a student- and learning-centered approach to communications education,” said Elon President Connie Ledoux Book. “As a senior-level administrator, she has coordinated and grown programs at two prestigious communications schools while maintaining a primary focus on her role as a teacher-scholar-mentor.”

Under Ford’s leadership, Newhouse’s public relations department achieved the PRWeek Program of the Year award for two consecutive years. In 2016 she was named a provost faculty fellow guiding Syracuse University’s reaccredi-

first place in the Television News Magazine category, and Interactive Media graduate Kelly Dunville G’17 was also a first-place finisher in the Student Interactive Media and Emerging Technologies Competition’s solo category. A group of 2017 Interactive Media graduates and Phoenix All-Access also finished third in their respective categories.

Eight Elon students have been selected for the newly re-established N.C. Teaching Fellows program. Kylee Gomilla ’20, Sara Gostomski ’20, Zoe Grove ’20, Nicole Kister ’20, Paige Knapke ’20, Michalene Lee ’20, Ashley Pritchard ’20 and Rylie Torretti ’20 will each receive up to $8,250 per year in forgivable loans if

ELONTHON: FOR THE KIDS

tation process. Ford served as the senior academic officer in the second largest school/college at Howard University, where she championed diversity and conducted interdisciplinary research with grant funding totaling more than $2.14 million.

Under Parsons’ leadership, the School of Communications has grown to more than 1,250 undergraduate and graduate students and 75 full-time faculty and staff, with majors in journalism, strategic communications, cinema & television arts, communication design, media analytics and sport management.

In appreciation for his contributions to the school, the board of trustees voted to rename the student media newsroom in McEwen Building in his honor.

they commit to teach in a STEM or a special education area.

Senior Maurice “Bear” Tosé II has been selected as a fellow with the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation. The two-year paid fellowship is awarded to an individual who demonstrates an interest in philanthropy, public policy, community service and the nonprofit sector.

Tosé will spend two years evaluating grant proposals, visiting with grant applicants, assisting with grant-making administration and working on a variety of projects at the private family foundation, which seeks to improve the lives of North Carolinians.

A staple on Elon’s campus since 2003, Elonthon is one of more than 300 Miracle Network Dance Marathon student-led programs fundraising for local children’s hospitals. Through the network, college, university and high school students across North America have collectively raised nearly $180 million since 1991 for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, a nonprofit organization that raises funds and awareness for 170 pediatric hospitals in the U.S. and Canada. Here are some figures from this year’s event at Elon, which took place April 13–14.

$452,964

The amount Elon students raised to benefit patient care, advocacy, research and education programs at Duke Children’s Hospital & Health Center.

1,349

The total number of students who registered to participate in the event, representing 34 different campus organizations.

24

The number of hours students danced, sang and played games as part of the event in 6-, 12-, 18- or 24-hour shifts.

288

The number of songs played during the 24-hour event to keep students engaged.

Source: Elonthon   9

UNDER THE OAKS

SPRING

“I know as a scientist that however much passion and perseverance we feel today in April 2018 sitting in this room, we can get better.

We can grow in our passion and our perseverance. We can develop interests, we can learn to practice, we can find purpose in our work—a connection to other people. We can cultivate a growth mindset about our abilities. We can develop a one-on-one relationship with just one person who will love us enough not to let us quit on a bad day.”

WEDNESDAY, MAY 6

Senior Class Picnic with Faculty and Staff

—Author Angela Duckworth, the co-founder of the Character Lab and a 2013 MacArthur Fellow, during Elon’s annual Spring Convocation on April 5.

A farewell picnic for all graduating seniors and Elon faculty and staff hosted by the Office of Alumni Engagement.

FRIDAY, MAY 8

Baccalaureate

Message by Jeffrey C. Pugh, the Maude Sharpe Powell Professor of Religious Studies who was honored in fall 2017 as a Distinguished University Professor for his scholarship, leadership and teaching.

FRIDAY, MAY 18

Legacy Reception for Graduates and their Alumni Parents, Grandparents and Siblings Alumni who are parents, grandparents or siblings of 2018 graduates are invited to this reception hosted by the Office of Alumni Engagement.

SATURDAY, MAY 19

128th Commencement Ceremony Elon President Emeritus Leo M. Lambert will deliver the undergraduate Commencement address for the Class of 2018. For more information about Commencement events, visit elon.edu/commencement.

10   of 

TOP MARKS Elon’s dedication to creating leaders who can make a difference in their communities earned the university praise this spring from government organizations.

For a fourth consecutive year, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs named Elon a top producer of Fulbright students in its ranking of American schools that produced the highest number of Fulbright students during 2017–18.

Eight recent Elon graduates were awarded the prestigious international fellowship to study, research or teach English overseas.

Elon tied for fourth on the list of American master’s-level institutions whose graduates received Fulbright grants. The Fulbright competition is administered at Elon through the National and International Fellowships Office, directed by Professor Janet Myers and Sarah Lentz, who serves as associate director.

Additionally, Elon has been named one of the top producers of Peace Corps volunteers

in 2017. In the category of medium-sized institutions, those with between 5,000 and 15,000 undergraduates, Elon ranked No. 16 on the government-sponsored service agency’s 2018 Top Volunteer-Producing Colleges and Universities list. There are 18 Elon alumni currently volunteering worldwide, with a total of 127 having served all-time.

Since 2013, Elon has offered a Peace Corps Prep Program, led by Steve Moore in the Department of Environmental Studies, for students planning to apply for the opportunity. In addition, Elon Law and the Peace Corps partnered in 2017 to offer a special scholarship program for returning volunteers to serve their communities as lawyers through the new Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program.

LONG LIVE ELON

{ Students in the music production and recording arts program will soon enjoy studio and equipment upgrades thanks to a recent $1 million gift. }

Sound Opportunities

A

$1 million gift from an Elon family will provide significant equipment and studio upgrades to the university’s music production and recording arts program.

The gift will also endow a guest artist master class series that will allow students to interact on campus with leading music and sound professionals working in the field.

The anonymous gift is the largest ever to Elon’s music production and recording arts program for equipment needs. Students started seeing some of the additions in the spring semester. The first guest artist visited campus in April, said Todd Coleman, associate professor of music and coordinator of the program.

The gift will enhance a program that is already nationally recognized as a leader in music production and recording arts education, said Gabie Smith, dean of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences.

“Our faculty in music production and re-

cording arts are highly skilled at sharing their expertise with the community of students in the major. This investment in the program will allow us to take an incredibly strong academic program to the next level.”

Elon’s music production and recording arts program was ranked No. 8 nationally in 2017 by College Magazine, which surveyed music recording and technology and audio design programs at colleges and universities across the nation. This gift will fund technical improvements that will put Elon on more equal footing with collegiate programs at the top of the national list, including No. 1 Berklee College of Music in Boston and Indiana University. Coleman said when all of the equipment is installed, hopefully by this fall, students will have access to the kind of recording studio and music production environments used by music industry professionals in sites such as Nashville and Los Angeles. Access to real-world technology will provide not only invaluable experience for students but also

BY MADISON TAYLOR AND JALEH HAGIGH

help them reach their potential as artists.

“We are very grateful for this gift and the teaching and learning improvements this makes possible,” Coleman said.

The gift fills a variety of needs. First, it will upgrade three studios now available in Arts West and create a fourth. The new equipment includes two analog mixing consoles, an analog synthesizer and microphones. “We will have more spaces for our students to collaborate and work,” Coleman said. “We have the space to avoid putting 18 students in one room with everybody waiting a turn. Now we can spread out and have our students more engaged.”

A portion of the gift will address structural sound and acoustic issues in the Arts West studios to improve the sound quality of the music recorded there and enhance the accuracy of audio playback in the studio control rooms. One immediate impact is the guest artist master class series, which will fund one to two appearances each semester by a nationally known figure in music   11

LONG LIVE ELON basketball suite that is named after somebody who was important to studentathletes who participated in that program,” she said.

production and recording arts. John Storyk kicked off the guest master series on April 17.

He is an architect and acoustical expert who has worked on designing private studios for Whitney Houston, Bob Marley, Ace Frehley, Russ Freeman, Jay-Z, Alicia Keys and others.

The gift will make a difference for Elon and its music production and recording arts students for years to come. “We are very thankful for the generosity of the family in making this significant gift.

Current and future students will benefit greatly from their investment in state-ofthe-art equipment and funding toward master classes with professionals in the field,” Smith said.

SMIDDYS ENDOW SCHOLARSHIP THROUGH ESTATE GIFT

DONOR HONORS LATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL COACH

Members of Elon’s women’s basketball teams from 1994 through 2005 will never forget associate head coach Ann Lashley.

Now future generations of players at Elon will know her name, too. Through the generosity of an anonymous donor, the office of the senior assistant women’s basketball coach in the Schar Center will be named for Lashley, who passed away at age 40 on Nov. 10, 2005, after a long and courageous battle with cancer.

Lashley was on the basketball coaching staff of then-head coach Brenda Paul and had a positive influence on the players who learned basketball skills and life lessons under her guidance. It is the first coach’s office named within the Schar Center, which will be the future home of Elon’s basket-

{ Ann Lashley } 12   of 

{ Thomas M. Smiddy ’88 & Sherri Smiddy }

ball and volleyball teams. The 5,100-seat, 160,000-square-foot Schar Center opens in the fall. Faith Shearer, senior women’s athletics administrator, said Lashley was a top-notch coach and leader who touched areas of campus beyond the basketball court. She recalled Lashley as someone who had the ability to make everyone she interacted with “feel special.” She forged relationships across campus but most directly influenced Elon’s players. “She understood the experience of being a player because she was one herself. The players really responded to her,” Shearer said.

A native of England, Lashley entered coaching after an outstanding collegiate basketball career at Mississippi State where she was a four-year starter. She ended her playing days as the team’s all-time leading rebounder and is currently ninth on the career list. She graduated with honors in 1989 with a degree in biological engineering and later earned a master’s degree in sports administration from Georgia State University. She was a member of the English National Basketball team and competed for Great Britain on its Olympic team in 1988.

Shearer said it’s appropriate that the assistant head coach’s office in the Schar Center will be named for Lashley. “It’s fitting that there is something in the women’s

Elon alumnus Thomas M. Smiddy ’88 and wife Sherri Smiddy of Clearwater, Florida, have established an endowed scholarship through an estate gift, which will help make an Elon education possible for students with financial need.

Preference for the Thomas M. Smiddy ’88 and Sherri Smiddy Endowed Scholarship will be given to students who are active in fraternity or sorority life or the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business. The couple said it was important to them that recipients of the scholarship be engaged in the life of the university, including through service experiences or work-study.

“The older I get, the more I appreciate my Elon experience and what Elon gave me,” Tom Smiddy said. “I needed financial assistance and help academically and Elon gave me those things and it gave me the opportunity to blossom and mature. I am grateful to Elon for helping me become who I am today.” Smiddy knows firsthand the importance of scholarships to students.

“If it wasn’t for the grants and student loans I received at Elon, I may not have been able to complete my education,” he said. “I am proud to make this gift.”

As a student, Smiddy juggled his studies in the Love School of Business with working in several dining halls on campus and was also active with Sigma Pi Fraternity and WSOE as a disc jockey. Smiddy, who owns an extermination company in Clearwater, and his wife made their estate gift on Elon Day on March 13, helping to make it the single biggest day of giving in the university’s history.

▶ MAKING A DIFFERENCE

PHOTO BY DAN ADDISON

LONG LIVE ELON

{ Anne “Oz” Dechert Staley ’74 combined her dual passions of Elon and tennis by making an estate gift that will one day provide scholarship support to female student-athletes. }

Advantage: Elon

I about how you can make a difference at Elon with a planned gift by contacting Carolyn DeFrancesco, director of planned giving, at (336) 278-7454 or cdefrancesco@elon.edu.

You can also visit elonlegacy.org for more information.

f you spend a few minutes with Anne “Oz” Dechert Staley ’74, you’ll quickly discover two topics that stir her passion. One is tennis, a sport she first took up in grade school and still plays several times a week. The other, of course, is Elon.

“I had four of the best years of my life at Elon,” says Staley. “It really gave me a great foundation.” In fact, Elon captured her heart so completely that within a short time of her arrival on campus, she abandoned her initial plans to transfer to a larger state university after two years. “That plan didn’t work out, because I fell in love with Elon,” she says with a laugh. “It became a part of my soul. When my two years were up, I just couldn’t leave.”

Staley credits a number of things with making her time at Elon meaningful, from the dedication of faculty members like Jo Watts Williams ’55, John Graves and Sam Griffin to the way Elon’s focus on arts and sciences sparked her interest in subjects such as religion, geography and fine arts. She was also at the forefront of Elon’s participation in what is now a quintessential experience at the university, having taken part in one of the first Winter Term study abroad trips to London. She calls it one of her finest Elon memories. “That experience was very formative in my love for travel,” says Staley, whose passport includes stamps from multiple countries around the globe. “Now I’m amazed to see all the places Elon students go during Winter Term.”

Her sorority, Sigma Sigma Sigma, also played a large part in defining her Elon experience. “I’m still close with a lot of my sorority sisters today,” she says.

“That’s another thing I love about Elon. You make these lifelong friends.”

BY MEGAN M CCLURE

Staley now lives in Charlottesville, Virginia, with her husband, John. Since retiring from a career in sales that spanned more than 30 years, she has spent more time both playing and watching tennis. Her renewed interest in the sport inspired her to combine her dual passions of Elon and tennis by making an estate gift that will one day provide scholarship support to female studentathletes. Her purpose for establishing the Anne Dechert Staley ’74 Women’s Tennis Scholarship is threefold. “I really wanted to do this kind of scholarship to give back to Elon, because I truly feel it helped mold me into the person I am today, and especially to honor my parents and grandparents,” she says. “They bestowed so many generosities on me in my lifetime, and I know they made sacrifices for me as well.

