The Magazine of Elon, Summer 2013

forwa r d

SUMMER 2013

I AM ELON

The year has barely hit the halfway mark and Cara McClain ’14 has already splashed through muddy creeks with children, guided blindfolded participants through Elon’s Challenge Course and explored a chilly New Zealand cavern.

“I just feel really alive when I’m outside,” she says.

“Nature has been vital for my own development and it has made me an advocate for getting kids outdoors.”

Growing up in Durham, N.C., the psychology major and Spanish and environmental studies minor was always involved in her mother’s preschool, which is the focus of her Honors Fellows research on the impact

experiences in nature can have on children. “I think it’s really critical that children spend time outside,” Cara says. “If you don’t feel connected to something, you’re not going to have any desire to save it.”

A Lumen and Periclean scholar, Cara is passionate about hands-on advocacy. She assisted with community development projects in Ghana and has participated in Alternative Spring Break trips to Central America. On campus, she’s involved in many activities, including Elon’s Sierra Club and The Center for Leadership.

While her future plans are uncertain—she has

applied for several international fellowships and is considering the Peace Corps after graduation—she’s ready for whatever may come.

“It’s OK that I still don’t know what I want to do. I don’t feel there is any shortage of opportunities; it’s mostly about finding a good fit,” she says. “As long as I’m doing work that I think benefits the world, then that’s what is important.”

Cara is Elon. Visit elon.edu/magazine to see more of Cara’s story, part of our “I Am Elon” multimedia series featuring Elon students in their own words.

Contents

12

A SACRED ADDITION

BY ERIC TOWNSEND

The Numen Lumen Pavilion unites students, campus spiritual leaders, faculty scholars and community members of various faith traditions to learn more about one another.

16

THE GHANAIAN CHIEF

BY KIM WALKER

For the past 17 years, Elon Professor of History Brian Digre has led hundreds of students to the West African nation of Ghana as part of a Winter Term course, leaving lasting impressions at home and abroad.

Cover Story

19

CELEBRATING 125 YEARS

As we kick off Elon’s 125th anniversary celebration, Presidents Leo M. Lambert, J. Earl Danieley ’46 and J. Fred Young reflect on the university’s history and the boundless possibilities ahead.

24

SECRET WEAPON

BY KRISTIN SIMONETTI ‘05

He grew up in Europe, excelled at Elon and Duke Law, and turned heads as a young corporate lawyer. David Fuhr ’00 is custombuilt for his next act: federal prosecutor.

2 Under the Oaks 8 Phoenix Sports 26 Alumni Action 30 Class Notes 39 Making a Difference

UNDER THE OAKS

Construction to begin on Scott Studios

“I’m a college dropout. So effective today, all of you have something I don’t have, something I failed at, something I failed to achieve. That is cause for congratulations, and sadly, that is cause for a warning. No excuses. I’m not big on excuses.

Job-finding, world-saving. You have to go out and go after it now. You have a degree from this institution, which means you are an unstoppable force.”

Elon parent and NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams P’13 during Elon’s 123rd Commencement Exercises Under the Oaks on May 25.

View video excerpts of his address at elon.edu/magazine.

2 the MAGAZINE of ELON

Construction will soon begin on Scott Studios, a new performance, recital and rehearsal facility for the Department of Performing Arts in the Gerald L. Francis Center on East Haggard Avenue. The new facility, which is being built with funding from a lead gift by Elon parents Don and Ellen Scott of Denver, and other gifts, is expected to be completed in late fall.

“Scott Studios will be a phenomenal facility,” said Fred Rubeck, chair of the Department of Performing Arts. “This new space will provide greater flexibility and increase our effectiveness in training young artists.”

The nearly 14,000-square-foot facility will include a black box theatre with seating for 160 people. It will also include six practice rooms, dressing rooms, a box office and a 3,200-squarefoot rehearsal/dance studio that is the same size as Elon’s main stage in McCrary Theatre, providing expanded rehearsal space for Elon’s busy annual schedule of theatre productions.

Don and Ellen Scott are the parents of Teddy Scott ’10, an alumnus of Elon’s nationally acclaimed music theatre program.

“Elon Performing Arts is a treasure to the university,” Don Scott said. “We hope the new Scott Studios will expand future opportunities for student and faculty creativity.”

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT Omolayo Ojo ’15 was one of 161 undergraduate students nationwide to be awarded a 2013–14 David L. Boren Scholarship, which gives students financial backing to study world languages and cultures. She will spend the fall semester in Senegal conducting Lumen Prize research on African emigration and transnationalism. Ojo, an international studies and strategic communications double major, is the first Elon student to receive the honor since the awards were first given in 1994.

Kristen Conroy ’13, an environmental and ecological science and international studies double major, has received a Princeton in Africa fellowship. She will spend a year in Kenya helping an organization that matches orphans of those killed by HIV/AIDS with elderly residents who lost their own adult children to the disease. Princeton in Africa is a New Jerseybased nonprofit affiliated with Princeton University.

UNDER THE OAKS

SYLLABUZZ

BY ROSELEE PAPANDREA

ISC 345: Information Security

I

nformation security problems make the news regularly with stories detailing the breach of one database or another { Lynn Heinrichs } that put people’s personal information—from email addresses to social security numbers—at risk.

Threats can originate from a variety of sources, whether they be natural disasters, sabotage, malicious software or theft, so learning how to protect data and secure information at a time when technology is continually changing is important for individuals and organizations.

An interest in data security and privacy drives the research that Lynn Heinrichs, associate professor of computing sciences and business administration, has conducted throughout her career. She has looked at small business disaster planning, privacy policies of large organizations and most recently, smartphone security practices of undergraduate students. This past spring, she started sharing her knowledge in an information security course that will be offered every spring and is required for information science majors, though it’s also beneficial for students from other disciplines.

The course looks at managerial approaches, such as acceptable use policies and security training, as ABOUT THE PROFESSOR well as technical approaches for protecting data, such as firewalls and encryption. Students’ assignments A member of Elon’s faculty emphasize both skill sets. since 2003, Lynn Heinrichs “For example, during the most recent course has developed and taught offering, the information security students partnered several computer information with students in multimedia authoring to develop systems courses. Throughout information security posters,” Heinrichs says. “This was her career, her research has a great project that emphasized the role of security highlighted problems relating education, the use of project management skills and the to safeguarding data, including importance of team collaboration.” her most recent focus, students’ Students also complete hands-on lab assignments smartphone security practices. that focus on securing a Windows network. Just like technology, the course will continually evolve, and RECOMMENDED READINGS Heinrichs anticipates students will play a large role in highlighting some of the changes that will be discussed The Art of Deception: in the future.

Controlling the Human “It is impossible for one individual to read or learn Element of Security everything,” she says. “In a classroom, students are a The Art of Intrusion: great resource. I [often] ask them to bring in a media The Real Stories Behind story about a recent security breach to discuss in class. the Exploits of Hackers, No two students ever bring the same story.”

Intruders and Deceivers Regardless of a student’s major, learning sound security practices is a vital skill, Heinrichs says.

Ghost in the Wires: My “Today’s students are tomorrow’s employees,” she Adventures as the World’s says. “They will be information stewards in their Most Wanted Hacker workplaces. It is essential for them to understand how (All works by Kevin Mitnick to protect their own data as well as the data that they and William L. Simon) have been entrusted with.”

Board of Trustees welcomes new members John R. Hill ’76, Chris Martin ’78 P’13 and Ali Deatsch ’13 were recently elected to the Elon University Board of Trustees.

Hill is a founding principal, senior partner and chief executive officer of Pinnacle Advisory Group Inc., a private wealth management firm in Columbia, Md. { John R. Hill ’76 } He graduated from Elon with a degree in economics and business administration, and together with his wife established the John R. Hill ’76 and Lesley W. Hill Endowed Fund for Engaged Learning in Business to support research or other on-campus study, international study or business-related internships. The couple have made numerous gifts to the university and are members of the Elon Society and the Order of the Oak. Hill has been a strong advocate for the university as president of the Elon Alumni Board since 2009.

Martin graduated from Elon with a degree in accounting and serves as chairman, president and CEO of Provident Financial Services Inc. and The Provident { Chris Martin ’78 } Bank of New Jersey. He and wife Nicolette have been longtime supporters of Elon and established the Martin Family Scholarship to assist students with financial need. The couple are members of the Order of the Oak and most recently made a gift to name the Martin Alumni Center, which opens this fall in the heart of campus. A past president of the Elon Alumni Board, Martin often opens the doors of his company to Elon University interns. His dedication to his alma mater earned him Elon’s Distinguished Alumnus of the Year Award in 2012.

Deatsch was elected to a two-year term on the board as a youth trustee.

She graduated in May with a physics degree and is pursuing a doctorate in physics at the University { Ali Deatsch ’13 } of Notre Dame.

Summer 2013 3

UNDER THE OAKS

The Magazine of Elon summer 2013 | Vol. 75, No. 3

FACULTY/STAFF SPOTLIGHT

The Magazine of Elon is published quarterly for alumni, parents and friends by the Office of University Communications. © 2013, Elon University

EDITOR

Keren Rivas ’04 DESIGNERS

Christopher Eyl Timothy Paulson PHOTOGRAPHER

Kim Walker EDITORIAL STAFF

Holley Berry Katie DeGraff Roselee Papandrea Eric Townsend STUDENT CONTRIBUTORS

Sam Parker ’13 A. Vaughn Vreeland ’15 Taylor Sharp ’16 VICE PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

Daniel J. Anderson

EDITORIAL OFFICES

The Magazine of Elon 2030 Campus Box Elon, NC 27244-2020 (336) 278-7415 elon.edu/magazine

BOARD OF TRUSTEES, CHAIR

Wesley R. Elingburg P’11 Greensboro, N.C.

ELON ALUMNI BOARD, PRESIDENT

Julia Strange Chase ’84 P’13 Richmond, Va.

YOUNG ALUMNI COUNCIL, PRESIDENT

Four Elon faculty and staff members were recognized May 15 for superior teaching, scholarship, service and mentoring during the annual faculty-staff awards banquet. Pictured above from left to right: Associate Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Student Health and Wellness Jana Lynn Patterson was awarded the Ward Family Excellence in Mentoring Award. Associate Professor of Sociology and Anthropology Tom Mould received the Distinguished Scholar Award. Stephen Folger, professor of physical therapy education and chair and program director of the Department of Physical Therapy, was awarded the Daniels-Danieley Award for Excellence in Teaching. Jean Rattigan-Rohr, associate professor of education, received the Periclean Award for Civic Engagement and Social Responsibility. Rattigan-Rohr recently began a two-year term as Faculty Administrative Fellow and assistant to the president.