“I also wanted to ensure the future of female tennis athletes at Elon. I hope it will be a transformative scholarship for young women in need of financial aid that have a passion to play tennis.”

Staley’s generous support has made her a member of Elon’s Order of the Oak, a giving society that recognizes donors who make planned gifts to the university. She says that securing her legacy at Elon by placing the university in her estate plan was a simple process that has brought her great peace. “Elon made it easy to set up the scholarship in a way that it will continue to help female athletes long after I’m gone,” she says. “It brings me great happiness to know that I am going to help these students come to Elon, get a great education and make lifelong friends while playing the sport they love.

“I’m so proud to see what great strides Elon has achieved and how it has grown. I can’t tell you how happy I am to support it.”   13

PHOENIX SPORTS

▶ elonphoenix.com

DOUBLE PLAY

Phoenix catcher Hayden Platt ’18 has had the opportunity to represent Great Britain in international play.

F

BY OLIVER FISCHER ’19

or baseball catcher Hayden Platt ’18, his teammates are his family. But last August, that family grew substantially as he represented Great Britain at the 2017 U23 European Championship.

Just how he got there was purely serendipitous.

Originally from Naples, Florida, Platt started his college career at the University of Central Florida but transferred to Broward College and Florida SouthWestern State College before coming to Elon to study sports management in 2017. He loved his time at junior colleges, although it wasn’t easy for him. “It’s your last opportunity. You get two more years to play baseball basically and if you don’t make it out, then you don’t make it,” he says.

It was during his time at Florida SouthWestern that a British Baseball Federation commissioner, Kevin Macadam, spotted Platt during a practice in 2016. After the commissioner discovered Platt’s mother was British, he asked if he had a British passport. He said yes, and a year later, Platt found himself in Austria and the Czech Republic making his debut as part of the Great Britain National Team. The team didn’t win gold but Platt had a stellar performance. He scored the second best on-base percentage at the tournament and only one runner attempted to steal against him. He expects to travel to Sweden this summer to continue competing under the British flag.

“It’s an awesome opportunity from something that I never thought was there and just randomly popped up,” Platt says. He recalls a game he played in the Czech Republic where this realization really hit him. “I was just standing on the field and looking around and I was in shock because I never thought baseball would take me

14   of 

somewhere as far as the Czech Republic,” he says.

Representing another country may seem like a daunting task, but Platt says it’s not too different from what he’s used to. “It is in the same aspect as you playing for a university,” he says, adding that despite identifying mostly with the U.S., he shared the pride of his English teammates all the same. “You feel their pride coming through yours as well, and you want to represent the British flag as much as you would the American flag.” It was also an opportunity to continue playing the sport that has been a constant throughout his life. Growing up, Platt lived a five-minute walk from a baseball field.

“It’s something that all my friends did growing up and it just became something I loved,” he says.

Standing on the field, Platt experiences a sense of home and belonging. He has a strong connection with his teammates. “You feel comfortable, some security and it’s almost like a feeling when you’re out there with your whole team, it’s almost like a family.” Platt spends six hours with his teammates every day and hangs out with them on their off days. Winning as a team is a priority he places above any individual goals. “We all have one goal, one mindset.

We’re all doing everything we can for the team to win,” he says. “I want to win as a team. I want to go to a regional. I think those would make me prouder and happier than any individual stats at this point in my career.”

Not to say he doesn’t have impressive accomplishments of his own. He was a third-team All-Colonial Athletic Association selection after his first season at Elon and hit .311 with 17 runs scored, nine doubles, seven home runs and 30 runs batted in. In conference play, he was second in the CAA with a .391 batting average. Like most student-athletes, Platt works hard to balance his academic work and the demands of the sport, something he does by simply getting things done. “It’s just staying organized. There are late nights and early mornings. I don’t think any of us want to use that as an excuse,” he says.

While his time with the Phoenix has been short, he already has great memories, such as when the team celebrated Robbie Welhaf ’s no-hitter against Longwood University last year.

“That was awesome, that rarely happens. That was one of the coolest games I’ve ever been a part of,” Platt says.

PHOENIX SPORTS

▶ elonphoenix.com

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HEATHER MUNRO ’18

BY NOAH ZAISER ’20

Senior Heather Munro has been playing golf since an early age. During her first season at Elon, she was named the 2015 CAA Rookie of the Year and earned a spot in the All-CAA Second Team. She finished her second season with a 74.97 stroke average in 29 total rounds, which ranked fourth in the CAA. She continues to display her drive on the course this season, having claimed first-team All-CAA and CAA All-Academic Team honors and being named a 2017 WGCA All-American Scholar. But there is much more to her than just a Division I athlete. She shared some facts about her life with The Magazine of Elon.

She is from Scotland. Hailing from the nation many believe to be the birthplace of golf, it’s not surprising the Dundee native fell in love with the sport when she was 11 years old. Coming from the fourth-largest city in that country to a rural southern environment proved to be quite a transition for her, though she is happy to report both she and her game have adjusted nicely.

She loves basketball. Heather is a multi-sport athlete. She played varsity women’s basketball in high school and makes it a point to play the sport when she’s not golfing. An avid fan of college athletics, she attends as many basketball games on campus as her schedule allows.

She keeps to a pre-game ritual. A self-described introvert, Heather sees her time before matches as the perfect opportunity to ground herself. She always tapes her fingers in the same place to perfect her swing, and listens to country music, which helps relax her more than anything else.

She’s a perfectionist. Though she says golf is definitely not a perfectionist’s sport, after any given match she’ll scrutinize playbacks of her performance to see what she can improve for the next outing. “I take my time to be happy, see what I did well, and not take it for granted,” she says.

She has a knack for travel planning. Alongside her athletic skill, Heather loves to plan trips. Over one summer, she mapped out all the arrangements for a six-day trip that took her from Dundee to Glasgow. “I love to go places, and I really love the process of getting there,” she says.   15

{ Students and Associate Professor of Communications Julie Lellis (top, second from the right) during the 2017 Winter Term course, “Mindful America, Mindful Elon.” }

FROM CONDUCTING INTERNATIONAL FIELDWORK TO STUDYING TEXTS DATING BACK CENTURIES, SCHOLARS AT ELON ARE TAKING A CLOSER LOOK AT THE MEANING OF YOGA IN MODERN SOCIETY.

BY SARAH COLLINS ’18

T { Anya Fredsell ‘18, right, is exploring yoga’s changing role with the help of Associate Professor of Religious Studies Amy Allocco. } 16   of 

he ancient tradition of yoga has been carried down through centuries and adopted around the globe. What originated as a religious tradition in India has grown into an international phenomenon. In the United States alone, the number of yoga practitioners increased to more than 36 million in 2016, up from 20.4 million in 2012, according to the 2016 Yoga in America Study conducted by Yoga Journal and Yoga Alliance. But the widespread nature of yoga in modern society has raised questions regarding the true meaning of the practice, and Elon scholars are looking to answer those questions through different lenses.

“These changing times beg the questions of who has the authority to decide what yoga is and who has the authority to teach yoga,” says senior Anya Fredsell, an Elon College Fellow and Lumen Scholar who is exploring yoga’s changing role in global society through an ethnographic study of yoga communities. After completing a 200-hour yoga teaching certification course while in high school, Fredsell came to Elon with the desire to answer these questions. She set out to do this by tracing yoga back to its roots in India.

Her travels have been made possible by the Lumen Prize, a $15,000 scholarship to support and celebrate academic and creative endeavors.

During the course of her Elon experience, Fredsell has had the chance to travel to India four times. Her first trip to North India, through a partnership with Loyola Marymount University during the summer of 2016, gave Fredsell the opportunity to study yoga and Jainism, a minority religious tradition. She returned to the country in January 2017 through Elon’s Winter Term course “India’s Identities: Religion, Caste and Gender in Contemporary South India.” On her third trip to India last summer, Fredsell went solo: she conducted participant-observation and engaged in fieldwork that examined gendered authority and the political, religious and social dimensions of contemporary yoga traditions.

She returned for a fourth time in January with her research mentor, Associate Professor of Religious Studies Amy Allocco.

Fredsell’s findings have the potential to illuminate an area that has been somewhat overlooked. “While some of yoga’s gurus and its transnational reception, adaptation and commoditization have been the subjects of recent monographs and edited volumes, yoga as it is conceived, categorized and contested in India has been relatively understudied,” says Allocco. “This is an extraordinarily interesting moment to undertake such a research project.” The past two years have seen remarkable developments for yoga, she adds, including the inauguration of International Yoga Day as well as questions about to whom yoga “belongs” and competing claims regarding its potential “religious” character and political resonances.

Yoga is also a deeply personal experience for Fredsell. After conducting dozens of interviews in India, Fredsell is comparing her findings to her own yoga communities in Atlanta. Growing up in the Georgia capitol, she developed a different yet parallel understanding of the practice. Her research reconciles the changing perceptions and meanings of yoga for populations around the globe. “Coming into Elon and into the Fellows Program, I had a notion that research had to be data-driven and scientific,” says Fredsell, who plans to attend Emory University after graduation.

“It was exciting for me to learn that research could be interacting with people and observing them and interviewing them. And now, research has really become my central focus.”

In total, Fredsell’s research has entailed hundreds of hours of participant-observation, resulted in more than 60 interviews and will culminate in eight academic conference papers and two article manuscripts. “Anya’s Lumen project will lay the foundation for her future graduate work and career as a teacher-scholar of South Asian religions,” Allocco says. “Her findings offer promising and important new insights and are a significant contribution to the yoga studies subfield, especially as it intersects with feminist ethnography.”

Associate Professor of Communications Julie Lellis seeks to further the modern study of yoga through multiple academic courses at Elon. In 2013, along with Professor of Dance Lauren Kearns, she began team-teaching an honors course titled “The Reincarnation of Yoga in America.” The course, which now Lellis teaches alone, challenges students to examine yoga through an interdisciplinary lens by studying ancient texts, learning about the written language of Sanskrit, conducting independent research and, of course, practicing yoga. Students also study the ways in which media has commercialized yoga and the greater implications this characterization plays on societal perceptions of yoga.

During the past few decades, yoga in America has rapidly evolved into a multibillion-dollar fitness industry. The 2016 Yoga in America Study found practitioners spent $16 billion on yoga classes, clothing and accessories, compared to $10 billion in

2012. But the traditional practice of yoga extends far beyond the physical element, and includes ethics, self-discipline, breathing and meditation. “Students like uncovering the fact that yoga isn’t just physical,” says Lellis, who completed a 200-hour training certification at Boston Yoga School in 2014. “They get a lot out of meditation or breathing. Some students are intimidated at first, but they quickly learn that they can all do yoga.”

Yoga has also been absorbed into a modern understanding of mindfulness. A therapeutic technique focused on physical and mental awareness, mindfulness has become a central theme of American discourse surrounding health and well-being.

In January 2017, Lellis led the Winter Term course “Mindful America, Mindful Elon.” Students traveled to Massachusetts for nine days to study at the Benson-Hentry Institute for Mind Body Medicine in Boston and also completed a mindfulness retreat at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Stockbridge.

Those experiences gave students the opportunity to practice their own mindfulness while studying the attitudes and beliefs about mindfulness in America. A primary goal of the course was to consider the influence of mindfulness practices on trends in higher education. Students met with a variety of faculty, staff and students who host or participate in mindfulness-based on-campus programs at Elon. They also learned about contemplative pedagogy, or the use of mindfulness to benefit student learning.

With a better understanding of what might enhance programs already existing on campus, students prepared strategies to create a more “mindful Elon.” They then pitched their recommendations to university staff and administrators, along with a written proposal. As Elon continues efforts to promote the well-being of students, these ideas are shaping the university’s student resources for years to come.

For Lellis, yoga as an interdisciplinary entity is right at home in the world of academics, particularly at Elon, whose mission is to transform mind, body and spirit. “Through these learning opportunities, we can look at how yoga is portrayed in different spaces,” she says. “We talk about moral and ethical codes. Concepts like self-discipline and nonviolence are applicable to everyone. It’s an opportunity for students to learn how encompassing yoga is and to learn about the other dimensions of yoga.”

{ Students practice yoga as part of their coursework. }

  17

COVER STORY

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OWNING OUR FUTURE Connie Ledoux Book starts her tenure as Elon’s ninth president

BY KEREN RIVAS ’04

S

{ Connie Ledoux Book is welcomed as Elon’s ninth president by students, faculty and staff during a March 1 event. }

itting on the bench seat of her parents’ station wagon in the driveway of the only home she had ever known in Opelousas, Louisiana, Connie Ledoux Book saw fear in her parents’ eyes for the first time. It was 1970, she was 8 years old and her late father, Clarence, a school teacher, had been awarded a fellowship to earn his doctoral degree in vocational education at Oregon State University. He and his wife, Glenna Ledoux, a nurse, had just quit their jobs and packed their nine children and all of their belongings in the car for the long trip to Oregon.

“You don’t forget those moments,” says Book of that day when her parents had the courage to go to a place neither one had ever visited before. Her family, she sensed, was taking a big risk. “My dad knew that if we stayed there, the hope for us was limited.” The unknown, it seems, offered better prospects.

Book didn’t know it then, but that decision changed the trajectory of her life, a path that brought her to Elon first in 1999 as a communications professor and, now, 19 years later, as the   19

{ Above: Connie Ledoux Book with her dissertation adviser, William E. Lee, at the University of Georgia. Right: Book was introduced as Elon’s ninth president in fall 2017. }

president of the institution. “I talk often about that driveway story,” Book says, referring to how that leap of faith in higher education so many years ago opened countless doors for her family, including her most recent one to become Elon’s ninth president. “My dad would be thrilled about this opportunity and he’d want to be a part of it.”

B

EARLY LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP

ook’s family environment was one of learning. The children of cotton sharecroppers, her parents spoke mostly Cajun French until they started school. Her father was a lifelong learner, a man who saw firsthand the transformational power of education. He served in the U.S. Air Force and was stationed in Japan as a radio technician, and often tried to teach some of the words he learned there to his children.

After completing his doctoral degree at Oregon State, he brought the family back to Louisiana and joined the Department of Education. Book’s mother worked as a nurse and also taught nursing at the community college in Baton Rouge. Book has many memories of her mother grading papers at the family table, a task she did in addition to taking care of the household chores.

Education was important for Book’s parents. “I don’t know why,” says Book’s mother, Glenna Ledoux.

“Maybe it was because our parents wanted us to have

20   of 

a higher education; it was probably instilled in us.”

It’s not surprising all nine Ledoux children went to college, several becoming engineers and many more educators. Book fell in love with television after watching newscasters help the American people understand the importance of the resignation of U.S. President Richard Nixon in 1974, so a career in journalism was in order. She graduated from Louisiana State University in 1986 and worked as a television producer and reporter in her home state before transitioning to higher education. After obtaining a Masters of Education degree in 1989 at Northwestern State University, she started teaching at the University of Georgia, where she obtained her doctorate degree in telecommunications in 1993, and later at Georgia College & State University.

University of Georgia Professor William E. Lee guided Book through the many revisions of her dissertation, “Assessing Municipal Officials’ Attitudes Toward Cable TV Regulation: A National Study.”

At the time, Lee recalls, Book was pregnant with her eldest daughter, Bella, to whom she dedicated her 219-page dissertation. “Academia is filled with people who take jobs and never complete them,” Lee says, “but she had the drive and ambition to make sure she was going to complete it.” Looking back through it, Lee says, Book had “some real heavyweights” on her dissertation committee. “All of hers were top scholars in the field and I think that says a lot about her willingness to deal with some very demanding people, and the fact that she got through me says a lot,” Lee adds with a chuckle. “I’m known as one of the most demanding teachers and dissertation advisers.”

On one hand, Lee says, he was surprised to hear Book had been named president of a university because she had established herself as a strong scholar on television matters and had shown she had the skill set to be a national voice on those issues. Case in point: She wrote “Digital Television: DTV and the Consumer,” the first book dedicated to understanding how the transition from analog to digital television impacted consumers. On the other hand, however, she was well respected by her colleagues at Georgia, Lee says, which demonstrated her ability to work well with faculty. “I could see how she would easily fit into a leadership role.”

Ledoux has seen her daughter work hard all her life. She has never doubted Book could handle

OWNING OUR FUTURE

{ President Connie Ledoux Book visits a local elementary school during her first week in office. }

whatever life throws at her. “All through college, she worked,” Ledoux says. “She is a hard worker and I think she can do what needs to be done.”

Still, being a university president wasn’t something Book had planned to do, though she never shied away from any opportunities either. One of her favorite phrases, “embrace the unexpected,” comes from Elon alumna Isabella Cannon ’24, a trailblazer in her own right. Like Book, Cannon never expected to be tapped for a top position—in her case, the first female mayor of Raleigh at age 73—yet she embraced taking on the role.

That same disposition to be open to new opportunities, which has guided much of Book’s professional life, can be traced back to lessons she learned from her father. She still remembers one Saturday when her father asked her to help him work on the family car. Raised during a time when men and women had clearly assigned roles, his decision to involve her in an activity that was mainly reserved for the men in the house was a bit unsettling for Book. Yet she knew she had no choice but to do it since her

brothers were not home. The fact that her father was not the most patient man in the world didn’t help her trepidation, so she made sure to watch him closely and hand the correct tool. Soon, she was able to anticipate the tool he needed and have it ready before he asked for it. The next time her father was working on the car, he called his sons first, only to have them test his patience. After growing frustrated, he called on her.

She says with a smile, “he recognized that I was thinking ahead.”

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A THOUGHTFUL COMMUNICATOR AND EDUCATOR

hat ability to think through situations is one of the reasons Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio asked for Book’s help shortly after he took the reins in 2000 at Saint Pius X Catholic Church in Greensboro, North Carolina. The parish was experiencing growing pains and it became apparent a plan was needed to guide that growth. Book had moved to North Carolina with her family, which now included son Joe, in the

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“Connie really helped me lay the foundation for our vision. She would listen and pull out the kernels of truth and hear what people were saying in an authentic way.” —Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio mid-1990s and joined Elon as an assistant professor of communications in 1999 after teaching at North Carolina State University and Meredith College.

She was elected to serve as chair of the board at the church’s school, but Marcaccio wanted her input in defining the direction for the parish as they conducted surveys and held numerous meetings.

“Connie really helped me lay the foundation for our vision,” he says. “She would listen and pull out the kernels of truth and hear what people were saying in an authentic way. The things that we produced as a result enabled us to build upon what was already here. I really credit her for leading and guiding that visioning process.”

A good listener who brings people and projects to the next level is how Jason “J” McMerty ’00 remembers Book as well. “When you talk to Connie, you can see her think,” says McMerty, who now leads the Elon in LA and San Francisco programs. “I used to bring her a thousand ideas and she would always listen. Her style is also asking lots of questions. She wouldn’t tell you how she felt about it, but asked you a hundred questions and through them, she would message and encourage you in a unique way.”

McMerty reported to Book for about eight years, first as video producer and later as communications instructor while she served as department chair and later associate dean in the School of Communications.

Besides being his supervisor, Book became McMerty’s mentor, pushing him to do better and always measure any initiative by determining first its potential impact on advancing students’ success and the university’s vision. The two worked together to develop the Elon in LA Program, which would be the foundation for what is now Elon’s Study USA, a program Book launched as associate provost for academic affairs—another position she hadn’t planned on taking that allowed her to strengthen existing programs at the school as she embraced the unexpected.

Through it all, Book’s passion for teaching and mentoring didn’t waver. She continued connecting with students, making them take on challenges they didn’t know they could tackle. That was the case with Stefanie Meyers ’10. The communications major had taken the “Broadcasting in the Public Interest” class with Book, who was known for being a tough professor who expected much from her students. When Book asked Meyers if she’d be interested in conducting research with her, she was stunned but immediately said yes. “During my first research project with 22   of 

her, I had no idea what was going on. I thought, ‘she is going to figure out I have no idea what is going on here,’” Meyers says, “but, of course, that wasn’t the point. She was giving me the opportunity to learn something. That’s the real growth, professionally and personally—not knowing everything you are doing beforehand. It was the closest to a real-life work situation that I ever had.”

Throughout her time at Elon, Meyers conducted several research projects alongside Book on video franchising. By her senior year, Book helped her get an internship with Time Warner Cable’s legal department, an experience that deeply shaped her professional path. Coming from a family of lawyers, Meyers had thought about a legal career but wasn’t sure what area to focus on. That internship helped her discover a career she didn’t even know existed.

She is now the vice president of business and legal affairs at Starz.

More importantly, Book’s support did not limit to the classroom. Meyers was a member of the volleyball team and when Book attended her games, it solidified their relationship. When Meyers decided to come out as lesbian, Book was one of the first people she confided in. “Her reaction was so comforting, it really reinforced the idea that the world is bigger than just a couple of bad reactions,” Meyers recalls. “She was so supportive of all aspects of my life. She has been a great friend as well as a great mentor and professor.”

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DEVELOPING AS A LEADER

ook’s ability to effect change started to get noticed at Elon and in 2008, President Leo M. Lambert tapped her to serve as presidential faculty fellow for strategic planning. For the next two years, she coordinated the process of creating the Elon Commitment strategic plan with input from hundreds of university stakeholders. Just like she had done at Saint Pius, she listened and helped conceive the building blocks that guided Elon’s drive for ever-higher quality for the next 10 years. Her success during that process led to her next leadership appointment as associate provost for academic affairs.

During the five years she served in that role, Book spearheaded the complete redesign of career services and the establishment of the Student Professional Development Center, making it possible for students to start developing a career plan from the moment

OWNING OUR FUTURE

{ During her first day in office, President Connie Ledoux Book spent time with different community stakeholders. }

they step on campus. She also oversaw the creation and implementation of the residential campus plan, enrichments to Elon’s digital learning opportunities and growth of civic engagement initiatives. “She’s thoughtful in her approach,” McMerty says, adding that Book is strategic about lifting core values from Elon’s foundation to build new, better things.

“I always say, ‘make sure you have the heart of Elon College but the ambition of Elon University,’ and Connie has both, in my mind.”

Book took on all of her new administrative responsibilities with enthusiasm, though she had to make some sacrifices. She remembers one particular struggle she faced several months after being appointed department chair. She was working on an article with a colleague and a student and had personally set a deadline to have her revisions ready by Oct. 31. The day came and as she pulled into work, it dawned on her she had missed the deadline. She felt a sense of failure—in fact, she couldn’t do it all.

As she walked to her office, she ran into communications professor Kenn Gaither, who, noticing she was upset, asked what was wrong. “I said, ‘I didn’t meet one of my professional goals,’” she recalls.

Gaither, in turn, reminded her of all the things she had been busy doing: starting the Elon in LA Program; working on getting a Knight Foundation grant for the Sunshine Center, which she conceived and established as a way to advocate for transparency in government and open public records and meetings; working with school leaders to create a new master’s degree for communications; among other things.

By the time she got to her office, Book realized

something that informed many of her decisions to come. “I realized that more than finishing that article, I was enjoying building things and seeing the impact of those things on my students and my colleagues,” she says. “I realized I enjoyed that role more, not that I didn’t enjoy the scholarship, but I found myself naturally leaning into the other work.” For the first time, she was able to articulate what leadership meant to her— moving people to build and keep flourishing together while working to address barriers for the well-being of the community.

As she continued to grow as an administrator, Book intuitively knew that to learn more, she needed to leave her comfort zone. In 2013 she asked Provost Steven House if she could take some time to complete higher education coursework at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, which he supported. When she finished the courses, she shared with the provost office’s team what she had learned at their weekly lunches. Those informal conversations helped bridge the things she was learning about higher education with the realities of the Elon experience.

While she valued the role her colleagues played as a sounding board, she was yearning for more.

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A GROWTH OPPORTUNITY

hat’s when the unexpected came knocking.

She received a call from a search firm to see if she was interested in applying for an opening at The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina. She was told she would be the first female in a leadership position in a very traditional and storied environment and would be tested in ways she had never been before—all experiences that would prepare her for whatever comes next.

The proposition sounded appealing, but it wasn’t easy to leave behind everything she was building at Elon. “We were doing so many good things and I was seeing unfold many of the initiatives we had set out in the strategic plan,” Book says. “But the Harvard experience and all the learning I was doing started what I call the itch to lead, the itch to learn.”

She decided to apply and in the spring of 2015, the announcement came: Book had been appointed provost and dean at The Citadel, the first female to hold that position in the school’s 175-year history. It was time to embrace the unexpected once again. As the second-ranking official at the college, she was responsible for all academic functions. She was also one of a handful of senior leaders who did not have a military background, something that presented a unique leadership development environment that she embraced wholeheartedly.

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“Elon has a great tradition of owning its future—we design it, we put our heart and soul in it and people work very hard on it.” —President Connie Ledoux Book

{ Connie Ledoux Book after being named provost and dean at The Citadel. }

To ensure she understood the physical demands cadets face, Book participated in a week-long boot camp with provosts from other colleges and universities around the country. That meant crawling through an obstacle course and rappelling a 70-foot-high tower.

She also did a tandem jump from 13,000 feet with a member of the U.S. Army Parachute Team. Book carried the rank of brigadier general, which meant she had to wear a military uniform. Her accomplishments in the three years she was there are impressive: she launched new programs in nursing, engineering, cybersecurity, intelligence security and advanced STEM education; new curricular offerings were designed with several business and government partners, including Boeing, Google and the U.S. Department of Defense; and she led development of online graduate programs to serve military and federal employees across the country, leading to record growth of The Citadel’s graduate college.

But Book also wrestled with some important discussions about constitutional rights. Once the college faced a Muslim student’s request to wear a head covering, or hijab, with her uniform, a petition the school denied to keep with its cornerstone value of uniformity and personal sacrifice to function as one. “These past three years, I’ve found myself in the middle of these critical topics about our society and what we value,” she says, adding she became more adept at having difficult conversations with respect and accountability to each other. All these experiences also gave Book a greater appreciation for democracy and freedom, and the importance of dialogue.

“The Citadel taught me a lot about face-to-face communication,” she says. “I have learned during the past three years that the most important things in life happen face to face. The exciting things happen when people come together.”

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A RENEWED BEGINNING

ook wasn’t anticipating leaving The Citadel, but when she heard Lambert was planning to step down as Elon’s president, she knew it was an opportunity she couldn’t pass.

She embraced the unexpected one more time. She applied and after considering several candidates, the search committee recommended Book for the job, a recommendation the board of trustees unanimously approved in fall 2017. “I was really fortunate to be successful through the interview process and to have the opportunity to come back,” she says.

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On March 1, Book started her tenure, becoming the first female president in Elon’s history. It’s a role that fits her well, and an achievement that didn’t go unnoticed. During an event marking the beginning of her presidency, Vice President Emerita Jo Watts Williams ’55 celebrated Book as a leader uniquely qualified to build on the success of her eight predecessors. After witnessing 73 years of growth at the university, Williams said she looks toward the next chapter in Elon’s legacy of outstanding leadership. “What a special moment in our history,” she said. “President Book, you are a trailblazer. You will inspire us to think big, and then reach even higher. With 16 years of previous Elon experience, you are one of us. You understand our student-centered values. You know our history. You share our vision for Elon’s future. We are ready to imagine what we can do together, and then to get to work and make it all a wonderful reality.”

While Elon is a familiar place for Book, much has changed in the time she has been away. Many of the initiatives she worked on as part of the Elon Commitment strategic plan are now a reality, such as the completion of the School of Communications expansion and the construction of new residential neighborhoods and Schar Center, which opens in the fall.