Six Elon employees were honored May 31 for their contributions to the university in an annual staff awards program. Paul Holt, maintenance control manager, was named Physical Plant Staff Member of the Year; Dwight Davis, late night building

monitor and computer support specialist in Belk Library, was named Office Staff Member of the Year; and Judy Dulberg, program coordinator for the MBA program, was named Administrative Staff Member of the Year. Also, Durice White ’09, assistant director of

alumni engagement, received the Phoenix Rising Award; Tammy Cobb ’87, assistant director for community partnerships in the Kernodle Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement, received the Phoenix Community Engagement Award; and Lynne Bisko, a nonprint librarian in Belk Library, received the Phoenix Innovation Award.

of the Internet V, which details experts’ opinions on the likely future social, political and economic impacts of the Internet. Assistant Professor Barbara Miller co-authored Introductory Statistics: A Conceptual Approach Using R, a textbook for undergraduate and graduate students taking statistics courses in education, psychology and other social sciences.

Associate Professor of Mathematics Crista Arangala has received a Fulbright award to support six months of teaching and research in Sri Lanka. Arangala will teach at the University of Colombo in 2014 and develop a traveling science and math center aimed to spark intellectual curiosity in children.

Max Negin, assistant professor in the School of Communications, won a 2012 National Academy of Arts & Sciences Sports Emmy Award for his work as a digital replay operator and digital media manager as part of the NBC studio team that covered the Olympic Summer Games in London. This is the fourth Emmy win for Negin.

Two faculty members in the School of Communications published books in the spring. Associate Professor Janna Quitney Anderson, director of Elon’s Imagining the Internet Center, coauthored her sixth book, Battle for Control: The Future

Peter Felten, executive director of Elon’s Center for Engaged Learning, co-authored Transformative Conversations: A Guide to Mentoring Communities Among Colleagues in Higher Education.

The book was published in the spring by Jossey-Bass.

Dave Dziok ’05

Falls Church, Va.

PARENTS COUNCIL, CO-PRESIDENTS

Jill & Josh Baker P’14

Great Falls, Va.

BOARD OF VISITORS, CO-CHAIRS

Russell R. Wilson P’86 & P. Scott Moffitt P’14

Burlington, N.C.

SCHOOL OF LAW ADVISORY BOARD, CHAIR

David Gergen

Cambridge, Mass.

SCHOOL OF COMMUNICATIONS ADVISORY BOARD, CHAIR

Brian Williams p’13

New Canaan, Conn.

MARTHA AND SPENCER LOVE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS ADVISORY BOARD, CHAIR

William S. Creekmuir p’09 p’10

Atlanta, Ga.

PHOENIX CLUB ADVISORY BOARD, CHAIR

Mike Cross

Burlington, N.C.

4 the MAGAZINE of ELON

APPLE CO-FOUNDER STEVE WOZNIAK TO HEADLINE ELON’S FALL CONVOCATION

Steve Wozniak, a Silicon Valley icon who co-founded Apple Computer Inc. with Steve Jobs in 1976 and helped revolutionize the personal computer industry, will serve as keynote speaker at Elon University’s Fall Convocation.

Wozniak’s address, “Fostering Creativity & Innovation in a Technical Environment,” will take place Oct. 3 at 3:30 p.m. in Alumni Gym. A published author, Wozniak is chief scientist for Fusion-io, a Utah-based corporation that develops ioMemory solutions. Tickets will be available to the general public this fall through the Elon University Box Office.

CAMPUS UNCOMMONS

BY TAYLOR SHARP ’16

Janice Ratliff will greet you with a handshake but

leave you with a hug.

For 33 years, she’s been a pillar of support and guidance for hundreds of Elon students. “I have an impact on students’ lives, and they have an impact on mine,” says Ratliff, who began her career in cooperative education and now serves as program assistant in the Office of Student Health and Wellness, formerly the Office of Student Development. “During Homecoming, my office is just swamped. Former students come and stay at my house.”

Growing up, Ratliff didn’t think a career at Elon was feasible for a young black woman. “I grew up in the Town of Elon,” she recalls. “At the time, the only black people who worked at the university were maintenance men and cooks. I didn’t think I could work at Elon.”

But being one of the first black staff members gave Ratliff the opportunity to be a much-needed source of encouragement for a new generation of integrated students.

“Student life covers all students,” she says. “I advised the black community because there was a need for it.

The students, when I first came to Elon, had more need financially, socially than they generally do now.”

Assisting students is no chore for Ratliff. She’ll tell you her friends think she’s crazy when she brags about how she adores her job.

“I love working with students,” Ratliff says. “It keeps my mind young. People who don’t have regular contact with young people think differently about them. They think they’re troublemakers or careless. I know better.”

As the fabric of the university has changed, Ratliff has changed with it to continue offering the best assistance to the student body.

With a tendency to form long-lasting friendships, she always tries to find the best way to empower any student who needs it.

“When students say that I had an impact in their lives, that is success,” she says.

What faculty or staff member do you think is uncommon?

Send a suggestion to themagazineofelon@ gmail.com.

UNDER THE OAKS

LONG LIVE ELON

BY MEGAN MCCLURE

INMANS SUPPORT NEW ADMISSIONS BUILDING The Inman Admissions Welcome Center is closer to becoming a reality thanks to a lead gift by Bill and Pat Inman P’00, and support from fellow parents Jamey and Tracey Walser ’84 Nugent

F

or the Inman family, the campus visit and admissions process that led to daughter Jacklyn’s enrollment at Elon University began a life-changing journey.

“Touring Elon was love at first sight—the brick walkways, the tranquil fountains, students sitting on the grass studying and reading,” says Pat Inman, Jacklyn’s mother. “You could close your eyes and hear the life of the university. We have so many memories of Jacklyn’s time at Elon, but our first days there began a remarkable time in her life.”

Years later, Bill, who joined Elon’s Board of Trustees in September 2005, and Pat Inman P’00 have made the lead gift that will impact the admissions experience for generations of future Elon students. Their gift provides key funding for construction of a new admissions welcome center that will be named in recognition of the couple’s generosity and launches the university’s efforts to raise $4 million in private gifts for the project.

With a prominent location on North O’Kelly Avenue beside the Moseley Center and north of Belk Library, the two-story, 32,000-square-foot Inman Admissions Welcome Center will create a welcoming entrance to

6 the MAGAZINE of ELON

Elon for prospective students and their families. It will also anchor the north end of a new campus quadrangle that increases the university’s overall green space.

“We are grateful to Bill and Pat for once again stepping forward to support a key university priority,” Elon President Leo M. Lambert said. “The Inman Admissions Welcome Center will be a critical part of our recruiting efforts and provide a wonderful facility to greet tens of thousands of visitors to campus each year. This is another

{ Bill & Pat Inman P’00 }

UNDER THE OAKS

“The campus visit program is paramount in Elon’s recruitment initiatives, and this beautiful and functional new building will transform the experience for all visitors to the university.”

Greg L. Zaiser ’90 G’95 vice president for admissions and financial planning

example of how trustee leadership and generosity are key to achieving the goals of the Elon Commitment strategic plan.”

The facility will centralize all admissions and financial planning staff into one location from three different university buildings. Additional staff offices, interview rooms and seating will accommodate Elon’s growing applicant pool, which has tripled in the past 20 years to reach more than 10,200 first-year student applications in 2012-13.

“The Inman Admissions Welcome Center will be the front door of Elon and provides ample space for admissions to highlight the university’s outstanding programs,” says Greg L. Zaiser ’90 G’95, vice president for admissions and financial planning. “The campus visit program is paramount in Elon’s recruitment initiatives, and this beautiful and functional new building will transform the experience for all visitors to the university.”

Bill and Pat Inman consider the project a way to support a university that still plays a major role in their lives.

“Jacklyn’s experience at Elon was just magnificent,” Bill Inman says. “It’s amazing to see what the university has accomplished and how it’s grown. We are just grateful to be a part of that progress.”

The Inmans, of Naples, Fla., have been generous supporters of Elon through the years, making gifts to Rhodes Stadium and Alumni Field House, the Koury Business Center (where an atrium is named in their honor), the Phoenix Club, the Numen Lumen Pavilion and Elon’s greatest needs. In recognition of their gift to support construction of Lindner Hall in 2009, the first-floor reading room is named in their honor.

Joining the Inmans in their support of the project are fellow Elon parents Jamey and Tracey Walser ’84 Nugent.

Inspired by a strong family connection to Elon, the Naples, Fla., couple made a major gift toward construction of the building.

Their charitable commitment serves as a naming gift for the facility’s two-story lobby and atrium, which will become the main gathering space for prospective students and other Elon visitors. The lobby will feature informational displays, guest seating and a staffed information desk, and offer guests views of a new campus quadrangle created during the building’s construction.

The Nugents’ interest in the project was inspired by Tracey’s connection to the school as an Elon graduate and

their shared experience as Elon parents. The Nugents’ son, Andrew, is an Elon junior.

“Elon is an important part of our family. As a student, I learned many leadership skills that I have used throughout my career and life,” said Tracey, who recently completed a three-year term on the Elon Alumni Board.

“Our son Andrew was equally impressed with the admissions process and has loved his experience at Elon as a student.”

The Nugents are longtime supporters of Elon and active members of the university community. Two of the couple’s nieces are recent Elon graduates, and Tracey’s brother and sister also attended the university.

In addition, both Tracey and Jamey have served on Elon’s

{ l-r: Jamey & Tracey Walser ’84 Nugent & son Andrew Nugent ’15.

Below: A rendering of the two-story lobby and atrium that will be named in their honor. }

Parents Council since Andrew’s first year on campus.

They are loyal donors to Elon’s greatest needs and the Phoenix Club.

“We are grateful to Tracey and Jamey for their outstanding commitment to Elon,” said Jim B. Piatt, vice president for university advancement. “Tracey’s service to the university has always been and remains exemplary, and it is clear the entire Nugent family believes deeply in the Elon experience.”

Summer 2013 7

PHOENIX SPORTS ▶ elonphoenix.com

Elon to join Colonial Athletic Association Elon University will join the Colonial Athletic Association for the 2014–15 academic year. The change in athletics conference affiliation was approved by the Board of Trustees and announced May 23

by President Leo M. Lambert.

“In a time of great change in the collegiate athletics landscape, the Colonial Athletic Association offers a great match with our strategic plans for Elon’s future,” Lambert said. “The CAA will allow our student-athletes to compete with peers at many excellent universities on the Eastern seaboard. We will have the opportunity to continue competition with fine schools in the Carolinas and Virginia while raising Elon’s profile in the large metropolitan areas of the mid-Atlantic and Northeast areas where many of our students, alumni and prospective students call home.”

Wes Elingburg P’11, chair of Elon’s Board of Trustees, called the conference change historic. “Elon has a proud history of athletics success and we are excited to share Elon’s story with new friends in the Colonial Athletic Association,” Elingburg said. “This is an important next step in confirming Elon’s position as a university of national prominence.”

The CAA consistently posts strong academic success ratings and has produced five Rhodes Scholars and 22 NCAA postgraduate scholars. Its geographic footprint also provides an attractive match with Elon’s student and alumni populations. Elon draws a large proportion of its enrollment from mid-Atlantic and New England states where many CAA teams are located. About 1,850 current students came to Elon from areas close to CAA member schools. Alumni populations in CAA cities are equally strong, with about 5,300 Elon alumni living within 50 miles of CAA member schools.