As she leads the university and works to develop the next strategic plan, she reflects on the lessons she has learned so far. At The Citadel, she says, she learned to discern the point of friction, those barriers that need to be removed or mitigated to achieve a goal. “I’m much more willing to go there,” she says. “I’m more willing and able to see it and to call it.”

From her parents, she learned to always find ways to serve others with integrity and grace. She starts her day with a surrender meditation that leads her to ask how to best be in service each day. “That’s really what leaders are—they are in service. I think part of the challenge for Elon and our future is that there are so many right ways to be in service,” she says, adding that her role will be to determine which ones align best with the institution’s mission and are within our reach.

This desire to be in service to others is at the root of Book’s leadership style, something that has been apparent in her work since March 1. She made sure to spend her first day in office meeting with different Elon community stakeholders. She attended breakfasts with members of the physical plant and campus police

OWNING OUR FUTURE

{ President Connie Ledoux Book talks with students during her first day in office. }

before meeting with groups of students and faculty and staff. She attended numerous lunches and gatherings with students and different offices on campus during her first two months as president, listening to what the community shares with her so she can incorporate it as part of Elon’s story going forward.

“Elon has a great tradition of owning its future—we design it, we put our heart and soul in it and people work very hard on it,” she says. “What a powerful thing we’ve built and we will continue to build for the next decade.”

As for Book’s vision for Elon, it’s the same she had when she was here before. “I’d say it’s two things: One would be to be the most powerful learning community we possibly can. That’s just a fundamental,” Book says. “And the second, I absolutely believe that this community is the vision, that the ideas that we have and the dreams we have for our future—that unfold through each of our strategic planning processes— that is the vision. So the community will articulate it and as the leader, my job is to mirror it. My job is to hear it and to tell our story.”

Kerrii Anderson ’79 is confident Book will excel at that. As chair of Elon’s board of trustees, she was a

member of the presidential search committee. “She is an excellent communicator,” Anderson says. “Connie understands that there are a lot of constituencies and she needs to be a listener to gather opinions that will influence where Elon needs to go. While she embraces and embodies the Elon culture, she also embraces the need to change, as the world around us changes, to make sure Elon is prepared for growth in the next 10 years.”

After watching Book in action at Saint Pius, Marcaccio has high hopes for Elon’s future with Book at the helm. “I think the great leaders I’ve met in my life, in education, in the church, in government and in industry, all have a very keen intuition, and Connie Book has that,” he says. “It’s a function of the head and the heart. It takes a long time to develop and, quite frankly, it is a gift. What a fantastic opportunity for an institution that has such a great reputation and such a great future. I think she is going to help Elon shine.”

Anderson agrees. “Connie Book has a passion and understanding for what makes Elon special,” she says. “She is focused on the integration and intersection of students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents and the board. She is an inclusive, inspirational leader who wants to take Elon to the next level.”   25

From the ARCHIVES

Turning the page Now part of the School of Communications, the Iris Holt McEwen Building once served as the home of Elon’s library.

BY SARAH COLLINS ’18

E

nter the first floor of the cassette tapes, as well as microfilm and Iris Holt McEwen Building microfiche readers. In addition, the today and you’ll find student library had an art exhibit space and a journalists working in the newly “Church History” room. christened Paul Parsons Student In its early years, the new building Newsroom. You’ll see state-of-the-art was called “The Elon College Library.” studios and a large wall dedicated On May 20, 1972, the building was to student and alumni awards. Up officially dedicated and named the until 18 years ago, however, this space Iris Holt McEwen Library in recogniwas the first floor of the Iris Holt tion of McEwen’s service to Elon. An McEwen Library.

Alamance County educator, McEwen By the 1960s, Elon College was served on Elon’s board of trustees for quickly outgrowing its humble library 36 years. McEwen Library stood next to in Carlton. Construction of a new McEwen Dining Hall, which had been library began in 1966, following a named in honor of her late husband, groundbreaking ceremony that took James H. McEwen, in 1956. Technology place on Parents’ Day that fall. After more had a profound impact on the library. In than a year and a half of construction, the 1993 its card catalog was replaced by an library was completed in the summer of online catalog called I.R.I.S., which stood 1968. With the new building finished, for “Information Retrieval in Seconds” in the challenge remained of moving the honor of the library’s namesake. In 1995, university’s entire collection of books 42 new computers were installed around from the existing library in Carlton.

McEwen Library, giving library patrons In keeping with Elon’s spirit of commuaccess to several CD-ROM databases and nity, the college asked students, faculty, the internet. Elon also joined the North staff and local residents to help with the Carolina Piedmont Area Library System, daunting task. On June 15, 1968, Elon allowing the community to search for College canceled classes and invited books in the collections of several private everyone to a picnic steak dinner—for colleges in the Triad region. the price of carrying 10 loads of books In the summer of 1995, McEwen to the new library. In a single hot sumLibrary underwent a renovation. According mer day, the campus community carried to an article published in the Burlington 67,000 books from the old Carlton Library Times-News, seldom-used books were { From the top: Students browse through the card catalog to the new library. The story goes that the moved off-site to accommodate new at the Iris Holt McEwen Library in the 1970s; students, faculty last load of books arrived at 5:05 p.m. books. The technical services departand staff help move books in 1968 from the Carlton Library —five minutes after the set goal time. ment, responsible for purchasing and to the new library; the new library building was officially The new library opened the very next cataloging new library materials, was also dedicated in 1972. } day. The building’s three floors offered moved off-site to Arts West. In addition, shorter shelves replaced the seven-footenough space for 600 students to study, tall bookshelves on the first floor, allowing visitors a clear view a much-needed upgrade from the old library’s reading room of the library. But this renovation was only a temporary fix. The that could accommodate only 100 students. The library also had school had once again outgrown its library, and planning began the capacity to hold 120,000 books, strategically planned for the for a new space. The result was the Carol Grotnes Belk Library, college to continue growing its collection. Patrons of the library which opened in 2000. After the library moved out of McEwen, could enjoy the building’s air conditioning, a luxury that had not the building was renovated to become the home of the new School been available in Carlton. Featuring the latest modern technology, of Communications. the library also housed 24 listening tables for vinyl records and

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{ Bethany Beckham ’18, left, is one of the many Elon students working to improve their mental well-being. }

ethany Beckham ’18 walked into a campus coffee shop on a recent afternoon and spotted a friend sitting behind a laptop and latte. A smile immediately spread across her face. “I just got into grad school!” Beckham exclaimed. The news was still fresh. There was no time to really take it all in. At another table, a group of friends caught Beckham’s attention. “I got in,” she mouthed excitedly, hurrying over to accept congratulatory hugs.

A self-described high-achieving, type-A person, Beckham’s admittance into the speech language pathology program at the University of Memphis is par for the course. She hopes to one day help singers who have hurt their voices. An Honors Fellow, music in liberal arts major, admissions tour guide and a regular on the President’s and Dean’s lists, Beckham worked hard to get to this place. Graduate school was part of her plan all along, but she wasn’t 100 percent sure she would get accepted into a program.

It was just a year ago that she returned to Elon for spring semester after an extended break. The stress of school, the pressure to meet all the demands she placed on herself and a host of other worries and concerns overwhelmed Beckham in the fall of her junior year. The anxiety disorder and depression she was first diagnosed with in ninth grade increasingly worsened. “I was not coping well,” Beckham says. “Untreated, it was affecting me and the people around me. My friends convinced me to take time for healing and recovery.”   27

Between 2009 and 2015, the number of college students visiting counseling centers in the United States increased by an average of 30 percent, according to the Center for College Mental Health 2015 report.

Beckham withdrew from classes that November via a medical withdrawal and spent Winter Term at home in Tennessee, using the time away for intensive therapy. “I needed to be focused on just healing and not school and everything else,” Beckham says. “I’m very grateful I did that. I was a little worried with my grad school applications that it would deter me from getting into programs, but it didn’t. I think it was important that I showed initiative and got better.”

While anxiety and depression don’t always rise to the level of taking a leave of absence, Beckham isn’t alone in her mental health struggles. Between 2009 and 2015, the number of college students visiting counseling centers in the United States increased by an average of 30 percent, according to the Center for College Mental Health 2015 report. Students sought services for a variety of reasons, with anxiety, depression and relationship issues topping the list. In spring 2017, 62 percent of students “felt overwhelming anxiety” and 40 percent “felt so depressed that it was difficult to function,” according to an American College Health Association survey of more than 63,000 students at 92 schools.

Elon students are not exempt from this trend. About 9.6 percent of students (621) used Elon’s Counseling Services in the 2014–15 academic year. That number jumped to 12.6 percent of students (846) in the 2016–17 academic year and is still on the rise, says Marie Shaw, director of Counseling Services. Of those seeking services in the past academic year, 72.7 percent cited anxiety and 53.5 percent depression as the reason for seeking help.

The reasons for the increase are complex. “We know that generalized anxiety is much higher in this generation,” says Jana Lynn Patterson, dean of students and associate vice president for student life. “We are not exactly sure why, but we know it’s higher.”

Parents arranged play dates and activities, ensuring highlystructured, safe experiences. Risk-taking wasn’t always encouraged and the sting of failure avoided, all while the expectations to fit in socially and excel academically were constants. Résumé building started early with a continual flurry of activities and leadership roles checking the necessary boxes for college acceptance—a proven path to a successful career. “When you consider the number of ways parents want to make sure their children have positive experiences, I think we unintentionally shield them from the kind of difficult experiences that help them grow and learn to navigate challenges,” says Jon Dooley, vice president for student life. The fact this generation of students grew up at a time when terrorism, school shootings and political conflicts are the norm adds to the anxiety.

The result: a generation of students who strive for perfection, fear failure and struggle with anxious and depressive feelings that often rise to a level requiring behavioral therapy and psychotropic drugs.

The increased use of social media also instills the idea that others are accomplishing more and at a quicker rate. “You only see an embellished picture of others and you have this impression that you have to compete with that,” says Bilal Ghandour, an assistant professor of

Prevention and intervention In January President Emeritus Leo M. Lambert and President Connie Ledoux Book, who officially started her tenure March 1, sent out a joint email to the Elon campus community, outlining actions underway to address the issue of student suicide and mental health on campus. In recent years, Elon, like many colleges and universities, has experienced incidents of student suicide.

The university is adding three new counselors to Counseling Services, including a case manager to do referrals and match up students with resources, as well as a group therapy expert available free of charge. “A group setting can sometimes be much more powerful and impactful than an individual session,” says Marie Shaw, director of Counseling Services.

The Presidential Task Force on Social Climate and Out-of-Class Engagement produced a report in April 2016 with six major themes and 42 recommendations. A student wellness and well-being

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group was developed to examine the best ways to assist students before anxiety and stress levels become unmanageable. The group will have a holistic and well-being plan by May. “We are looking at how we can we help people with normal day-to-day stresses and anxieties that are typical for college students so that they don’t have to go seek professional help if they do poorly on a test or have a relationship that is not going as planned,” says Caroline Ketcham, a professor of exercise science and co-chair of the group. “That frees up our professional services for more immediate needs if a crisis comes up.”

When a crisis does occur, especially if it’s when the counseling center is closed, students can use the counselor-on-call emergency service and get quick access to help in times of need, says Jana Lynn Patterson, dean of students and associate vice president for student life, who is also working on more effective ways to connect students with

the vast resources available, whether it’s mental health services, tutoring or just a way to connect with peers and feel a greater sense of belonging.

“We can’t control whether a student is going to have road blocks or adversity,” Patterson says. “But if we can help them gain confidence in accessing resources when they need them, it’s going to make them more resilient.”

Several mindfulness programs are offered that teach meditating skills, breathing exercises and visualization, and there is a yoga program specifically for trauma survivors. For students who aren’t sure if they need a licensed therapist, an online mental health screening is available on the Counseling Services website, elon.edu/counseling, and an online platform—Therapy Assisted Online—will soon be available so students can work independently on a variety of struggles that impact mental health.

MIND MATTERS

Elon offers several mindfulness programs that teach meditating skills, breathing exercises and visualization. The university also has a chapter of Active Minds, a national organization focused on reducing and eliminating stigma around mental health on college campuses.

psychology at Elon and a practicing clinical licensed psychologist.

“It creates a tremendous amount of pressure, especially for young adults who are developing a sense of identity.”

At Elon, students are very involved in activities, striving to be their best. “We have a very perfectionistic student body, a high-achieving student body,” Shaw says. College campuses are environments conducive to learning and growing but also breeding grounds for excessive stress and tension to perform and achieve.

“If you are in that environment and you are friends with people who are in six different organizations, you feel the need to do the same,” Ghandour says. “You feel you are being left behind and that creates a loss of confidence and fear of failure.” When students struggle, it’s not unusual for them to feel they are alone in the experience. “On social media, people post the side of themselves that looks happy and that they are doing well,” Shaw says. “It is easy to craft what you outwardly portray on social media. For some people, they might feel so differently on the inside.”

While negotiating obstacles is a normal part of the learning process and the college experience, getting students to understand and embrace that isn’t easy, Dooley says. “How do we help them understand that they are not alone with the challenges they are facing? For us as an institution, if our mission is the transformation of mind, body and spirit, part of what we are talking about is not just the intellectual mind,” he says. “It is also emotional health and well-being and the ability to thrive and be successful. That should be part of the learning environment here, too. It has to be.”

Beckham first started seeing a therapist in ninth grade and went on antidepressants, but she wasn’t doing either when her anxiety levels rose during her sophomore year of college. Even with previous treatment, anxiety disorders don’t just disappear.

“Anxiety is a continual thing,” she says. She started counseling again, that time with a therapist in Burlington, North Carolina, a friend had recommended. Now in her senior year, Beckham manages symptoms with a combination of antidepressants and coping mechanisms. “I got enough tools in my toolbox,”

Beckham says about her decision to end regular therapy sessions.