“We anticipate strong alumni support and exciting game-day outreach and events

for Elon parents, graduates and prospective students who come to cheer on Elon at sports venues close to their homes,” Lambert said.

Colonial Athletic Association Commissioner Tom Yeager said the CAA is thrilled Elon has accepted the membership offer.

“We have been selectively searching for highly respected institutions that share a common vision of institutional excellence and a commitment to the success of the young men and women participating in our athletic programs,” Yeager said. “Elon fits our model and will immediately become a valuable conference partner helping to elevate each individual institution.”

Elon will make the move to the CAA after more than a decade of success on the field and in the classroom in the Southern Conference. Elon has won 19 SoCon regular-season and tournament titles and 13 Phoenix student-athletes have earned SoCon Player of the Year recognition, while head coaches have earned 20 SoCon Coach of the Year honors. Nationally, 27 Elon student-athletes have received AllAmerica honors and 25 student-athletes have earned Academic All-America recognition. Since joining the SoCon, 18 Elon teams and individuals have made NCAA postseason appearances, while teams and individuals have appeared in national rankings more than 20 times.

“The Colonial Athletic Association will provide the next great challenge in the growth of Elon athletics,” said Dave Blank, director of athletics. “By emphasizing continuous improvement with our student-athletes and coaches, Elon has risen to a position of strength in SoCon competition. We are equally proud of the leadership Elon has provided in academic excellence in the conference. The CAA is a great fit at an exciting time in sports at Elon.”

FULL MEMBER FOOTBALL ONLY MEMBER

MAINE NEW HAMPSHIRE NORTHEASTERN ALBANY RHODE ISLAND STONY BROOK HOFSTRA DREXEL VILLANOVA DELAWARE TOWSON WILLIAM & MARY RICHMOND JAMES MADISON UNCWILMINGTON ELON UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON FULL MEMBER FOOTBALL ONLY MEMBER

MAINE 8 the MAGAZINE of ELON

NEW HAMPSHIRE NORTHEASTERN

PHOENIX SPORTS

Aaron Mellette ’13 drafted

by Super Bowl champions The defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens drafted Elon Phoenix wide receiver Aaron Mellette ’13 in the seventh round of the 2013 NFL draft.

Mellette is Elon’s first pro football draftee since Chad Nkang was taken by the Jaguars in 2007.

The Sanford, N.C., native received seven AllAmerica honors following the 2012 season. He was a first-team All-Southern Conference selection by both the league’s coaches and media members, and placed eighth in the voting for the Walter Payton Award, which is presented annually to the top player in the Football Championship Subdivision. In his senior year, Mellette caught 97 passes for 1,398 yards. He led the SoCon and ranked second nationally in both receptions per game (8.82) and receiving yards per game (127.09) following the regular season.

For his college career, Mellette posted 4,254 receiving yards, 304 receptions, 44 touchdown catches and 23 100-yard games—ranking second in both Elon and SoCon history.

Photo courtesy Phil Hoffmann/Baltimore Ravens

PHOENIX SPORTS ▶ elonphoenix.com

{ Tracey Coppedge ’16 }

{ Karl Bostick ’15 }

A BALANCED APPROACH

T

BY PHILIP JONES

alk to head coach Jason Swepson “I’m excited about that group,” Swepson says.

A shoulder injury sidelined Bennett last about his 2013 Phoenix football squad “They all have different styles, but at the end season, and the 6-foot West Columbia, S.C., and you’ll hear him say the word of the day, they’re all playmakers.” native is chomping at the bit to see playing “new”—a lot.

Bostick, of Englewood, N.J., played his time. His is one of those new names Swepson New defensive coordinator. New strength first season for the Phoenix last year after expects you’ll hear a lot this year. “BJ really coach. New trainer. New quarterback. transferring from the University of Akron. is a combination of both” Bostick and And with standout wide receiver Aaron He averaged 39.3 yards per game and 3.4 Coppedge, Swepson says. “He’s still growMellette ’13 now a Baltimore Raven, a more yards per carry but says those numbers are ing into his body. He’s a big kid that I think, balanced offensive attack that will feature far from satisfactory. “I want to be better when it’s all said and done, can be 6-foot-2, plenty of new names. than I was last year,” he says. “I just want to 240 pounds and a playmaker.”

“It’s going to look a lot different from a be a better teammate, a better leader, someBennett made sure to spend time with the year ago, just because we have a lot of youth one who people can count on. I just want to new strength coach this summer, something on offense,” Swepson says. “Right now, we help my team win.” he expects will pay dividends for him and the only have three seniors projected to start on Swepson says Bostick can make that team. “Hopefully my performance reflects offense. … But I think we have a chance to be happen through his ability to score from any- how hard we’ve worked,” he says. “With the more balanced than we were a year ago.” where on the field. “He’s one of those guys amount of work we’re putting in now, I think The new emphasis on spreading the ball who can carry the ball 35 to 40 times a game we’re going to come out and surprise a bunch is giving Swepson a chance to spend more and get four or five yards—and break off a of people.” time on an old passion: running backs. He 20-yarder and just keep the chains moving,” Despite all the “new” on offense, Swepson was a running back at Boston College and he says. “He’s that explosive.” says he expects to start six seniors on defense. served as running backs coach for his alma Coppedge also saw time on the field for “That’s where we’re veterans,” he says. “We’re mater and N.C. State before coming to Elon the Phoenix in 2012. He, too, averaged 39.3 going to have to rely on our defense to win a in 2011. “We’re always going to lead with yards per game, or 4.1 yards per carry. “I lot of football games for us.” the throw,” he says. “But we’ve got to get the think I did pretty good to play as a true freshOn the heels of last year’s disappointing run game involved just to take pressure off man,” the 5-foot-8 Nashville, N.C., native 3-8 record, Swepson says a winning season the quarterback.” says. But, he adds, “what I’m trying to do is is a goal within reach. “These kids feel like While he wasn’t sure during summer be better than I was last year: faster, stronger, they’re better than that and they’re working workouts who his starting quarterback tougher, bigger.” harder than they ever have. And as a staff, would be come fall, Swepson says fans can Bostick already credits Coppedge with we’re excited about coming in to this year expect junior Karl Bostick, sophomore being plenty fast. “He can make you miss,” and getting a winning season. The future Tracey Coppedge and redshirt-freshman BJ Bostick says. “[He] can always hit the looks bright here.”

Bennett to shoulder the load at running back. home run.”

10 the MAGAZINE of ELON

PHOENIX SPORTS

HIGH EXPECTATIONS

S NCAA appearance The Phoenix sent two players this spring to Urbana, Ill., for the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championships. Cameron Silverman, 2013 Southern Conference Player of the Year who ranked 54th nationally, earned the SoCon’s automatic singles bid. While Silverman fell in the second round to Michigan’s 13th-ranked Evan King, he says the tournament was a great learning experience.

“I got to see not only a very high level of tennis from top players, but, more importantly, I got to see the various preparations that they went through before, during and even after matches,” he says.

Silverman also earned an automatic doubles bid alongside partner Stefan Fortmann, ranking 35th nationally as a tandem. The duo, who finished the season with an overall record of 16–5, fell in the first round of the tournament to Texas A&M’s eighth-ranked Junior Ore and Jackson Winthrow.

“I think that this experience for both Cameron and I will be to our advantage as we prepare for the next season,” Fortmann says. “We have a great group of guys, and there is no doubt in my mind that we can do special things.”

SAM PARKER ’13

uccess is not unfamiliar to Megan Kirschling ’16.

The rising sophomore track and field student-athlete from West Deptford, N.J., came to Elon with an impressive resume, including getting high school All-America honors at the New Balance Outdoor Nationals in the high jump and the field events MVP during the 49th Annual Woodbury Relays, where she set a meet record of 5 feet 10 inches.

“I’ve been so lucky and so blessed with the fact that I’ve been able to come and train and just really focus on what I love,” Kirschling says. “It’s made it so much easier to strive for new personal bests.”

After training for a semester, Kirschling began her first indoor season as a Phoenix in December. At her first collegiate meet, she cleared the bar at 5 feet 8 inches, breaking Elon’s school record. At her next invitational, she matched that height to help Elon claim first place overall.

“I had never done indoor until this year,” she says with excitement about the opportunity to compete during an additional season.

“It’s just been much better than I could’ve ever imagined.”

Her competitive performances earned Kirschling the honor of Southern Conference Women’s Indoor Track and

Field Athlete of the Week in February.

She also set the school record in the high jump during the outdoor season at 5 feet 8 inches in the last meet of the 2012–13 year at North Carolina A&T and made the SoCon All-Freshman team in both the indoor and outdoor seasons.

“I never expected it, so it’s just kind of validation and motivation to keep trying to boost Elon up there and get our name out in the conference,” she says. “Everyone on the team puts in so much hard work that you just want to model them.”

Mark Elliston, head coach of women’s track and field, spoke of Kirschling’s innate talent for the high jump but also attributes her continued success to motivation, dedication and discipline.

“I firmly believe Megan has the opportunity and the ability to be the program’s first All-American,” says Elliston, who predicts Kirschling will make the national team two or three times before she graduates in May 2016.

Although that is far off, Kirschling has already set some goals for the next three years.

“I would love to get a new [personal record] this year or next,” she says. “I would love to strive toward 6 feet—it would be a dream to get to that mark.”

Three selected for Elon Hall of Fame Three outstanding athletics alumni will be honored Sept. 21 as part of Elon’s 43rd Sports Hall of Fame Class. Holly Andrews ’04 (women’s basketball), William “Tank” Hardin ’87 (baseball) and Pramote “Ter” Malasitt ’05 (men’s tennis) will be inducted at a 1:30 p.m. ceremony in Whitley Auditorium. They will also be recognized during halftime of Elon’s game against Appalachian State at 6 p.m. in Rhodes Stadium.

Admission to the afternoon ceremony is free and open to the public. Tickets for the football game are available via the athletics ticket office at (336) 278-6750 or elonphoenix.com. Hall of Fame members can also contact the ticket office to reserve two free tickets.

Summer 2013 11

A SACRED ADDITION THE NUMEN LUMEN PAVILION, WHICH OPENED THIS SPRING IN THE ACADEMIC VILLAGE, BRINGS TOGETHER STUDENTS, CAMPUS SPIRITUAL LEADERS, FACULTY SCHOLARS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS OF VARIOUS FAITH TRADITIONS TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ONE ANOTHER.

BY ERIC TOWNSEND

T

here’s a lot to admire about the Numen Lumen Pavilion, Elon’s newest and final addition to the Academic Village on East Haggard Avenue—from the water cascading over a stone wall that greets visitors upon entering the building to its meditation garden.

Its most important feature, however, is seen not with the eyes but with the heart. The first standalone campus building designated for the expression and study of faith, the Numen Lumen Pavilion marks a milestone in the evolution of spiritual life programming at Elon by providing students, faculty and staff

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with greater opportunities and resources to delve into multi-faith dialogue.