“But it’s an open communication. If I need to go back, I can.”

A major source of comfort is Beckham’s dog, Leo, named after President Emeritus Leo M. Lambert. A Shih Tzu mix with an uncanny ability to sense anxiety and panic attacks, Leo is a calming force in her life. The dog is a registered emotional support animal, which is permitted in campus housing if a student provides all the necessary documentation from a mental health provider, according to the Fair Housing Act. A total of 75 Elon students have been approved to have emotional support animals, says Susan Wise, director of disabilities resources. Unlike service animals, they are not permitted in the classroom.

Most of the time, Leo merely serves as a companion, but he is also a reminder to Beckham that she can manage whatever comes her way. “On those days when you don’t want to get out of bed or be alone in your apartment, you know you are never alone,” she says.

And if anxiety or panic sets in, which for Beckham means heart palpitations, shortness of breath and blurred vision, Leo senses it.

“He sits on top of my chest,” she says. “If I’m actually having a panic attack, he will put a paw on me and then go tell someone.”

Stefanie Milovic’s anxiety flares up at different times but tends to be more situational. “The depression is always there though,” says the junior majoring in strategic communications. Diagnosed with both generalized anxiety disorder and severe depression when she was a junior in high school, there are days when Milovic struggles to get out of bed. Her hamster, Amber, provides the nudge she needs sometimes. “It’s another reason to remind myself to wake up and go to classes,” she says. “I can’t just lay in bed, at the very least, I have to get up and feed her.”

Consistent grades and a role in several campus organizations often mask the reality that keeping mentally healthy is a daily struggle for Milovic. While she’s an Honors Fellow, president of   29

MIND MATTERS

professor of sociology, on the mental health of college students with a focus on gender. Elyaderani hopes to learn what type of issues males struggle with uniquely. “Women have incredible support networks,” he says. “They can talk to their friends about issues. Men share but they typically only share thoughts of selfdoubt or sadness to a significant other, if they have one.”

The signs of depression in males can be misleading. “When we see our friends drinking a lot or acting aggressively, we don’t think they are depressed,” Elyaderani says. “We think, ‘Wow, that person is being a jerk.’ People don’t associate that kind of behavior with depression.” He plans to launch a student survey to get a clearer picture of the issue. “Elon is a unique place but it is not unique in the struggles that students have, so that data could be used at universities across the country,” he says.

two organizations and holds two campus jobs, she also recognizes her need to see a counselor and continually manage her symptoms.

“Keeping busy, for the most part, helps me. But I think it helps one disorder over the other,” she says, knowing that keeping active helps with depression but at times can be overwhelming. “It’s a trade-off trying to decide what I can and can’t handle.”

Leadership roles give Milovic a sense of purpose. “I have a passion for the organizations I am part of,” she says. Keeping connected intellectually and socially helps. The relationships she has developed are crucial. “At the very least, I am surrounded by people who have a passion for me,” she says. “They ensure that I’m still here.”

One of the organizations Milovic serves on is the executive board of the DMAX Club, a student organization focused on improving mental health and increasing conversations about mental and emotional issues facing college students. “The idea is that everyone needs to be worried about mental health,” she says. “We have meetings that encourage you to speak what’s actually on your mind and what you are actually feeling.” Meetings usually involve a relaxing activity, such as making stress balls, followed by honest conversation.

The social life of students plays a huge role in the transition from high school to college life. Senior Perry Elyaderani, a journalism and chemistry double major, learned this the hard way his first year on campus. An extrovert who never had a problem making friends or fitting in, Elyaderani felt the sting of exclusion after deciding that Greek life wasn’t for him. “As a male if you are not affiliated, especially in your first year or two, it feels like you are out of it,” he says.

“As a social person who wanted to be included in everything, that was really hard. I had never had a problem like that before.”

At the time, Elyaderani says, he didn’t realize he was depressed.

Fearing he’d isolate himself further, he didn’t share his feelings with friends. When he went home for the summer, he realized how much the situation had impacted him. That experience, combined with what he learned while working on a news report about male suicide after an Elon student took his own life, inspired Elyaderani to apply for and receive Elon’s Leadership Prize, a $10,000 award that supports the intensive study of an issue. He is now in his third semester of conducting research with mentor Alexis Franzese, associate 30   of 

Based on the rising number of students using Elon’s counseling center, it appears there is less of a stigma associated with seeking mental health help. “You hear more people openly share that they’ve been to therapy than you heard a decade ago,” Shaw says. “Progress has been made but there is ongoing work.”

Following the shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007 that left 32 dead and many wounded after a student with a history of mental health problems went on a rampage before killing himself, many college campuses formed behavioral intervention and threat assessment teams, Dooley says. “The goal was to try to identify students with serious mental health challenges and get them resources,” he says. “That’s a good thing.” As a result, students with less acute mental health concerns were also identified and additional support services developed. “We have students who are more willing to seek support, and we have better infrastructure to help identify and direct students toward that support.”

Many student organizations provide that support. Elon has a chapter of Active Minds, a national organization focused on reducing and eliminating stigma around mental health on college campuses. “[Mental health] seems like something people tiptoe around because they are uncomfortable,” says senior Kacie Lynch, co-president of the group. “And it is uncomfortable sometimes, but we need to do something about it. We need to talk about it and educate others.”

Understanding what resources Elon has available, whether it’s to address academic, social or mental needs, is vital for all students.

“I think college students need to learn how to take care of themselves better,” Beckham says. She is confident the work she’s done to improve her mental well-being will take her far. “I think I am stronger because I understood that I couldn’t handle everything.”

It’s an ongoing struggle, but Beckham is learning she doesn’t have to be perfect. She doesn’t need to have everything figured out. “I wanted to be optimistic all the time and only experience the highs,” she says. “I didn’t want to be a burden on anyone but my treatment really showed me that it’s not bad to ask for help when you need help.”

A BOOST FOR YOUR BRAIN { Assistant Professor of Psychology Rachel Force, left, demonstrates how to use an electroencephalography cap to students in her neuroscience senior seminar. }

P

eople are creatures of habit. We follow daily routines, frequent the same stores and eat the same meals at our favorite restaurants. We find comfort in the familiar, but what’s best for your brain is a little more variance.

“There are multiple behavioral things that people can do that will minimize the risk of mental illness and boost wellness, and doing things that are new and challenging is a big one,” says Rachel Force, assistant professor of psychology. “Our neural systems like familiarity, but we know from neuroscience that you’re going to be much more satisfied if you have a completely unexpected experience.”

Force studies a variety of factors that affect brain activity. For example, if you set high expectations for a particular experience, biochemically your response to the actual event won’t be as powerful as what you envisioned. Novel, unexpected experiences generate a more rewarding reaction. Direct, engaging social interactions like a hug, handshake or eye contact also provide an emotional boost. Those interactions produce oxytocin, a hormone tied to empathy and bonding between individuals. Physical exercise delivers oxygen to the brain and releases neurotransmitters like serotonin, helping to relieve stress, improve your mood and augment cognitive function.

Meditation helps the brain exert control over the sympathetic nervous system by increasing your awareness of your body. If you notice you have muscle tension or anxious feelings, with practice, meditation can help you dictate your response to those sensations. “If my heart

PSYCHOLOGY PROFESSOR RACHEL FORCE STUDIES THE ROLE OF BIOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR IN MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS. BY ALEXA BOSCHINI ’10 is beating really fast, my brain has to decide what that means,” Force says. “I might be thinking, ‘I’m so anxious,’ but then decide, ‘No, I’m excited.’ Those are two very different framings. Physiologically they feel the same—my palms are sweaty, my heart is racing, my mouth is dry. But excited translates to, ‘I can take this on,’ versus terrified and anxious, which are not going to help me persist.”

Participants in Force’s research engage in brain-boosting exercises, and she and her students measure their biological and emotional responses. One study paired strangers and had them complete a variety of activities together over several sessions. Some learned to fence (a novel experience that requires eye contact) and others exercised on stationary bicycles and completed a meditation series focused on cultivating compassion. Force and her students measured the participants’ cognitive ability and mental and emotional well-being at the beginning and end of the study to determine which groups experienced the most improvement.

The study also involved a high-tech element that’s a central piece of Force’s scholarship. Half of the fencing pairs wore a transcranial direct-current stimulation device, which delivers a low electrical current to the brain via electrodes affixed to the forehead. The device is thought to stimulate specific neural networks, and it’s been approved in some countries as a treatment for pain and depression.

The biology of mental illness is another key piece of Force’s research. Brain chemistry changes before behavioral symptoms appear, so Force studies biological indicators that could alert doctors to the presence of mental illness before it fully manifests. Her goal is to learn how to offset the risk of mental illness early, in addition to learning how the brain-boosting techniques she studies can benefit those already living with mental illness. “We’ve reduced the risk for other disorders that are perhaps environmentally controllable because we’ve found risk factors for them, but we haven’t developed anything like that for mental illness,” Force says. “Looking at these biological indicators might give us a precursor where we can intervene before symptoms develop.”

Much of Force’s scholarship focuses on emerging adults, or those around age 18 to 25. Whether the goal is to alleviate symptoms of mental illness or improve overall wellness, her work could help boost brain stimulation in young adults and help them develop more effective cognitive habits long term. “Helping students develop good mental health habits now, whether that’s trying new things or being open and genuine with people, that’s lifelong well-being not just for yourself but for everybody you come into contact with,” Force says.

“The ramifications of that are profound.”

“Helping students develop good mental health habits now, whether that’s trying new things or being open and genuine with people, that’s lifelong well-being.”—Rachel Force   31

REBOOTING HER LIFE After a seven-year battle with a neurological illness, Kimberly Bari ’ has found the middle ground

BY OWEN COVINGTON

I

magine this: Your dream of teaching English in China comes true, and you ship out for all the thrills and lessons that such an experience will bring. But within just a few weeks, you begin suffering from seizures.

You’re in a foreign country, dealing with an unknown condition, all while doing your best to teach English to local Chinese residents.

That was the very real experience of Kimberly Bari ’06. The anxiety and seizures she experienced in China were just the beginning of what would be a seven-year battle—first to discover the root cause of a mystifying brain condition and then undergoing extensive treatment to combat it. Suffering from epi-

{ Kimberly Bari ’06 in China before her diagnosis. }

32   of 

lepsy and autoimmune limbic encephalitis, Bari lost the ability to read and write and experienced erratic behavior, hallucinations and suicidal thoughts.

Today, thanks to her own perseverance, the support of family and the cutting-edge minds and technology of the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center, Bari is living a nearly seizure-free life. Each day is a step back toward her goal of returning to the classroom as a teacher. “Right now, it’s my goal to get back out into the community, and I’m doing it slowly,” says Bari, who lives in San Francisco. “I still want to return to teaching.”

Originally from Norwalk, Connecticut, Bari says she fell in love with Elon University after hearing about the school from a former student and visiting campus. “It was so beautiful to see that I really didn’t have to think twice about it,” she says. A psychology major, she started volunteering through the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society at R. Homer Andrews Elementary School, where she grew close with a kindergarten teacher and the students in her class.

That’s what solidified her desire to teach. “I loved it so much that I decided to keep volunteering even after the Phi Kappa Phi program had ended,” she says.

“I was working with students to help them learn English, and that was so rewarding.”

After graduating in 2006, Bari earned a master’s degree in education from Loyola College in Maryland, and moved to Spokane, Washington, where she started as a substitute before becoming a second-grade teacher. It was in 2010 that the opportunity to combine two passions, travel and teaching English to speakers of other languages, emerged, propelling Bari to Nanjing in the Jiangsu province in China where for the next year she planned to teach English at the Nanjing College of Information

REBOOTING HER LIFE

{ Above: Kimberly Bari ’06 and her family. Right: A look at the device implanted in Bari’s brain.

Below: Bari and Dr. Robert Knowlton, one of the neurologists at UCSF. }

Technology. Within three weeks of moving to Nanjing in August 2010, Bari experienced her first seizure, initially chalking it up to perhaps an allergic reaction, a lack of exercise or something related to the move. By October seizures were disrupting her sleep, and she began feeling vibrations in her head while eating and losing her short-term memory. Hallucinations worsened while emotional instability followed and she flew home to the United States in February 2011, with little insight into what was causing this. Substantial treatment for epilepsy and psychological conditions were doing little to improve her condition. She endured countless MRIs and EEGs, a PET scan, spinal taps and medication cocktails.

Bari was eventually diagnosed with autoimmune limbic encephalitis, a disorder that impacts the limbic system that controls thoughts, feelings, emotions and behaviors. Beginning in September 2012, two years of treatment from a doctor in New York helped return her mental stability, but her cognition remained impaired and she continued to suffer from epilepsy. In October 2014, due in part to medication she was taking, Bari suffered a loss of consciousness while living in San Francisco and a fall that caused her to fracture her skull. She was rushed to UCSF Medical Center where neurologists took on her case.

In 2016 the UCSF team recommended brain surgery to remove parts of her brain and scar tissue they believed were causing the seizures. It would be the first of two brain surgeries, and the beginning of Bari’s real recovery from this life-altering condition.

“I remember after the first surgery, I woke up with a huge sense of relief,” Bari says.

Throughout her life, Bari had suffered from extreme emotional highs and lows and ongoing anxiety. That had now changed.

“I finally had the middle ground—the middle ground that I had wished for so that I could mentally understand my feelings. I thought, ‘This is really me. Now I have the stability I am wishing for,’” she says.

“I finally had the middle ground— the middle ground that I had wished for so that I could mentally understand my feelings.

I thought, ‘This is really me. Now I have the stability I am wishing for.’”

To help control her seizures, in May 2017 doctors placed a Responsive Neurostimulation System device inside Bari’s skull connected to the area of her brain that was continuing to trigger seizures but that they were unable to remove due to its role in speech and cognition.

The device reads signals (think pacemaker) from the brain to monitor for potential seizures, and upon detecting the start of one, is able to use electrical stimulation to stop or minimize the seizure. It is also able to capture data about Bari’s brain and seizure activity that helps to remotely provide her neurologists a picture of what’s going on. “The device is on 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” Bari says. “I’m no longer alone in trying to overcome this. I’m being constantly monitored by such a great team of doctors, and I’m learning so much, which I love.”

Bari’s amazing case was featured in a short documentary titled “Rebooting Kimberly’s Brain,” produced by UCSF and featured on the Bay Area CBS affiliate, KPIX. For Bari, sharing her story is a way to give back and to help those who are struggling with mental health, epilepsy and neurological conditions.

While her brain heals and she continues to recover, she’s dedicating herself to volunteering with a variety of organizations including the National Alliance for Mental Illness, the Epilepsy Foundation and the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. She’s become an ambassador for NeuroPace, the maker of the device she has now.

The experience has taught Bari to know that “nothing is ever over,” she says. “Emerging from this in such a positive way is really enabling me to give back to those in the community around me. The fact I’ve survived can provide hope to so many others.”   33

POINT of VIEW

Witnessing history

BY ZACH HRINUK ’18

A journalism major, Zach Hrinuk ’18 finished his studies early so he could attend the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games in February. He traveled to South Korea after landing an internship as production associate and runner for NBC Olympics. He is now based in New Jersey.

W

hen I found out I would be traveling to South Korea with the NBC team for the Winter Olympic Games, I was a little nervous. I was going to the other end of the world on my first overseas trip to a region that seemed to be on the brink of war. Luckily for me, tensions softened in the first few days of 2018 when North Korea officials met with the International Olympic Committee and we learned North Korea and South Korea would make history and participate in the games as one Korea, united under one flag. The South Koreans even agreed to foot the nearly $3 million bill for the North Korean delegation’s Olympic appearance. I realized then I would be witnessing history.

Prior to leaving for the Olympics, my uncle showed me videos of the border between North and South Korea and the Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ for short—the no-fire buffer zone between the two countries that stretches coast to coast on the Korean Peninsula. My 90-year-old grandfather fought in the Korean War and lived in the same area where I was housed during the Olympics.

Having heard his stories as a child, I knew I wanted to visit the border. My work schedule didn’t give me much down time but my boss was gracious enough to let me take a trip to get a glimpse of North Korea. I had to provide my passport information several days in advance so that the governments could run a background check. As a member of the media, I traveled in a coach bus to the border.

Upon arriving at the DMZ, we were given very strict orders concerning photography and gathering of information in the region. Soldiers came on the bus to identify who we were and remained there while we moved into the DMZ. As we drove, our English-speaking guide informed us that just off the driving path were many landmine bombs left from the war, which could go off at any time if someone were to venture into the areas marked with a red flag.

When it came time to go to North Korea, we had to leave our cell phones and possessions on the bus before walking to take a glimpse of the hermit nation. It was a surreal experience to see the North Korean structures, soldiers and flags blowing in the wind. In the distance, we could see a

34   of 

building on a mountain from where Kim Jong Un recently watched one of his missile launches toward Japan.

You may have heard stories about the two countries blasting music out of speakers at each other near the border. Those stories are true. On the South Korean side, massive speakers blast K-Pop music at the North Korean soldiers. The North responds with anti-American propaganda music and chants. Neither country has their speaker on when the other has theirs off. One of the South Korean soldiers I was with said they enjoy picking the music.

During my visit, the music selection was a mixture of pop and rap music. The visit allowed me to fully comprehend my grandfather’s stories and to understand the Korean War’s impact on the region.

During the parade of nations as part of the games’ opening ceremonies, the North and South Korean delegations marched out together under one flag. An athlete from each country was carrying the flag, followed by athletes from both countries. When they entered the stadium, the stands erupted in cheers. Several seat sections to the left of me was the Olympic Delegation box where U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, all sat together, only inches apart. It was an encounter only made possible by this incredible event.

The Korean people are some of the nicest individuals I have ever met. Even when there was a language barrier, the countless volunteers at the Olympic venues and in Gangneung Olympic Park always smiled and were excited to meet people from all over the world. One particular volunteer who I grew to know during my time there gave me stationery that had my name and job title handwritten in Korean. I was lucky to have a translator named Ann who was a South Korean native from Seoul (the PyeongChang region is a more rural area where very few natives speak English). She explained South Koreans don’t feel hostility toward the people of the North. They welcome them and think about them often. Many South Koreans have relatives in the North that they have not heard from in a long time or even know if they are alive. Ann told me they are hopeful for the future on the Korean Peninsula and that there would be peace.

I left the country hoping for the same. The Koreans left a lasting impact on me and I hope my American colleagues and I left a positive and lasting impact on them.

ALUMNI ACTION

Sharing Elon with the world

H

ow do you describe Elon to your friends, family or colleagues? After taking a minute to think about that, consider this: When did you last update the way you describe Elon? Because a majority of our experiences were formed as students, how we illustrate Elon to others is naturally connected to that time. If you’re like me and have a double-digit class reunion number, the years since our graduation have been incredibly transformative. Elon’s growth and achievements are eye-catching for alumni, but also nationally. The university continues to make waves as the preeminent school for engaged and experiential learning, as well as in athletics. It is now more important than ever that our descriptions of Elon are not only filled with pride, but accurate information that will represent the success of the university and its students.

So the next time Elon comes up in conversation, include the five points below to show how far we’ve come and just how bright our future is:

As this is my last column as president of the Elon Alumni Board, I want to thank the board and the incredibly engaged alumni who form the foundation of our Elon community. I am confident that what we have planned and accomplished will serve Elon well in the future and continue the momentum of our dynamic university. I’m especially proud of the board for endowing a $100,000 scholarship as part of Elon Day. The Elon Alumni Board Engagement Scholarship will in part support students whose family member(s) previously attended Elon. Congratulations also go to my successor, Michelle Snavely ’00, for being named the next Elon Alumni Board president.

In so many ways Michelle exemplifies the best of what Elon graduates have to offer, and she will be an inclusive representative and strong advocate for the alumni body.

Chris Bell ’92 President, Elon Alumni Board

We are a growing community with , undergraduate and graduate students.

We are producing global citizens:  percent of recent graduates studied abroad.

Our alumni network is strong with  alumni chapters nationwide and in London.

We boast state-of-the-art facilities like the ,-seat Schar Center, which will open in the fall.

We are a philanthropic community.

Case in point: The Elon community made , gifts on Elon Day 2018.

SHARE YOUR CHAIR  Give back to Elon and share a chair with members of the Class of 2018 before they walk across the Commencement stage. Make a gift by May 16 and you will be honored at Commencement, when your name will appear on the chair of a graduating senior. Your support shows seniors the integral role alumni play in supporting the transformative Elon experience.

Make your gift today at elon.edu/makeagift.   35

ALUMNI ACTION

Coming together for Elon Day More than 1,000 alumni helped carry the excitement from campus out into the regions on Elon Day by attending their local event. There were 43 Elon Day parties this year, including a College Coffee-themed gathering in Kernersville, North Carolina, celebrations in both London and Berlin, and the first-ever alumni event in Jackson, Wyoming. Thanks to all alumni who made their gift and celebrated the success of the day with Elon.

jacksonville, fla.

new orleans

san fra ncisco

a florid h t u so

burlington, nc

dalla s

If you have recently moved or changed jobs, make sure to update your information at elon.edu/alumniupdate to receive details about upcoming events in your area.

36   of 

ALUMNI ACTION

Several chapters held professional development and networking events to help alumni excel in their careers.

• The Triangle Alumni Chapter held an event called “Planning Your Future in the Triangle” on April 19 in Raleigh, which included a retirement planning session and a real estate market session led

by Mark Parker ’91.

• The Atlanta Alumni Chapter hosted a “Communicate with Impact” event on Feb. 22 led by Shelley Gaynes p’15, founder of Gee Wiz LLC. Attendees learned to identify individual behaviors and communication styles to help enhance productivity, teamwork and communication.

• The London Alumni Chapter hosted a networking event for students participating in the semester-long study abroad program in London. A panel of alumni answered students’ questions and described the British work environment, their professional stories and how to best utilize time abroad.

• The Charlotte Alumni Chapter hosted its third annual “Elon 102: What they didn’t teach you in college” event on Feb. 15.

Garrett Kachellek ’07, Adam Constantine ’10, Ken Dunkle ’13 and Ashley Fahey ’13 shared helpful advice and expert insight on a variety of topics.

In addition, following the excitement from the Winter Olympics, members of the Seattle Alumni Chapter tried their hand at curling. Alumni learned tips and tricks on how to master this popular sport and enjoyed the unique opportunity and time spent together.

atlanta

charlotte

triangle

london

seattle   37

ALUMNI ACTION

TOP  UNDER :

Recognizing Young Alumni Excellence

From left: (back) Daniel Brown ’09, Andie Diemer ’10, Bernie Coston II ’08, Greg Honan ’14 & Ryan Guthy ’09; (front) President Connie Ledoux Book, Molly Heffernan ’11, Jasmine Turner ’15, Stephanie Marken ’08 & Stephanie Robinson ’11.

Ten outstanding young alumni were recognized April 14 for their achievements with the 2018 Top 10 Under 10 Alumni Awards.

Launched in 2011, the program highlights and celebrates alumni who have graduated within the past decade and are distinguished in their professions and invested in the future of Elon and their community. Recognized were: ✪ Daniel Brown ’09, biology instructor, North Carolina

School of Science and Mathematics (Durham, North Carolina)

✪ Andie Diemer ’10, digital photo editor, GQ & Kazoo

magazines (Brooklyn, New York)

✪ Bernard “Bernie” Coston II ’08, lead business initiatives

consultant, Wells Fargo Commercial Distribution Finance (Tyrone, Georgia)

✪ Ryan Guthy ’09, co-founder and co-owner, Wicked Weed

Brewing (Asheville, North Carolina)

✪ Stephanie Bement Gronewoller ’12 (in absentia),

software developer, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (Hanover, Maryland)

38   of 

✪ Molly Heffernan ’11, manager of digital and marketing,

The Tory Burch Foundation (New York, New York)

✪ Greg Honan ’14, research assistant for David Gergen,

Harvard Kennedy School (Cambridge, Massachusetts)

✪ Stephanie Marken ’08, chief methodologist, Gallup

(Washington, District of Columbia)

✪ Stephanie Robinson ’11, associated health postdoctoral

fellow, U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (Brighton, Massachusetts)

✪ Jasmine Turner ’15, reporter, NBC12 WWBT-TV

(Richmond, Virginia)

CLASS NOTES

66|

Bill Ruth and Jerry Schumm ’69, two Alpha

89|

Kathie Niven has been named president of Greensboro, N.C.based Biscuitville. Kathie joined the company in 2011 as the company’s chief brand officer and has headed the restaurant chain’s brand vision and growth plan. As part of the company’s strategy, she oversaw the creation of Biscuitville’s brand positioning, which encompassed logo development, restaurant redesign, packaging, employee uniforms and trademarking. The family-owned company was founded in 1966 by Maurice Jennings ’57 and operates in 54 locations in North Carolina and Virginia.

Pi Delta brothers, caught up with each other in New Orleans this February, along with spouses Mary Coolidge Ruth and Jeanne Shay Schumm ’69. They last saw each other at Elon’s Homecoming celebration in 1999. Mary serves on the board of directors at Back Bay Mission in Biloxi, Miss., and she and Bill volunteered at Heifer Ranch in Arkansas for a few months. Jerry is retired and performs weddings on the Gulf Coast. The Schumms live in Diamondhead, Miss. The Ruths live in Pleasant Hill, Tenn.

85|

Bill Bride recently visited

Elon’s campus and was amazed to see how much it has changed over 33 years. He brought his equally impressed 12-year-old son, Ben, to see his old dorm, Hook, and watch two basketball games in Alumni Gym. Bill said his goodbyes to Alumni Gym and is excited about the progress of Schar Center. • Joel Huffstetler edited and wrote the introduction to “Responding to the Light: Reflections on Advent, Christmas and Epiphany” by former dean of Westminster Abbey Michael Mayne. Joel is a pastor living in Cleveland, Tenn.

95|

Gantt Howell has been hired

as a brokerage associate

by Coldwell Banker Commercial MECA. The firm provides commercial brokerage, development and management services. Gantt lives in Charlotte, N.C., with wife Liz and their three children. • Dana Neves was promoted to vice president and general manager of WFSB-TV, Channel 3, the CBS affiliate serving Hartford/ New Haven, Conn. Dana joined the station after graduation as an intern ALUMNI ALBUM

and has since worked her way up as an assignment manager, managing editor and assistant news director.

In 2006 she was named news director.

99|

Emily Matesic and Adam Rockman were married 8/19/17 in her hometown of Pittsburgh. They now live in De Pere, Wis. Emily works as a television news reporter for WBAY-TV in Green Bay. • Dana Disborough Strotman and Mike Strotman welcomed son Connor Michael on 4/4/17. Dana is a marketing coordinator for Annapolis Recreation and Parks. The family lives in Edgewater, Md.

02| Bill Ruth ’66, Mary Coolidge Ruth ’66, Jeanne Shay Schumm ’69 & Jerry Schumm ‘69

Bill Bride ’85 & son Ben

Gantt Howell ’95

Brooke Bradley Tedio and Sean Tedio welcomed daughter Zoey on 7/17/17.

Zoey joins 3-year-old sister Lily and 5-year-old sister Haley. Brooke is a registered nurse. The family lives in Palm Harbor, Fla. • Jamesia Hale Green and James Green welcomed daughter Vivian Sloane on 1/3/17.

She joins older sister Alexandra, who is 6.