“It’s dangerous in the 21st century to be ignorant of major faith traditions of the world and their impact on economies, governments and politics,” said President Leo M. Lambert. “Elon’s mission statement calls us to develop the mind, body and spirit. This pavilion speaks volumes about our commitment to developing the spiritual aspect of the whole person.”

One doesn’t have to look long to find evidence of this throughout the building. Just down the hall from the main entrance, visitors encounter a large wood and glass curio with interior lights casting a soft glow on religious items that include a Hindu tapestry, a menorah and a copy of the Washburn College Bible. A kitchen is set up to allow for observance of kosher-style and halal food laws. There are also ablution areas; prayer, meditation and study rooms; a library and a multipurpose room; and the McBride Gathering Space, named to honor Chaplain Emeritus Richard McBride, whose vision more than a decade ago helped make the

building possible. The space is designed to host receptions, meals and serve as a meeting place for the diverse and growing number of faith traditions represented at the university.

Outside, a meditation garden features a kugel ball fountain, a spinning granite ball supported by a thin film of water, as well as rocks engraved with the words students offered at the site dedication: peace, agape, cooperation and understanding, healing the earth, koinonia, Namaste, nirvana, respect, oneness and charity.

But the breathtaking highlight of the pavilion, home to the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life and the Elon Center for the Study of Religion, Culture and Society, is the room known simply as “The Sacred Space.” The two-story circular room at the north end of the building includes a dramatic ceiling with a center oculus window, large vertical windows that flood the room with light, a floor made of Jerusalem limestone and a lectern fashioned from campus oak trees felled two years ago to make room for the pavilion.

“The Sacred Space looks familiar to all

of us but doesn’t belong to any of us,” the Rev. Jan Fuller, Elon University’s chaplain, says. “It’s a place that inspires a sense of transcendence.”

Her predecessor agrees. “It’s free of symbols, so the space doesn’t send you down a particular path,” McBride says. “What we’ve done is build a space that doesn’t feel like a chapel when you walk in. Very few campuses have built new facilities with multi-faith programming in mind.”

Such was the reaction in April when students, faculty, staff, community members and national faith leaders gathered inside the Sacred Space and the adjoining McBride Gathering Space to formally dedicate the building that will serve as a lynchpin to growing multi-faith programs at the university.

Attended by hundreds of guests, including six distinguished faith leaders from across the country visiting Elon for Spring Convocation (see sidebar on p. 15), the ceremony featured blessings and words of hope drawn from a variety of belief systems. The ceremony itself was derived from a Southeast Asian and Buddhist tradition to honor common bonds,

{ Left: The main entrance to the building features water cascading over a stone wall. Above: A kugel ball fountain, a spinning granite ball supported by a thin film of water, can be found in the meditation garden. }

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{ Right: Members of the Elon community and guests gather April 30 in the Sacred Space to dedicate the Numen Lumen Pavilion. Bottom: Manuela Mbouma ’14, director of the Elon University Gospel Choir, performs during the ceremony. }

with attendees holding onto a lengthy red string strung through the audience—a symbol of protection, blessing and connection.

At the end of the program, Truitt Center staff and interns circled the room to cut the string into individual segments. They then tied the string around their wrists, a physical reminder of the day. “I was blown away, really, by the power and the moment. I was so moved by the authentic voices of blessing around the room,” Fuller says. “That’s the work of this building, that we each speak in authentic voices with our own meaning, but that we do it together.”

A COMMON GROUND The pavilion further enhances the vision of Doug and Edna Truitt ’44 Noiles, of New Canaan, Conn., who endowed the Vera Richardson Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life in 2003 with a $1 million gift to the university. The exploration of personal faith is one component of the center’s mission; another is introducing students to practices and belief systems different than their own.

“We wanted to make it possible to find new ways of talking and living with people of all faiths, a place that is porous, a place where the world can come to pose its own questions and share its own challenging knowledge,” Edna Noiles says. “Just as Elon University classrooms give you the opportunity to find out what you might learn through the lens of mathematics or history, this place can offer opportunities to find out what you might learn through faith, service, community and prayer.”

For years, the Truitt Center occupied the house on the corner of North Antioch and East College avenues that today serves as the Sklut Hillel Center. The move to the pavilion gives center staff dedicated space to grow existing programs while making it easier to organize new ones in response to current events. For instance, besides being the location for the weekly “Numen Lumen” observance, formerly called College Chapel, the center will also host a variety of religious celebrations, including wedding ceremonies, as well as prayer and reflection services for national tragedies. The community gathered twice in the Sacred Space

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this spring to remember the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing and the historic tornado that killed two dozen residents of Moore, Okla.

The pavilion is also the home of The Elon Center for the Study of Religion, Culture and Society, an interdisciplinary academic program. The center’s presence in the pavilion will generate awareness that faculty scholars study religion, says Associate Professor Lynn Huber, chair of the Department of Religious

Studies. It demonstrates to the community the importance of academic scholarship by giving professors from a variety of disciplines the opportunity to host speakers, events and exhibits that can generate conversations about faith within the greater community.

“We’re bringing together spiritual life with the study of religion,” Huber says. “This is a tangible signal that Elon values the study of religion and takes seriously the idea that classrooms don’t have boundaries.”

Lambert and others credit McBride, Elon’s chaplain from 1984 to 2009, for his initial vision of a campus multi-faith center.

Though Elon was founded by what is today the United Church of Christ, it has recruited and educated students of all religious backgrounds for decades. By the late 1980s, some non-Christian students quietly started approaching McBride with their hopes of the university celebrating or recognizing important holidays from other faith traditions.

Over time, the university created new programs, such as Hillel, and modified existing programs to be more inclusive for a diverse student population, including international students from Asia, Africa and the Middle East. For example, McBride invited Baccalaureate speakers who represented a wider array of traditions, such as Catholicism, Judaism and Islam.

The one thing missing, however, was a dedicated space for the expression of all beliefs. Whitley Auditorium had been used to host chapel, celebrations and memorial services, but McBride argued in a concept paper a decade ago that its fixed seating facing a raised stage didn’t lend itself “to the variety of configurations and interactive possibilities that a circular space all on one level could afford.” That concept paper was the first push for what is today the Numen Lumen Pavilion.

Others also were involved in the process, including 13 donor families, which each made gifts of $50,000 or more. Lambert praised the university’s board of trustees for its support of the pavilion and for taking the lead in fundraising to make it a reality. “The trustees believed in the mission of what we’re trying to do,” Lambert says. “We would not be where we are today without them.”

As they look ahead, religious life leaders see limitless opportunities. Plans are now taking shape for fall programming that

A MULTI-FAITH CONVERSATION Six prominent faith and community leaders in the United States visited campus for a special Spring Convocation in which students were encouraged to seek out and learn from those of different religious traditions.

Moderated by CBS’s “60 Minutes” correspondent Lara Logan, “Sacred Space: The Promise for Peace and Understanding in Our World—A Multi-faith Conversation” followed the April 30 dedication of the Numen Lumen Pavilion. The Convocation was recorded

by UNC-TV and broadcast across North Carolina in late June.

The panelists shared their views on interfaith understanding in the United States and the growth of religious pluralism, even as the number of Americans who describe themselves as having “no religion” approaches one out of every five people. Rabbi David Wolpe advised students to interact with individuals of different faiths, and not just to tolerate, but to get to know others as people.

“If you see this as an opportunity to open yourself to the possibility not just of tolerating other faiths, but learning from other faiths, then you’re far ahead of the previous generation,” Wolpe said. “What I want to suggest to you is that you actually have the courage to go outside of yourself, to encounter, to speak with people, to know people.”

Eboo Patel, founder and president of the Interfaith Youth Core, said every Elon student should graduate with an appreciative knowledge of the great world faith traditions.

“You should be able to say that you have had a meaningful, positive relationship with folks from a couple of different religions,” Patel said. “There ought to be a set of people who call themselves ‘interfaith leaders.’ ... There is no place on the planet that I know of where an idea can go to reality faster than on a college campus.”

introduces students to the ways of many religious traditions, including marriages, funerals, prayer services and joining ceremonies. Fuller is working with Assistant Professor Geoffrey Claussen, who coordinates Elon’s Jewish Studies program, on a proposal for an interfaith studies minor.

The new programs and fields of study are all part of the three qualities Fuller identifies for successful religious life programming at the university: pastoral work,

Panelists included: Arjia Rinpoche, the former abbot of Kumbum Monastery, one of the six great centers of Buddhism in Tibet, and the only Tibetan high lama of Mongolian descent.

The Right Rev. Michael Bruce Curry, the 11th bishop of North Carolina’s Episcopal Church.

Greg M. Epstein, a secular humanist and the humanist chaplain at Harvard University.

Sharon M.K. Kugler, a Roman Catholic and the university chaplain at Yale University.

Eboo Patel, an American Muslim of Indian heritage who is an author, journalist and founder and president of the Interfaith Youth Core.

Rabbi David Wolpe of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, who was named the most influential rabbi in America by Newsweek magazine and one of the 50 most influential Jews in the world by the Jerusalem Post.

educational and academic opportunities, and interfaith engagement.

“I’m convinced that we don’t just sit around the table, talk to each other and then become respectful. What we do is focus on something else we care about together, and that builds us into friends,” Fuller says.

“Students are open in ways they’ve never been before and maybe in ways they never will be again. We want to educate and shape them.”

Summer 2013 15

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THE GHANAIAN CHIEF

BY KIM WALKER

For the past 17 years, Elon Professor of History Brian Digre has led hundreds of students to the West African nation of Ghana as part of a Winter Term course that leaves lasting impressions at home and abroad.

B

rian Digre first fell in love with Africa in the late 1970s while serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Teaching English and history, he lived in the rural countryside for two years. He even met Laurie Evans, his future wife and a fellow Peace Corps volunteer, during that time.

Three decades later, Digre is still happily married, still teaching and still quite enamored with Africa.

For the past 17 years, the history professor has led the Winter Term course Ghana: An Exploration of West Africa’s History and Culture, which has introduced roughly 450 Elon students to the nation’s busy cities, dusty countryside, turquoise coastal waters and affable people.

The course, now a staple in Elon’s study abroad program, began as part of the development of the international studies major, offering coursework in the field of African studies. Digre was the chief author of a 1995 U.S. Department of Education grant that supported the development of the program by him and retired English Professor Iris Chapman.

Digre, who served as Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Democratic Development in Accra, Ghana’s capital, during a 2004 sabbatical, says he chose that nation for the program because it serves as a wonderful introduction to the continent for students who have never been to that part of the world. On the practical side are its good { Professor Brian infrastructure and democratic Digre, honorary government. But Digre is a development chief of historian, and Ghana’s past Sokode, Ghana, joins offers much to study. village officials for a “Its links with the festival in January. } trans-Atlantic slave trade and leadership in African independence give it a very important and rich history,” he says, adding that academically, the goal is to provide students with an integrated study of Ghana’s history and contemporary life. This is accomplished through designated readings, lectures with Ghanaian professors, journaling and visits to historically significant sights.

Another highlight of the course is the visit to

Summer 2013 17

Mole National Park, where students view spectacular wildlife, learn from the park guides, meet people in the local communities and participate in an annual soccer match.

The program also aims to make students aware of their global citizenship. “One of our objectives is to lead students to seek to understand first rather than to judge,” Digre says. “Some students, finding their global perspectives challenged and transformed, recognize a shared sense of humanity with people whose lives are far different from theirs.”

That was certainly the case for rising senior Gloria So, an independent major in human rights and social justice activism, who joined Digre and Assistant Professor of Performing Arts Jason Aryeh, a native Ghanaian, to take part in the program last Winter Term.

“It was incredible seeing the Elmina and Cape Coast castles and hearing powerful stories about the slave trade,” So says.

“The juxtaposition of the atrocity of the stories against the beautiful scenery of the colorful fishing villages definitely disoriented me, but also inspired me in that the local people were able to reclaim the castles as symbols of progress in their society.”

For Letitia Lee ’99, who took part in the course during her senior year at Elon, the course was an eye-opening experience.

“More than just fun, it was one of those experiences that really changes you,” she says. “It was my first time out of the country, and I just didn’t have a clue about how fortunate I was as an American. … I learned to do more listening, to try new things and simply pay attention.”

A LIFELONG BOND

Beyond reconnecting with old friends and visiting places he loves, January’s visit to Ghana was particularly meaningful to Digre. In December 2011, he fell ill and was forced to depart for Ghana in winter 2012 a little later than the rest of the group.

Still, he was determined to go. After completing the course, and following a sabbatical research in Ethiopia and the United Kingdom, Digre came home in spring 2012 to the diagnosis that he had a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He underwent treatment and the disease is now in remission. Digre returned to Ghana to lead the course in January healthy and in high spirits.

“I felt very thankful to go back this year,” he says. “It was special to me.”

Throughout the years, Digre has developed close relationships with the people of Sokode, a rural community in the Volta region near the Ghana-Togo border. Those relationships are so profound that in 2004 Digre MOE EXTRA: University was named Sokode’s honorary development photographer Kim Walker chief, or Ngoryfia, a position that allows him visited Ghana as part of the to assist and advise the village on community 2013 Winter Term course. To development issues. see a photo slideshow and The soft-spoken scholar still remembers read about her experience, go his “enstoolment,” the preferred word used by to elon.edu/magazine.

Ghanaians to describe such bestowment, with humor as well as some pride. During that year’s Durbar—a traditional welcome ceremony and festival—he was officially named Togbe Kwaku Dake I Ngoryfia of Sokode. He swore an oath, promising to be loyal and support the community and that neither fire nor water would stop him from

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{ Gloria So ‘14 learning to coming to their aid. “I thought it was weave kente cloth during pretty cool,” Digre recalls. a vist to the village of Elon’s bond with Sokode has Kpetoe, Ghana. } deepened over the years, with students raising money and delivering school supplies, books and funds for school construction and scholarships as well as other development programs. These have included construction of peanut shelling machines and a Heifer International project. Students returning from the course also took the initiative to create a student organization called “Friends of Ghana/Elon Partners in International Development.” In return, the people of Sokode have left an indelible mark on those who have taken part in the course.

After participating in the Ghana course in 2009, Katie Lampe ’11 was so intrigued that she made Sokode the subject of her Elon College Fellows research project, returning to the African country in 2011.

“I spent most of my time in Sokode, where I interviewed local leaders, teachers and community members to gauge the effectiveness of past development efforts and identify needs that Elon could help the community address in the future,” Lampe says. “Deciding to participate in the Ghana study abroad course was probably one of the most influential decisions that I made while at Elon.”

Forging these long-lasting connections is what has driven Digre to continue taking part in the program after all these years. He hopes the course will maintain its vital combination of academics, experiential learning and personal growth in the future. He is also hopeful the bond with Sokode will only grow stronger.

So are the people of Sokode. Togbe Fia Koku III, Paramount Chief of the Sokode Traditional Area, said it best during an event with the students visiting this year: “Our association with Elon University has brought tremendous change to our community. The assistance we received in building our new junior high school will never escape our attention.

“Long live the Sokode-Elon friendship.”

CELEBRATING 125 YEARS Prelude to an amazing future Elon’s evolution from a small regional college to a nationally recognized university can be seen as a rapid rise to prominence.

But those who have a lifetime relationship with Elon know the special qualities that characterize this academic community were present from the outset—established by founders who had a vision for a unique approach to higher education. To kick off Elon’s 125th anniversary celebration, President Leo M. Lambert, together with emeriti presidents J. Earl Danieley ’46 and J. Fred Young, reflect on the university’s history and the boundless possibilities that lie ahead.

Resilient and bold, Elon moves to the national stage leo m. lambert (1999–present)

O

ne of my greatest pleasures over the past year has been reading chapters of Professor Emeritus George Troxler’s richly illustrated book about the history of Elon, titled From a Grove of Oaks: The Story of Elon University, which will be released next spring as part of our quasquicentennial celebration. Professor Troxler’s volume put a number of ideas in perspective for me.

First, Elon is still a very young institution. While 125 years is indeed a milestone to celebrate, Elon was relatively late to arrive on the scene in American higher education, to say nothing of Oxford’s founding more than nine centuries ago. Harvard and The College of William & Mary are both more than three centuries old and the flagship campus of The University of North Carolina was founded in 1795.

Considering that more than 60 percent of our alumni are under the age of 40, and that much of the modern campus has been constructed within the past 20 years, I often think of Elon, paradoxically, as a new university that has been around since 1889. Our relatively recent founding also established a pattern of doing things a bit differently, such as admitting women from the beginning—a novel move at a time when coeducation was rare in North Carolina. Near the end of her life, distinguished alumna and former Raleigh mayor Isabella Cannon ’24 asked me never to forget the importance of the opportunities Elon provided for women in the college’s early years.

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Second, the people who have comprised the institution for the past 125 years have been courageous. Elon of old survived the Great Depression, two World Wars, a calamitous fire, loss of institutional accreditation, dwindling enrollments and missed payrolls. But showing incredible grit and determination, its people hung tight. Considering the details in Professor Troxler’s book, I’m sure you will agree it is nothing short of miraculous that the institution survived its early decades, only to be transformed, Phoenix-like, through the trial of fire and adversity. In modern times, the people of Elon have exhibited a different kind of courage—daring to be great and pursue big goals—resulting in a high level of academic excellence and national acclaim.

Above: A panoramic view of the historic campus in 1920.

Below: President Leo M. Lambert poses with students after receiving their oak saplings, a symbol of their growth, during the 2011 Commencement Exercise.

Third, Professor Troxler’s book reminds me that despite the many profound changes that have taken place at Elon over the decades, our real institutional character is defined by constants: ՔՔ A deep commitment to the transformation, learning and growth of each student ՔՔ A commitment to the palpable sense of community that defines Elon in a very real sense ՔՔ A spirit of innovation in every aspect of institutional life, but especially in the ways we engage intellectually with our students ՔՔ Our nimbleness as a university, allowing us to be responsive to the continually changing needs of the university community and society more broadly.

As we look forward to the decades ahead, there is much important work yet to be done. Elon will fulfill its vision to be an institution of true national stature reflected in the increasingly national and international makeup of our student body, a national reputation for engaged learning, the scholarly work of our faculty and the bigger national stage upon which Elon athletics will play as it joins the Colonial Athletic Association in fall 2014. Elon will continue to build its distinguished reputation for innovative, liberal arts-based undergraduate education on a residential campus, with distinctions in international education, civic engagement, undergraduate research, internships, writing across the university, residential learning communities and other high-impact learning practices. We will also continue to work diligently to address the issue of college costs, remaining one of the great values in American private higher education and making Elon more accessible to deserving

students who do not have the full financial means to attend. Expanding scholarship aid remains our top fundraising priority.

And especially in our 125th anniversary year, we commit to redouble our efforts to keep alumni connected to the life of the university. The opening of the Martin Alumni Center this fall, the hiring of new alumni engagement staff, renewed emphasis to connect alumni to the Elon Network to mentor and support current students, new alumni awards programs and much more, all signal progress toward our strategic priority of creating one of the most vibrant alumni networks in the nation. Nothing speaks more to the power of an Elon education than the accomplishments of Elon alumni in a wide range of fields, collectively making the world a better place. As you have heard me repeat many times, the world needs Elon graduates.

Please join me in wishing happy birthday to an institution, a place and a people we all love and cherish. Long Live Elon!

One of many Elon traditions, New Student Convocation marks the beginning of students’ college careers.

At the end of the ceremony, they receive acorns to symbolize their potential.

Summer 2013 21

A solid foundation PRESIDENT EMERITUS J. EARL DANIELEY ’46 (1957–73)

L

ooking around campus today, I marvel at how much Elon has grown since I first took the reins of the college on July 1, 1957.

At that time, the school was small and relatively unknown and closely related to the Southern Convention of Congregational Christian Churches, but with very little financial support from the churches. Surrounded by old oaks, the campus was beautiful but the physical plant was inadequate, faculty salaries were low and almost every high school graduate who applied could be admitted.

As a proud former Elon student, faculty member and dean, I was determined to change that. Elon was a special place for me and having grown up in a poor family, I knew all too well the value of having a good name and could not be the president of a college of which people did not think highly. But I was also mindful that almost every need the college faced required spending money.

Our tuition, room and board were low, and the Board of Trustees was reluctant to raise the fees, fearing an enrollment decrease.

We were always very careful not to spend money we didn’t have; our business manager, in fact, didn’t believe in having a budget. (“If you give faculty a budget,” he used to say, “they’ll find a way to spend it.”) With limited funds, we relied on federal grants and low-interest loans to expand the campus. By carefully managing our funds, we were able to build Powell Building, Long Student Center, Jordan Gym, Hook, Barney, Brannock and Sloan dormitories, and renovate Duke, Alamance and Carlton buildings, among other projects. We also built McEwen Library (now the communications building) and Holland House, which was the formal residence of Elon’s presidents through 1990 and now serves as the Catholic Newman Center on South Campus.

Our alumni base was not wealthy and, quite frankly, I knew nothing about raising money, but if I learned anything, it’s to be patient. Case in point: my first gift solicitation from a student who attended Graham College, Elon’s forerunner institution, came via his will roughly 100 years to the date he attended. Thankfully for Elon, there was a core group of trustees and community members, including Iris Holt McEwen, who believed in the college and were willing to invest in it.

Any improvements we devised went beyond buildings and were always in line with our values and desire to build a solid institution. While we continued serving low-income, first-generation students, we became more selective in our admission process by requiring SAT scores and gradually improved the quality of the faculty.

We planted the seeds for the study abroad program and peacefully integrated the campus, opening the doors for future generations of black students.