03|

Dana Neves ’95

Emily Matesic ’99 & Adam Rockman

Dana Disborough Strotman ’99, Mike Strotman & son Connor Michael

Trisha Romano Salvia and

Ralph Salvia welcomed daughter Mackenzie Violet on 6/17/17. She joins older sister Mallory. Trisha also recently accepted a new position as staff attorney for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Pennsylvania office. She serves as a legal adviser and coordinator for regulatory and legislative affairs on environmental issues, and also assists in litigation and implementation of goals and objectives. The family lives in Mechanicsburg, Pa.   39

CLASS NOTES

A global leader Meet Linda Findley Kozlowski ’95, the woman in charge of operations for the e-commerce site Etsy.

BY MADISON MACKENZIE ’18

W

hat do Alibaba, Evernote and Etsy all have in common? Linda Findley Kozlowski ’95. The corporate communications and journalism graduate has held highranking positions within each organization, leaving a mark wherever she goes. After graduating from Elon, Kozlowski earned a master’s degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She spent her early professional career working at several public relations firms until 2009, when she landed her first leadership position at Alibaba.com and led global marketing, business development and customer service for China’s largest e-commerce company.

In 2012 Kozlowski joined note-taking and archiving software tool Evernote and eventually became its chief operating officer, overseeing worldwide operations and leading cross-functional teams in offices across 10 countries. By the time she was named COO for Etsy—the global marketplace for unique and creative goods that has more than 45 million items from sellers around the world—in 2016, she had more than 20 years of experience under her belt. She shared some insights about her career trajectory and her new role during a recent Q&A.

Q: What attracted you to Etsy?

The opportunity to join a creative and passionate community, as well as to further scale Etsy’s platform globally, were big motivators for joining the company. Over the course of my career, I have also consistently chosen companies that support entrepreneurship and small businesses, as that is a personal passion.

Q: What did you learn in your previous roles that have helped you be successful at Etsy?

Because of my previous role and experiences, I am a true believer that all strategic and product decisions need to be made with a global mindset and focus on connecting these markets together. Part of my overall strategy involves intertwining domestic and international strategy so that we operate as a strong, global, cohesive approach.

Q: How is Etsy’s model different?

One of the interesting things about Etsy is that we have two very strong customer sets to generate revenue. One set is our buyers, the people who come to Etsy looking for unique products. The second customer set is our Etsy sellers. When they succeed, we succeed, so we are laser-focused on providing them with all of the tools they need to start and manage their Etsy shops. Etsy sellers challenge conventional notions of entrepreneurship—most are women (87 percent), almost all run their shops from their homes (97 percent) and a vast majority are businesses of one (77 percent). We want to offer our sellers the freedom to build their businesses on their own terms so they can spend more time living their lives.

40   of 

Q: What are some of the challenges for Etsy in the future?

At Etsy, we advocate for policies and regulations that make it easier for microbusinesses in the U.S. and around the world to do business. Our approach is a bit untraditional. Instead of hiring lobbyists, we empower our sellers and put them directly in front of their representatives. We’ve found this to be a very effective tool for bringing about change. However, as the number of independent workers continues to rise, we are keenly aware that it’s more important than ever to advocate on their behalf and do our best to influence positive change.

Q: How did your time at Elon help you achieve your career goals?

Elon is a small university and a teaching university—students get time with professors and classes are small. This taught me a lot about the importance of one-on-one interactions and this translates into the businesses I’ve worked with over the years. The great balance of arts and sciences and career-focused courses helped me to develop as a person, but also learn skills that prepared me for the world. A big part of my most recent jobs is scaling businesses globally. Since Elon is a very global and service-oriented school, I learned a lot about the world beyond the classroom.

CLASS NOTES

04|

Carter Davenport was

promoted from senior associate to vice president in Diversified Trust’s Greensboro office. Carter focuses on day-to-day operations and coordinates tax recap reports for CPAs and account fee analyses clients. • Charla Johnson Halverson and David Halverson welcomed their fourth child, daughter Alexis, on 3/11/17. Alexis joins older siblings Landon, Brody and Tanner. The family lives in Atlanta. • Jonathan Lindberg was part of the winning team in the Elon MBA case competition for the Class of 2018. Jonathan, who works in finance for BioDelivery Sciences International, lives in Raleigh, N.C., with wife Sarah King Lindberg ’02. • Megan McGlynn launched a boutique cake design company called “Scout’s

Bakeshop” in Loudon County, Va. As a cake designer, she bakes custom wedding cakes, specialty cakes and dessert bars from scratch. Megan lives in Ashburn.

05|

Jennie Carman and Rob Crouch were married

10/14/17. Alumni attendance included Becca Edwards, Courtney Lynch Jones, Tarn Jones, Steve Landry, Nick Pagano, Travis Pullen and Ryan Raya. Jennie and Rob live in Rockville, Md. • William L. Mangum and Katie Pesce Mangum ’06 welcomed son Finn William on 10/6/17. Big sister Mollie is thrilled to have a little brother. • Fabyan Saxe and Brittany Boda Saxe ’06 welcomed daughter Teagan Noelle on 9/28/17.

She joins older brothers Fynn and Tatum.

09|

Helen Crompton {M.Ed.} was one of 12 recipients of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia’s prestigious 2018 Outstanding Faculty Award. It is the highest award for research, teaching and service for professors in the state. Helen, an assistant professor of instructional technology at Old Dominion University, was also named one of two Rising Stars in recognition of her early-career achievement. She researches the use of mobile technology to teach science and mathematics and has also explored the potential of mobile learning to bring education to residents of rural villages in developing countries who were unable to access it before.

ALUMNI ALBUM

Brooke Bradley Tedio ’02, Sean Tedio & children

Charla Johnson Halverson ’04, David Halverson & children

William L. Mangum ’05, Katie Pesce Mangum ’06 & children

Jamesia Hale Green ’02, James Green & children

Jonathan Lindberg ’04, far right, & friends

Fabyan Saxe ’05, Brittany Boda Saxe ’06 & children

Trisha Romano Salvia ’03, Ralph Salvia & children

Jennie Carman Crouch ’05, Rob Crouch ’05 & friends

Brian McElroy ’07, Kerry Ko & friends   41

All in the family

BY MORGAN COLLINS ’20

L

ike many Elon students, Dani Howell ’10 comes from a proud family of Elon graduates. She often visited campus as a child with her grandfather, Leroy Howell ’51, whose two brothers also graduated from Elon. Two of her cousins are Elon alumni as well, making her the sixth member of her family to graduate from the university. But the Howell family has another legacy. Four of the six members of the family who graduated from Elon practice dentistry.

Despite her family’s tradition, Howell did not come to Elon with intentions of becoming a dentist. As a political science and business administration double major, she planned to pursue law school.

“I had intended to go to law school, but pretty early on I decided I didn’t want to,” Howell says. “But I really enjoyed studying political science and I enjoyed all the professors, so I stuck with it.”

Howell toyed with the idea of becoming a lobbyist, but she realized the only thing she was passionate enough to lobby for was oral health care. It wasn’t until her senior year that she decided to go into dentistry after volunteering at a Mission of Mercy project.

Sponsored by the Virginia Dental Association Foundation, these projects are conducted in underserved areas of the state where there are not enough dental practitioners to meet the oral health

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SUFFOLK NEWS-HERALD

CLASS NOTES

{ Leroy Howell ‘51, Dani Howell ‘10 & Ralph Howell make up three generations of their family working together in their dental practice. }

needs of the community. “I had grown up going on mission projects, but it had always been in a clerical setting,” Howell says.

“In between my junior and senior years, though, I went in a clinical capacity. Seeing the clinical aspect and how much I could really impact patients’ lives, I decided to go ahead and jump to dentistry.

I grew up in the dental world, so I think it had always been in the back of my mind.”

Howell graduated from Elon in 2010 and continued on to receive a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Health Sciences at Virginia Commonwealth University in 2011. After spending a few years managing the business aspect of her father’s and grandfather’s dental practice, Howell decided to pursue her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Dentistry. In May 2017, Howell began practicing alongside her grandfather and father, Ralph, in Suffolk. While many children of dentists follow in their parents’ footsteps, Howell is grateful to have the rare opportunity to practice with two of her family members. “I know there are a lot of multigenerational families in dentistry, but it’s pretty unique that we get to practice together,” Howell says. “The days where it’s dad, granddad and I—those are the best days.”

ALUMNI ALBUM

JP Pharr ’07, Sarah Rixey Pharr ’07 & daughter Caroline Nisbet

Craig Campbell Sampson ’09 & Dale Sampson 42   of 

Ben DeLoose ’08

Britton Clark ’09 & Julianna White

Lindsay Eney Sherman ’09, Michael Sherman & friends

CLASS NOTES

07|

Brian McElroy and Kerry

Ko were married 10/20/17 in Milton, Ga. Alumni in attendance included Zach Morris ’06, Dan Pernice ’06, Ashley Feibish Morris, Bernie Coston ’08, Alissa Wilke Ward ’09 and Parks Ward ’09.

Brian and Kerry live in Los Angeles.

• Jonathan “JP” Pharr and Sarah Rixey Pharr welcomed daughter Caroline Nisbet on 8/12/17. JP is a producer for Berry Insurance Group and Sarah is a senior marketing manager at Genpact. The family lives in Cincinnati.

08|

Ben DeLoose’s latest movie, “Escape the Dark,” was shown at the 19th annual Nevermore Film Festival in Durham, N.C., in February and at the North Hollywood Cinefest in late March.

The psychological-supernatural horror film has earned rave reviews, collecting awards for best horror feature (Tabloid Witch Award), best horror actress (Studio City International Film & TV Festival), outstanding screen story (Zed Fest Film Festival) and outstanding ensemble cast (Zed Fest Film Festival). Ben lives in California.

09|

Craig Campbell and Dale Sampson were married 10/7/17 in West Virginia.

Craig is a producer at Music Choice and Dale is a musical theater actor and writer. They live in New York City. • Britton Clark and Julianna White were married 3/10/18 in Charlotte, N.C. • Lindsay Eney and Michael Sherman were married 10/20/17 in Baltimore, Md. Alumni in attendance included Christine Floyd ’08, Audrey DeGregorio, Claire Campbell Pelligra and Kyle Pelligra. • Kaitlin Ugolik Phillips accepted the position of managing editor of the North Carolina Medical Journal, published by the North Carolina Institute of Medicine in Morrisville. She edits the journal and performs various writing, editing and communications duties. Kaitlin is excited to return to the state after working as a journalist in New York for more than seven years. • Michelle Massie and Stephen Otunba were married 8/5/17 in Kent Island, Md. Alumni in attendance included bridesmaids Cynthia Pope and Joy Witherspoon. Michelle and Stephen live in Rockville. • Ryan Stimmel and Rebecca Shipe were married 5/6/17 in Wilmington, N.C. Alumni in attendance included Karen Holmes ’08, Tony Pigford {dpt ’08}, Dianna Biancardi Grich, Justin Grich,

Brady Herman, Chris Irvin, Aaron Parker, David Point, Andy Rill, Mack Sims, Rob Smeaton, Whitney Bossie Stein, Zach Stein, David Watson, Ryan Cooke ’10 and Grant Stimmel ’15.

Ryan is a sales manager and Rebecca is a global feasibility analyst.

10|

Susan Cogswell Eggleston

and Cary Eggleston welcomed daughter Charlotte Anne on 1/16/18. The family lives in Raleigh, N.C. • Conner Gregg and Megan Wynn ’11 were married 7/1/17. Conner is a personal trainer for LifeTime Athletic and Megan is a development and marketing associate for HopeWay Foundation. They live in Charlotte, N.C. • Garrett Kersey and Madison Peregrin ’12 were married 11/4/17.

Alumni in attendance included Kadie Kersey Adkins, Lars Bredahl, Abby Burns, Ben Huggins, Ben Kaufman, Jerome Lewis, Carter Loetz, Katie Martin, Kelsey McEvoy, Alex Trevisan, Heidi Trevisan, Amanda Unetich, Jeremy Williams, Meghan Bredahl ’11, John Cannizzaro ’11, Evan Davis ’11, Ellen Huggins ’11, Luke Olszewski ’11, Taylor Wos ’11, Cody Lance ’12, Dan Layman ’12, Juli Leon ’12, Caitlyn Nelson ’12, Cory Schuver ’12, Courtney Whalen ’12, Corey Willingham ’12, Kenny Dunkle ’13 and Kelsey Camacho ’14. Garrett is a manager at UPS and Madison is an accountant at Frost PLLC. They live in Raleigh, N.C. • Carolyn Popek and Ryan Jarvis were married 2/10/18 in San Diego. Alumni in attendance included Sarah Chaffee, Stacey Popowitz and Morgan Rierson.

Carolyn and Ryan live Coronado, Calif. • Hobie Temple and Catie Brady ’11 were married 8/13/16 in Boone, N.C. Alumni in attendance included Megan Daly ’09, Mike Barg, Will Elliot, Dan Henaghan, Ryan Mihajlov, Mike Miller, Thomas Daddio ’11, Wes Horbatuck ’11, Laura Roberts ’11, Chris Fry ’12 and Brittany White ’12. Hobie works as an oil and gas attorney at Bracewell LLP and Catie is a physician assistant specializing in orthopedic surgical oncology at UT Health Science Center at Houston. They live with their two dogs, Asher and Judah.

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The payment rate of a charitable gift annuity depends on your age at the time of the gift—the older you are, the higher the rate.

CURRENT RATES ONE BENEFICIARY

TWO BENEFICIARIES

AGE

ANNUIT Y R ATE

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ANNUIT Y R ATE

60

4.4%

60/65

4.0%

65

4.7%

67/67

4.4%

70

5.1%

71/73

4.7%

Annuity rates are subject to change. The annuity rate remains fixed once your gift is made.