In an effort to raise Elon’s reputation among its peer institutions, we installed a state-of-the-art language lab

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and offered workshops that attracted teachers from across the state, Virginia and South Carolina. Thanks to influential friends of the college, we were able to bring to campus renowned speakers, including then-Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson and then-U.S. House Minority Leader Gerald Ford, who put the college on the map.

I took great pride in positioning Elon at the head of the line in everything I did and in the knowledge that when I left, the college was starting to get some recognition. Although there were no organized long-range planning efforts at the time, I’d like to think we made a difference and set the stage for the growth and development that has taken place over the past 40 years. One of my greatest blessings has been to see Elon achieve its current level of academic prominence.

Oh, yes. We’ve come a long way.

Top to bottom: President J. Earl Danieley and members of the Elon community move books from Carlton Building to McEwen Library in 1968; students in a 1970 study abroad program in London; inside a renovated lab in Duke Building in the 1960s; the foreign language lab in Mooney Building in 1959.

A time of transition PRESIDENT EMERITUS J. FRED YOUNG (1973–98)

W

hat is it about Elon that makes it such a special place? I’ve often asked myself that question, and after serving as president for 25 years, I think I can start to answer it.

At the heart of it all is a deep sense of community that thrives on one key shared value: respect for others, particularly those who hold different beliefs from our own. This has been the driving force behind many of the changes throughout Elon’s history.

When I became president in 1973, Elon was financially stable, academically solid and doing a good job attending to the needs of the students who were enrolled, many of them first-generation. The old campus was beautiful.

But major shifts in higher education soon forced us to make changes to remain competitive in a new landscape.

For one, the states developed community college systems and solidified regional state universities with acceptable quality and low costs. At the same time, churches that had often funneled students and resources to private colleges shifted from promoting higher education to tending to social welfare issues. To make matters more challenging, demographics changed dramatically and the number of high school graduates decreased almost 25 percent.

We had to make significant changes during my first decade at Elon for the institution to grow and even survive; some private colleges that did not adapt had to close their doors. We realized we had to start marketing at the national level and shift our recruiting to areas of the country where our tuition cost was not out of line.

We transitioned from a student body that came almost exclusively from North Carolina and Virginia to one drawn from the entire Eastern Seaboard. We also expanded the academic offerings and improved the quality, developed a comprehensive campus plan aimed to improve the architectural landscape, and established the Elon Experiences—what I like to call the organized manifestation of our values: an emphasis on academic learning through study abroad, service, internships, leadership and research. As a result, the institution became more diverse, enrollment doubled and SAT scores increased by several hundred points.

When I thought about the future of Elon in the early to mid-1970s, I would have never dreamed of the things that took shape during my presidency. For instance, I never could have envisioned that demolishing 50 buildings and structures to create common green areas would turn the campus into a showcase—Fonville Fountain, a gathering place for students and visitors in the heart of the campus, stands where a parking lot used to be and near the old water tower, or that expanding the campus from 150 to 500 acres would be the foundation for future growth. We also couldn’t have imagined the construction of Moseley Center, the Center for the Arts, Koury Center, McMichael Science Center and Belk Library. It would

have certainly been impossible for me to have envisioned the magnificent additional progress that has taken place during the 21st century.

Changes? Yes, there have been changes. Elon is a different institution from the one I encountered—and fell in love with—that day in 1973 when I first arrived on campus with my wife and children. But the changes have been good. I love that Elon is confident but not pretentious, rooted in its desire to serve students and grow by incorporating new ideas. I’m most proud of the progress it has made, both while I was there and since then, particularly when considering that it all happened, and continues to happen, while maintaining that strong sense of community and those long-standing values that have characterized the institution since its founding.

The best still lies ahead.

For more about Elon’s quasquicentennial, including historical information and forthcoming events, visit elon.edu/125.

Above: Views of campus showing the parking lot in front of Alamance Building where Scott Plaza, including Fonville Fountain, was later built. Left: President J. Fred Young talking with students in the 1970s.

Summer 2013 23

BY KRISTIN SIMONETTI ’05

SECRET WEAPON He grew up in Europe, excelled at Elon and Duke Law, and turned heads as a young corporate lawyer. David Fuhr ’00 is custom-built for his next act: federal prosecutor.

D

avid Fuhr’s first glimpse of the American legal system came through the lens of a camera in a Los Angeles courtroom. It was 1995 and Fuhr—like the rest of the United States—was riveted by the O.J. Simpson trial.

Fuhr had only been in the country a few months; he’d grown up in Germany but was spending a year living with family friends in California to attend an American high school. He knew nothing about Simpson but was fascinated by the concept of a trial by jury and the fact that a well-crafted defense could acquit someone he thought appeared guilty.

“It’s an art,” says Fuhr almost 20 years later, sitting just a few blocks from his employer, the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. As a trial attorney in the DOJ’s criminal division, a position he assumed in March, the 2000 Elon graduate doesn’t quite make headlines like Marcia Clark and the late Johnnie Cochran did in 1995. But his area of expertise—prosecuting companies and individuals for bribing foreign officials under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA for short—is no less important.

“Engaging in corruption overseas often translates to a business advantage in the United States,” says Catherine Fisk, one of Fuhr’s law school mentors. “We all have an interest in capitalism being played by the rules.”

After working for several years on the defense’s side of the FCPA, Fuhr’s job is now to apply this important safeguard of the world’s economic health on behalf of the United States.

TAKING THE FIRST STEPS Fuhr admits he didn’t follow a straight line to a career in such a specialized area of law, but it’s clear some seeds were sown just before

24 the MAGAZINE of ELON

Thanksgiving 1998. Fuhr, a first-year Elon student, approached his history professor, David Crowe, and offered to help with the scholar’s work-in-progress: a book about Oskar Schindler.

“My first response was ‘no,’” Crowe recalls thinking. But something about Fuhr’s eagerness gave him pause. After the long weekend, he reconsidered and asked Fuhr to search for articles in the German press about Schindler while he was home for the winter break.

Fuhr returned to Elon in January bearing several articles, and Crowe began involving his enthusiastic student further in the Schindler project. The following summer, the two traveled to Germany, staying with Fuhr’s family near Frankfurt. During the visit, they twice interviewed Holocaust survivor Mietek Pemper. As an inmate at Plaszow concentration camp, Pemper served as a stenographer for notorious Nazi Commandant Amon Goeth—the character Ralph Fiennes portrayed in the film “Schindler’s List.” Pemper rarely gave interviews but spent hours speaking with Crowe and Fuhr.

“He was solid as a rock through it all,” says Crowe, remembering occasions when Fuhr would assist him late into the night, then drive hours to get both of them home, only to return early the next day. “That showed me the depth of his strengths and qualities.”

The Schindler research didn’t directly address legal topics, Fuhr says, but he often thought about the relationships among law, justice and morality when considering how the Nazis fundamentally restructured German laws to legitimize their actions. After graduating from Elon in 2000 with degrees in international studies and political science, he planned to attend Duke University School of Law but deferred for a year to accept a research assistantship at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a prestigious D.C. think tank. Though his work focused on international security policy and post-conflict reconstruction, Fuhr says he was most

drawn to the intricate legal maneuvering the processes entailed. He saw the writing on the wall—and it kept pointing him to law school.

HONING THE RIGHT SKILLS Fisk, one of Fuhr’s first professors at Duke, remembers she and nearly everyone else at the school were instantly impressed with the first-year law student.

“He was cosmopolitan in a way students really can only be if they’ve lived abroad, a quality that made him interesting to his classmates without being intimidating,” says Fisk, now the Chancellor’s Professor of Law at the University of California, Irvine. “He has lots of natural advantages and does the most with what he has. He’s curious about the law, and though he didn’t have an exact vision for his future, he was determined to find an interesting path.”

Fuhr’s first steps down that path were through the doors of Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, a top New York law firm. On Fuhr’s second day in the office, the firm gave a not-so-subtle suggestion about the direction it had in mind for its new associate, sending him to Germany to assist with an investigation of a company suspected of FCPA violations. On the project, he crossed paths with Sean Hecker, a partner who would become one of his closest colleagues and good friends.

“He’s tireless, ridiculously smart and has judgment well beyond his years,” Hecker says.

They partnered on several other cases, traveling the world to Greece, Dubai, China, Brazil and all over Europe. Despite Fuhr’s relative youth in the firm, Hecker says, his ability to move seamlessly across cultures, understand international business procedures and navigate government structures made him one of the firm’s top FCPA attorneys.

Looking back, Fuhr credits his work with Crowe as helping prepare him for his legal career.

“Reviewing documents, interviewing witnesses and synthesizing information to form an argument and to find the truth and establish an accurate record—history and law are obviously different disciplines, but the

Photo by Becky Hale

As a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice’s criminal division, David Fuhr ‘00 handles bribery cases under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

techniques are the same,” Fuhr says. “At Elon, I learned by doing.”

ANSWERING A CALL TO SERVICE Yet Fuhr felt he could be doing more. In March, he left Debevoise to join the DOJ. Such a move is a time-honored tradition among elite lawyers, Fisk says. Though lawyers moving from private practice into government service sacrifice some zeroes on payday, the intangible benefits they gain, such as real practice experience, are immeasurable.

For Fuhr, the move satisfied both personal and career interests. It kept him closer to his home in Washington, where he lives with wife Tafadzwa Pasipanodya and their infant son, Thulani Karl. Moreover, the position also fulfilled his desire for greater professional autonomy and public service.

“In the law firm, I was often one of several attorneys working on a particular aspect of a large case. Now, I can investigate and shape the direction of a number of cases day in and

day out. It’s more interesting for me. It’s more meaningful,” Fuhr says. “When you represent the United States, you have a particular responsibility to do what’s right.”

Fuhr knows well that systemic corruption can steepen a slippery slope toward human rights violations, especially in developing countries governed by autocratic regimes.

Bribe payments can increase the risk that individuals, in particular the poor and powerless, will be deprived of fundamental rights.

For example, an improperly granted operations permit may lead to an environmental disaster that destroys the livelihood of a community. Fuhr has witnessed such violations in his career, including during travels to Sierra Leone, where he interned with a war crimes tribunal. Those experiences, coupled with Fuhr’s research about corruption’s influence on human rights, formed the basis for a talk he gave at the 2012 Conference on International Law at Elon University School of Law and a forthcoming article in the Elon Law Review.

That a call to serve may have motivated Fuhr to become a federal prosecutor doesn’t

surprise Crowe, who grew close with Fuhr’s family during his travels to Germany. He describes the family as having a deep social consciousness; Fuhr’s father and late mother were Protestant ministers, and his siblings work in public and government service.

“In the back of his mind, I think, he always saw law as a vehicle for doing good,” says Crowe, whose nomination helped earn Fuhr the 2013 Distinguished Alumnus in Social Sciences Award from Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences. “I’m not surprised by his achievements at all, because he’s a very special person.”