To explore a gift annuity for you, your spouse or a family member, visit ELONLEGACY.ORG. Talk with us today about how you may benefit from a life income gift to Elon and other gift planning opportunities. please contact: Carolyn DeFrancesco, Director of Planned Giving 336-278-7454 ■ cdefrancesco@elon.edu ■ elonlegacy.org.

11|

Courtney Jackson and Ben Brown were married 5/30/17 at the historic county courthouse in Hanover, Va. Alumni in attendance included Victoria Brown, Amanda Fish, Laura Randall, Anna Stephenson and maid of honor Waverly Ann Jackson ’16.

• Nicholas Dyer and Jacquelyn

{ A typical May Day dance in Alumni Gym during the 1960s. }

  43

CLASS NOTES Kundla ’13 were married 10/14/17.

Alumni in attendance included

Randall Andersen, Gray Fain, Grant Funderburk, Alex Hanner, Alex Harrington, Inkoo Kang, Jeff Keller, Christine DeFina McDonough, Jordan McDonough, Tripp Revson, Felicia Maffucci Pascale ’12, Steph Broas-Campisi ’13, Christine Conti ’13, Mackenzie Cooke ’13, Carson Holly ’13, Becca Luz ’13, Sarah Marsh ’13, Lauren Morgan ’13, Julie Morse ’13, Lucy Osborn ’13 and Hadley Stecker ’13.

Adam Arthur L’10 is making sure the state’s marginalized and underprivileged residents have access to free legal information through the North Carolina Bar Foundation’s annual day of service.

BY ERIC TOWNSEND

N

early a quarter of North Carolinians who fall below the poverty line qualify for free legal services, yet 80 percent of the legal needs for that very same group go unmet. And the need for legal aid has increased by 30 percent over the past decade, even as federal and state funding has been drastically cut.

Adam Arthur L’10 knows the data well. The native of High Point, North Carolina, has each year for the past decade assisted the North Carolina Bar Foundation’s annual “4ALL” day of service, when hundreds of lawyers across the state volunteer their time to answer callers to local TV stations who pose questions about their legal concerns. Now practicing family law just blocks from his alma mater, Arthur was selected by the North Carolina Bar Foundation to co-direct 2018’s “4ALL” service event on March 2. He and co-director Angie Dorsey, a Legal Aid attorney in Asheville, led efforts to secure host sites and recruit hundreds of lawyers to the cause. At seven centers statewide—each site features a television news station partner that broadcasts the program live throughout the day—503 attorneys fielded 8,358 calls from the public this year.

Callers asked how to expunge criminal records. They wanted to know how to settle disputes with their landlord. Some asked about child custody issues. Others got information about bankruptcy law.

Attorneys quickly assessed the legal situation, provided legal information and, if needed, encouraged callers to seek out additional legal help from lawyers in their home communities. “Each year, my faith in our profession is renewed as I see lawyers from all backgrounds, practice areas and specialties come together for the sole purpose of serving the public,” Arthur says. “The calls are completely anonymous from both ends. The lawyers in the room gain no economic incentive from participating in 4ALL. It is true public service.”

Arthur’s involvement with 4ALL dates to his first year at Elon Law. Though he wasn’t able to answer phones, Arthur initially assisted site directors who needed to secure venues and phone lines, confirm media partnerships and deliver food and snacks for attorneys who often found no time for a break given the volume of calls in Greensboro alone. After establishing himself with Kirkman Attorneys at Law, Arthur assumed the role of a 4ALL site co-chair in Greensboro, which he held when he was recruited to the statewide leadership position.

Arthur’s role co-directing the 2018 4ALL Statewide Service Day is the latest feather in the cap of a young attorney whose star is rising in the North Carolina legal community. In October, Arthur secured a $100 million judgment on behalf of the estate of a murder victim from High Point, an award believed to be the largest of its kind in Guilford County. But for Arthur, nothing compares to the feeling that comes from helping the state’s marginalized and underprivileged residents access free legal knowledge, if only for a few minutes on a phone with a nameless attorney.

“There’s a great need for legal services and the appreciation people express is overwhelming,” he says. “We have people who call and all they say is, ‘Thank you for taking these calls.’ It creates a trust in the public who see we’re here to help.”

44   of 

Nicholas is the senior producer for “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” and Jacquelyn is an account supervisor for Hunter Public Relations. They live in Hoboken, N.J. • Meg Anderson Farabow returned to her alma mater in February to share her sales insights with students as part of the Chandler Family Professional Sales Center Speaker Series. Meg is an account executive at Automatic Data Processing, an American provider of human resources management software and services. She lives in Charlotte, N.C.

12|

Caroline Mescon reports she is working as the assistant production coordinator on the ABC TV show “Modern Family.”

She lives in Los Angeles. • Charlie Weickert and Jessica Turek ’13 were married 9/30/17 surrounded by many of their Elon friends. They live in Boston.

13|

Emily Banks and Chris Smith were married 9/2/17 in Bluemont, Va. Alumni in the wedding party included Kyle Banks ’10 as groomsman, Natalie Dupuis, Ellie Erickson and Shannon Smith as bridesmaids and Sarah Turner as maid of honor. Other alumni in attendance included Dan Henke ’12, Elise Delmerico Lake ’12, Darien Flowers, Kirsten Ferreira Flowers, Alex Lake, Carolyn Macaulay, Trey Newstedt, Torrance Porter, Anna McCracken Slattery, Madelyn Smith, Parker Tobin, Leigh Williams and Joe DiRienzo ’14. • Gretchen Cundiff and Jordan Duffey ’14 were married 10/28/17. Alumni in attendance included Rachel Vierling ’12, Cody Benoit, Christian Binder, David Campbell, Alex Canterbury, Melanie Catts, Kenny Grecco, Lauren Hoerr, Kirsten Holland, Lauren Karas, Greg Nantz and Betsy Canterbury ’14.

Gretchen is a marketing associate at Arbor Acres and Jordan is an assurance senior for Ernst & Young.

They live in Winston-Salem, N.C.

14|

Jonathan Bolstridge and Katherine Elliott were

married 5/6/17 surrounded by many of their Elon friends. They live in Atlanta. • Gregory Zitelli and Christine Fortner ’15 were married 9/10/17 surrounded by a large Phoenix contingent. Gregory is a sales assistant at EveryAction and Christine works in account management at the Education Advisory Board. They live in Washington, D.C.

15|

Lauren Berk and Sam Forbis were married 10/14/17. Many of Lauren’s sisters of Alpha Omicron Pi were in attendance.

Lauren is a domestic violence advocate and program manager with Family Abuse Services of Alamance County. They live in Gibsonville, N.C. • Thanks to Julia Denick’s connections, a group of alumni saw Jeanne Robertson p’89 gp’17 during her Rocking Chair Tour at Modell Lyric in Baltimore in March. The

alumni included Dan Hanson ’05, Kristin Simonetti Hanson ’05, Bethany Ely ’12, Taylor Binnix ’13, Andrew Fischer ’14, and Liz Lykens, who together with Julia serve as copresidents of the Baltimore Alumni Chapter. • Grace Rubright, a fifth grade teacher at Woodley Hills Elementary School, was named the Fairfax County (V.A.) Public Schools’ Outstanding New Elementary Teacher of the Year for Region 3.

She lives in Alexandria.

www.elon.edu/c lassnotes

CLASS NOTES

TU R N YOURSELF IN!

Help us keep you in touch with your Elon classmates.

ALUMNI ALBUM

Michelle Massie Otunba ’09, Stephen Otunba & friends

Susan Cogswell Eggleston ’10, Cary Eggleston & daughter Charlotte Anne

Carolyn Popek Jarvis ’10 & friends

Nicholas Dyer ’11, Jacquelyn Kundla Dyer ’13 & friends

Ryan Stimmel ’09, Rebecca Shipe & friends

Conner Gregg ’10 & Megan Wynn ’11

Garrett Kersey ’10, Madison Peregrin Kersey ’12 & friends

Hobie Temple ’10, Catie Brady ’11 & friends

Meg Anderson Farabow ’11

Courtney Jackson Brown ’11 & friends

Caroline Mescon ’12   45

CLASS NOTES

A broader

BY OLIVER FISCHER ’19

{ Taylor Zorski ’11 at the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland. } The benefits of study abroad may not always be apparent, but for Taylor Zorski ’11, his experiences expanded his worldview and helped him face new challenges with confidence. “It’s a big deal traveling abroad,” says Zorski, a sales manager for e-commerce furniture and home décor company Wayfair. “It gets you immediately outside your comfort zone.”

Zorski visited Europe in 2009 while a sophomore studying economics at Elon. That course took him to Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Lithuania and Hungary. Two years later, he took part in the “China: Flying Dragon” course, which introduced him to several cities, including Beijing and Shanghai. Both experiences, besides offering him the opportunity to see the world, made him realize there is much more to experience outside college. “I wanted to pursue that more,” he says.

In 2014 Zorski was living in Boston when he joined Wayfair as a business account manager. He had been promoted to senior account manager when the opportunity to work for the company in Ireland came knocking in 2016. During the selection process, he was asked if he had ever been overseas. Zorksi was no stranger to international travel prior to Elon. His first trip abroad was to Cambodia at age 11, where his uncle started that nation’s first English newspaper, the

Phnom Penh Post. “While my peers, when I was growing up, were going to Disney World or a Colorado ski trip, my parents took me to Cambodia, Morocco, Thailand, Switzerland and Australia,” Zorski says.

But his study abroad experiences at Elon went beyond sightseeing.

They laid the foundation for a deeper curiosity and understanding of the world around him. Zorski experienced this firsthand during his trip to China. One night, his group was given the opportunity to eat duck and drink snake blood. The snake blood posed no problem, but the duck beak was too much, even for Zorski. “I remember I almost decided to throw out the duck beak,” he says. That’s when Associate Professor of Geography Honglin Xiao, who was leading the course, told him that was the best part of the dish and proceeded to show him how to eat it.

Experiences like this made Zorski feel comfortable when confronted with new situations and gave him the confidence to take on new challenges. These traits made him the perfect candidate for the position in Ireland, where he has been growing the Wayfair brand throughout Europe for the past two years. Besides Elon, Zorski credits his parents for instilling in him a desire to expand his view beyond the U.S. “They were a huge influence on me to for traveling abroad,” he says. “It was a great way to appreciate my education and the experiences that my parents gave me.”

IN MEMORIAM Jean Wall Haney ’48, Pomona, Calif., 2/21/18.

Lacy Wayne Jones ’61,

Roanoke, Va., 2/23/18.

William Matze ’50 p’74 p’92,

Hector Hannam ’68, Wilmington, Del., 1/18/18.

Mary “Janie” Salter, who served as

Harvey Smith ’51,

Donna Dalton ’71,

and Counseling Center for 26 years,

Norma Fagan Fountain ’53,

Carla Isley Harrison g’89,

Boonville, N.C., 2/2/18.

Silver City, N.C., 2/4/18.

Burlington, N.C., 12/5/17.

Raleigh, N.C., 2/11/18.

Burlington, N.C., 1/1/18.

Noel Paige Stout ’57,

Todd Horne ’90,

Greensboro, N.C., 2/19/18.

Arlington, Va., 1/10/18.

Willis Hillman Jones ’58,

Robert Gillette ’92,

Thomas Ayres ’60,

Glenn Little g’95,

Greensboro, N.C., 1/19/18.

Bridgewater, Va., 1/2/18.

46   of 

Denver, Co., 2/2/18.

Gibsonville, N.C., 1/28/18.

director of the R.N. Ellington Health died 2/23/18. Janie joined Elon in 1973 and retired in 1999 but returned to campus shortly after to assist with temporary duties at the center until December 2001.

CLASS NOTES

16|

Eric Hernandez and the

creative team behind “Colorado Experience: Galloping Goose,” a half-hour documentary series produced

by Rocky Mountain PBS, won a Colorado Broadcasters Association Award of Excellence for Best Mini-Documentary or Series, Public Television. Eric served as an associate producer on the episode, which required filming throughout Colorado, including Durango, Denver, Telluride and Ridgeway.

Additionally, he filmed several dramatic aerial shots with a drone.

17|

Two weeks after graduation, Kelsey Bliss started working as a marketing administrative assistant for Kraft Sports & Entertainment, a division of The Kraft Group that provides operational support and services across all of the sporting and event entities owned and operated by the Kraft family, including the New England Patriots. After the Patriots made it to the Super Bowl, Kelsey had the opportunity to go to Minneapolis to work the big event.

Although she has worked all the home games throughout the season, the Super Bowl was different. “It was such a unique experience to have my first year, and it definitely was exhausting,” she says. “It’s something that you just have to take your time to take it in and remind yourself this is why you work in the industry.”

ALUMNI ALBUM

Charlie Weickert ’12, Jessica Turek Weickert ’13 & friends

Gretchen Cundiff Duffey ’13, Jordan Duffey ’14 & friends

Emily Banks Smith ’13, Chris Smith & friends

Jonathan Bolstridge ’14, Katherine Elliott Bolstridge ’14 & friends

Gregory Zitelli ’14, Christine Fortner Zitelli ’15 & friends

Lauren Berk Forbis ’15 & friends

l-r: Kristin S. Hanson ’05, Julia Denick ’15, Jeanne Robertson P’89 GP’17, Taylor Binnix ’13, Andrew Fischer ’14, Bethany Ely ’12, Liz Lykens ’15 & Dan Hanson ’05

Eric Hernandez ’16   47

The Elon community came together March 13 to celebrate Elon Day and show their maroon and gold pride. Here are some of the images they shared using #ElonDay on social media.

Office of Alumni Engagement PO Box 398 Elon, NC 27244

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Durham, NC Permit # 104

Toll Free: (877) 784-3566 elon.edu/alumni Change Service Requested

Students dance the night away during Elonthon . The -hour dance marathon raised a record , for the children’s Miracle Network and Duke Children’s Hospital & Health Center.