Hecker couldn’t agree more. That’s why he has no qualms about the fact he’ll soon be seeing Fuhr across the courtroom aisle, a friendly adversary at the government attorneys’ table. “He’s someone I’d like to see as a prosecutor. He’ll execute judgment in the cases he brings. He’ll be fair,” Hecker says. “David’s the kind of lawyer who reflects well the entity he’s representing. When he’s representing the United States, he’ll be outstanding.”

Summer 2013 25

ALUMNI ACTION

THE BEST IS YET TO COME

T

he momentum continues to build as a record number of alumni contribute to the future of our great university. It all started with a vision to dramatically ramp up the number of graduates who are connected to their alma mater and one another.

We have been working hard to enhance alumni programs and networks to support the personal and professional lives of our alumni community, and I’m happy to announce our efforts are paying off.

We have more than 20 alumni chapters and clubs within the most highly populated areas where our alumni live and 5,500 members (and counting) on The Elon Network—a digital professional network hosted on LinkedIn. Our alumni board is working diligently with the administration to enhance the Elon brand, expand career opportunities and provide excellent programs for alumni in the years ahead.

There has never been a more exciting time to make Elon a bigger part of your life than this, our 125th year.

When you visit campus Nov. 8-10 for Homecoming weekend, be sure to first stop by the new Martin Alumni Center. One important goal of the alumni board was to establish a home for alumni in the central part of campus. We should all thank Chris Martin ’78 P’13, Elon Alumni Board chairman, for his personal and financial support of this project. Many thanks as well to all alumni who have already reserved a brick for the terrace at the center.

As you probably already read in this edition of the magazine, I’ve been elected to the Elon Board of Trustees. I have been specifically tasked with assisting in the development of a new trustee committee focused on alumni. This is a large step in advancing our mission to engage alumni and a perfect way to extend my commitment to Elon and use the experience I’ve gained through my service on the alumni board. I am greatly honored to be chosen for such an important responsibility and pleased that Julia Strange Chase ’84 P’13 will be taking the reins as the next president of the Elon Alumni Board as I complete my term this fall.

See you at the Martin Alumni Center during Homecoming!

John Hill ’76

26 the MAGAZINE of ELON

Black Alumni Summit a success More than 45 alumni came to campus in April for the second Black Alumni Summit. During the two-day event, attendees examined the future direction of the Elon Black Alumni Network and how to continue supporting Elon students, faculty and staff.

The weekend started off with an appreciation reception and dinner at the Alamance Country Club, where Elon President Leo M. Lambert shared several highlights and milestones related to the state of black students, faculty and staff at Elon.

The second day included presentations from Office of Alumni Engagement staff members, as well as a Q&A panel discussion with Elon students and faculty that provided direct insight on ways to support black students. The summit culminated with the PhillipsPerry Black Excellence Awards, where Shakori Fletcher ’16 was presented with the third Black Alumni Network Scholarship.

Missed the summit but want to get involved? EBAN is always looking for volunteers to serve on our various committees. Visit elon.edu/eban or contact Tracey Lewis at tracey.h.lewis@gmail.com to find out how you can get involved.

THE BRICKS ARE BACK! Thanks to our loyal alumni donors, Elon’s recent Pave the Way campaign was an overwhelming success. More than 2,300 alumni supported the campaign, reserving personalized bricks for installation at Elon’s new Martin Alumni Center and raising almost $300,000 in support of the university’s needs.

As a result, we are bringing back the bricks!

For a limited time, alumni once again have the chance to leave a permanent mark on campus as Elon commemorates its 125th anniversary.

Celebrate this milestone with a gift of $125 and reserve your personalized brick today. Learn more at elon.edu/bricks, or by contacting Sarah Bailey at sbailey8@elon.edu.

ALUMNI ACTION

JOIN US for Elon’s

125TH ANNIVERSARY HOMECOMING CELEBRATION Nov. 8-10, 2013

You won’t want to miss Elon’s 125th Anniversary Celebration during Homecoming.

With new events, a remodeled tailgate experience and 125 years of history to celebrate, Homecoming 2013 will be one to remember. Grab your maroon and gold, call your friends and reserve your hotel for our Homecoming festivities celebrating Elon’s history.

EVENTS INCLUDE … »» Elon’s 125th Anniversary Celebration and awards ceremony »» Martin Alumni Center grand opening »» Alumni panel discussions and receptions with faculty, staff and students from various academic and student life departments

»» NPHC Step Show »» Elon vs. The Citadel Homecoming football game »» Brand new tailgating experience »» Class and affinity reunions … and much more!

Registration opens in September. For more information about events and hotel accommodations, visit elon.edu/homecoming.

Interested in volunteering?

Contact the Office of Alumni Engagement at (877) 784-3566 or alumni@elon.edu.

Summer 2013 27

lumni ON THE TOWN

You may have left Elon, but Elon will never leave you. Take advantage of your alumni status to stay connected with your alma mater. Update your contact information at elon.edu/alumni to start receiving information about events in your area. We hope to see you at your Welcome to the City & Alumni Network!

Class of 2013

can stay involved.

will be up to this year and how you

and learn what your local chapter

in your area and connect with others,

the past year. Come out to the event

been in touch with their chapters in

the fold, as well as those who haven’t

other new-to-the-city alumni into

to welcome the Class of 2013 and

Regional alumni volunteers are ready

… and more!

■ Philadelphia ■ Pittsburgh ■ Richmond ■ South Florida ■ Tampa Bay ■ Triad ■ Triangle ■ Washington, D.C. ■ Wilmington

a list of participating cities/regions:

to the City & Alumni

■ Atlanta ■ Baltimore ■ Boston ■ Charleston ■ Charlotte ■ Chicago ■ Dallas ■ Los Angeles ■ New York ■ Orlando

these events are available at elon.edu/alumni. Below is

marks our annual Welcome

Network events across the country.

T More information about the dates and locations of

he start of the fall semester

Congratulations to the Washington, D.C. Alumni Chapter for winning the Capital Alumni Network’s Outstanding Networking and Social Development Award. The chapter also recently won an award that will fund two $1,000 scholarships for Elon students interning at The Washington Center, a nonprofit organization that connects college students with challenging opportunities to work and learn in the nation’s capital for academic credit.

arobinson16@elon.edu.

of regional alumni engagement, at

contact Amanda Robinson, coordinator

the planning in your area, please

If you would like to get involved with

Lifelong learning.

Athletics outings

Service events

Networking opportunities

Socials

local chapter this year:

Here’s what you can expect from your

Welcome to the City & Alumni Network

CLASS NOTES

45

Agnes Eason Langston, mar-

46

Carrie R. Mize Genaway,

ried to N. “Walt” Langston, is now retired and lives in a retirement community. She fondly remembers Earl Danieley ’46 as a person who made her Elon experience memorable.

now retired, actively participates in her church’s activities and tries to swim at least four times a week. Her favorite Elon memory is living in the ladies’ hall and spending time with Professor John W. Barney 1910. Today, Carrie enjoys attending events at Elon, especially plays and music programs.

To current students, she says: “Be involved—you’ll never have another four years to equal your time at Elon.”

48

A retired middle school teacher, Elinor J. Argenbright Causey’s favorite Elon memory is when her husband, Paul E Causey ’50, who played on

the football team, proposed to her as they sat on the stone bench under the Senior Oak. She also fondly remembers Dr. A.L. Hook 1913 and his lab assistant, Earl Danieley ’46, with whom she still corresponds.

While studying at Elon, Elinor went to the Elon Orphanage every day and remains close friends with one of the “little boys” she tutored there. To current students, Elinor says: “What you put into something is what you will get out of it, so enjoy every bit of your college experience, but work hard!” Jane W. Langston is retired and lives in Fern Park, Fla. She spent wonderful years as the wife of James M. Langston Jr., who passed away on 2/27/13, and mother of Jimmy Langston III ’72, who passed away on 5/24/08. Jane fondly remembers participating in choir, enjoying the beautiful campus and singing the “Messiah” each year for Christmas. Among the people who made her Elon experience special

A HOMECOMING LOVE STORY

BY A. VAUGHN VREELAND ’15

What do you love about Elon?

We want to know! Help us compile a list of 125 things alumni cherish about their alma mater. Go to elon.edu/magazine and submit your comments today!

Cassie Bondurant ’80 returned to campus for Homecoming 2010 hoping to rekindle old friendships and reminisce about the fantastic times she had at Elon. What she didn’t expect was to find the promise of a second chance.

But that’s exactly what happened when she ran into classmate Willard Maynard ’80.

Like many students at the time, Bondurant and Maynard knew each other during their four years at Elon. He was a walk-on football player. She was a regular in the stands. The two socialized on occasion at Greek functions but were mere acquaintances. Upon graduation they went their separate ways—jobs, marriages and children soon followed.

When they met again in 2010, they were both divorced and soon realized they lived near each other in the Charlotte, N.C., area. They stayed in touch after Homecoming and within months, the two fell in love and were engaged.

Cassie Bondurant became Mrs. Maynard on Sept. 29, 2012.

Following the ceremony at the Elon Community Church, the Maynards reunited their friends and family for a reception at the very event that brought them together—an Elon football tailgate.

“I really wanted it to be special,” Cassie says of the wedding.

“Elon was where we met and shared so many memories. It was perfect.”

“Elon is a special place,” she adds. “It draws you in and remains in your heart forever.”

■

are Drs. Earl Danieley ’46 and A.L. Hook 1913. Today, Jane continues

to hold Elon close to her heart as Professor Emeritus George Troxler writes a book about Elon, which will include her husband’s work on the Elon College farm.

51

social worker, received the 2013 Woman of the Year Award from the American Business Women’s Association, MidDay Professionals chapter in Asheboro, N.C., where she lives. Paul V. Varga proudly marvels at how Elon has grown in “size, facilities and quality,” and looks forward to each issue of The Magazine of Elon. Paul is forever grateful for the guidance Elon provided him, especially through Dean Bowden and Professor Ferris Reynolds, in preparation for seminary and ministry. He and wife Joanne are enjoying retirement in Falmouth, Maine.

■

52

Betty Long Yarbrough, married to Fred W. Yarbrough ’50,

now enjoys playing bridge and exercising, including yoga. She fondly remembers Elon’s beautiful campus and loving professors, Drs. Leon Smith 1910 and Brown, and friends Jo Watts Williams ’55, Dr. Smith’s daughter-in-law and members of her sorority. Betty reminds students to “study and enjoy Elon!”

56

Now retired, Don L. Allen still has many special Elon memories, including Professors Earl Danieley ’46, Paul Cheek and Paul Reddish and his many friends.

To students, Don says: “Set your goals and work hard to reach them.” Lucille Edwards Carter, retired from the N.C. General Assembly, lives in Raleigh with her wonderful dog, Leo. She has two booths in two antique stores, participates in two bridge clubs and a book club and attends to her house and yard. Lucille happily remembers making wonderful friends at Elon, including best friend Joan Elder Regal ’55, her days as a majorette in the band and participating in her sorority’s activities. To Elon students, she says: “Study hard—give everything your best.” Charles G. Heath retired in 1986. While at Elon, he enjoyed attending football games his freshman year and spending time with Dr. Leon Smith 1910.

Theodore Warren Isley, now

■

■

■

30 the MAGAZINE of ELON

Carolyn Long Beane, a retired

CLASS NOTES

retired, remembers graduation as his favorite Elon memory.

Theodore still recalls important religion, piano, English and psychology lessons by Dr. Sloan, Jonathan Sweat, Dr. Hess and Herbert Latham, respectively. He lives near campus and visits from time to time to reminisce. To students, Theodore says: “Go into a field of study [you] are truly interested in. I was very lucky—I majored in business, and I had a very good job that I always enjoyed and retired with good health!”

TURN YOURSELF IN! – ONLINE AT –

elon.edu/classnotes Help us keep you in touch with your classmates at Elon.

57

Margaret Sharpe Lawing,

now retired after 31 years of teaching, fondly remembers her days in the drama department and the joyful two years she spent under the tutelage of the late Professor Mel Wooten, “who engendered our talents and love for each other.” Other people who made her time at Elon special include Professors John Foster West and Pearl McDonald and friend Janet Welsh. To students she says: “Enjoy your friends but pick them wisely. Let your classwork come first. Doing well will influence the rest of your working life.”

60

John A. Avila is retired

from Northeast Utilities Connecticut Light & Power Co. His favorite Elon memory is taking his wife up north to Connecticut in 1958 and then back to Boston for two more years. John happily remembers many friends from his college days and is surprised at how different the campus looks today.

61

James “Jimmy” D. Moser Jr.,

married to Brenda W. Moser, is semi-retired from his CPA position at Gilliam, Coble, & Moser

LLP. His favorite Elon memory is graduation, though he continually comes back for many Elon activities including tailgating, football and basketball games. Jimmy recalls how Jim Toney (business classes) and Fred Gilliam ’42 (cost accounting class) positively impacted his time at Elon. To today’s students, Jimmy says: “Set your goals and take advantage of opportunities outside the classroom as well as in the classroom.”

62

Robert J. Hall, husband of Helen A. Hall, is now retired.

Among his favorite Elon memories was living in Veteran apartments and working while attending night school. He encourages students to study hard.

63

Reunion Reunion committee members Howard Arner, Jim Buie, Tom Crandall, Jerry Drake, Mary Glenn Briggs Haskell, Linda “Lucy” Kelley, Garland Paschal and Bob Saunders encourage all classmates to attend the 50th class reunion during Homecoming weekend, Nov. 8–10. The committee will present the class gift check to President Leo M. Lambert at the Golden Alumni Luncheon on Nov. 8. If you have any questions, please contact Carolyn DeFrancesco at (336) 278-7454 or cdefrancesco@elon.edu. Don’t forget to send in your memory book form!

66

Walt Jennette recently

emerged from semi-retirement to re-enter the corporate world as the president and chief trust officer for Aon Hewitt Trust Company in the Chicago area. He will be working with the worldclass firm to establish a vertically integrated retirement solution for U.S. middle market corporations.

He and wife Pat live in Raleigh, N.C. Mary Coolidge Ruth and husband Bill Ruth recently visited Fairfield Glade Community Church in Crossville, Tenn., where the Rev. Marvin Morgan ’71 is serving as interim minister. The Ruths and Marvin have been good friends since 1996 when Marvin attended his 25th class reunion planning event in Holland House while Mary served as Elon’s director of alumni and parent relations.

In 2006, Marvin recruited Bill and Mary, United Church of Christ Partners in Service volunteers,

■

{ Students at a Homecoming dance in the mid-1950s . }

CHARITABLE GIFT ANNUITIES CAN PROVIDE INCOME FOR LIFE a charitable gift annuity of $10,000 or more to Elon will guarantee a fixed income for the rest of your life. With market interest rates near historic lows, a gift annuity is an attractive way to increase your income and make a gift to Elon at the same time.

You will receive immediate tax benefits and can defer capital gains.

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.

rates as of january 1, 2012 ONE BENEFICIARY

T WO BENEFICIARIE S

AG E

ANNUIT Y R ATE

AG E

ANNUIT Y R ATE

60 65 70

4.4% 4.7% 5.1%

60/65 67/67 71/73

4.0% 4.4% 4.7%

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

To calculate a gift annuity for you, your spouse or a family member, visit elon.plannedgiving.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 • elon.plannedgiving.org

summer 2013 31

CLASS NOTES

to serve eight months at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta. Mary, Bill and Marvin enjoy getting together with Elon, and currently Tennessee, as their common denominators.

contact Sarah Graves ’12, advancement fellow, at (336) 278-7421 or sgraves4@elon.edu.

77

Reunion Elon’s Class of 1968 will mark its 45th reunion during this year’s Homecoming weekend, Nov. 8–10.

Make plans now to attend the reunion, reminisce with classmates about your days on campus and celebrate Elon’s 125th anniversary!

For more information about the reunion, contact Durice White ’09, assistant director of alumni engagement, at (336) 278-7463 or dwhite15@elon.edu.

After 36 years as an educator, Jan Henderson James retired in June from the School District of Greenville County in South Carolina. Jan, whose latest appointment was as principal of Simpsonville Elementary, finished her studies at Elon in December 1976, got married shortly after and immediately started teaching. While she says her career has been great, she looks forward to spending time with her family and volunteering in her community. She and husband Benny live in Simpsonville.

73

78

68

Reunion Save the date for Elon’s 125th Homecoming weekend and the Class of 1973’s 40th reunion on Nov. 8–10. Don’t miss this chance to reconnect with friends! For more information,

Reunion Reunion committee members Bill Britton, Kevin Holland, Cecil Hudgins and Tim Moore are looking forward to catching up with classmates at the Class of 1978’s 35th reunion during Homecoming weekend, Nov. 8-10.

For more information, contact Sarah Graves ’12, advancement fellow, at (336) 278-7421 or sgraves4@elon.edu.

83

Heather DiLorenzo Williams ’96, Trent Williams G’10 & daughter Mia

Patricia Norris ’97

Kelly Hayman Steele ’99, John Steele & daughter Harper Grayce

Stephanie Walz-Vining ’00, Travis Vining & children

Reunion Exciting plans are underway for the Class of 1983’s 30th reunion during Homecoming weekend, Nov. 8-10. Reunion committee members Ike Credle, Mark James, Ellen Nicholson, Colleen O’Brien, Lisa Smithdeal and Bill Tippett hope to see all their classmates on campus to mark this special milestone. For more information, contact Sarah Graves ’12, advancement fellow, at (336) 278-7421 or sgraves4@elon.edu.

88 Kelly Hale Taylor ’01, Jeremy Taylor & friends

Emily Wolff ’01, Chris Powers & sons Sullivan & Oliver

Reunion Calling all Class of 1988 members! Join your classmates for your 25th class reunion during Elon’s 125th Homecoming weekend, Nov. 8-10. Be sure to mark your calendars. For more information, contact Jozi Snowberger ’07, associate director of annual giving, at (336) 278-4687 or jsnowberger@elon.edu.

89 Rebecca Lestner Hauser ’03

Kellie Brielmaier Mayrides ’03 & Christopher Mayrides

32 the MAGAZINE of ELON

Emily Walker Pinkerton ’06 & Brad Pinkerton ’03

Maurine “Mo” Emilie Mobley recently joined

@properties, the No. 1 real estate brokerage in Chicago. Based out of Lake Forest, where she lives with husband Andrew Mobley ’90, Emilie specializes in Chicago’s northern suburbs.

93

Reunion It’s time for the Class of 1993’s 20th reunion! Make plans now to mark this milestone with reunion committee members Richard Bishop, Charmin Britt, Michelle Joubran, Victoria Schumacher, William Walker and classmates at Elon’s 125th anniversary Homecoming weekend, Nov. 8-10.

For more information, contact Rachael Hart, coordinator of annual giving, at (336) 278-4687 or rhart@elon.edu.

94

Megan Maxfield Bogley

96

Heather DiLorenzo and Trent Williams {MBA’10}

97

Patricia Norris recently trav-

and husband Chris Bogley welcomed son Christopher Aidan Douglas on 10/25/12. He joins sisters Ashley, 11, Allison, 5, and Mckenzie, 2. Megan is an officer in the U.S. Army. The family lives in El Paso, Texas.

were married in Greensboro, N.C., on 11/10/12. Elon alumna Paula Weinbach Creech was part of the bridal party and Professor of History Nancy Midgette was a reader during the ceremony.

Heather is a media specialist at Eastern Guilford High School and Trent is an engineering project manager at Gilbarco Veeder-Root. The couple have a 6-year-old daughter, Mia. They live in McLeansville. eled to China as part of the executive MBA program at Virginia Commonwealth University. A marketing specialist for annuity product marketing at Genworth Financial, Patricia is expected to graduate from the program in 2014. She lives in Glen Allen with her Jack Russell Terrier, Isabel.

98

Reunion Join Class of 1998 15th reunion committee members Chad Bebout, Lee Bogle, Jennifer Curtin, Lauren Janicki, Misty-Dawn O’Day, Sarah Smith, Martarash Torain and Kebbler Williams on Nov. 8-10 to participate in class reunion activities during Elon’s 125th anniversary Homecoming weekend. For more information, contact Rachael Hart, coordinator of annual giving, at (336) 278-4687 or rhart@elon.edu.

Wendy Zuber and husband Daniel welcomed daughter Macie Jean on 10/1/12. Wendy is a teaching

■

CLASS NOTES

FINDING TAWANNA

BY KEREN RIVAS ’04

A

t age 52, Tawanna Williams Maryland ’83 is able to claim the title she’s longed for all her life—full-time artist.

“To be in this space is a dream come true,” Maryland says, sitting in her small art studio in Greensboro, N.C., surrounded by beautifully dressed and sculpted dolls she created for “The Hello Truth” series, her most recent doll collection part of Gabriellez Gifts.

The daughter of a baker and seamstress, Maryland discovered her love for fabrics and dolls at an early age. As a child, “I would create their worlds, design their clothes, style their hair,” she recalls. “I would give them life.”

When time came for college, Maryland wanted to study art but was told by a relative there was no future in the field; she enrolled at Elon to study business instead. Always looking for ways to use her artistic talents, she joined The Pendulum, the student newspaper, as a cartoonist.

After graduating in 1983 with a degree in business administration and a minor in communications, she went to work at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in the publications office. Once again, she found a marketable outlet for her art and started working in graphic design. But it wasn’t until the mid-1990s, when life struggles led her to use art as an outlet, that she started thinking of herself as an artist.

That’s when she produced her first doll collection, “Miola,” a series of faceless rag dolls designed to capture a woman’s inner beauty.

Maryland made the dolls on the side while working part time, selling dozens of them in gift and specialty shops until the early 2000s. Soon, however, she couldn’t keep up with production and had to stop making them. She began working full time in family and children services, hoping to find a more meaningful outlet for her talents.

For the past 10 years, Maryland used performing arts and visual arts whenever possible to expose children to the power of art as part of her job at an after school program with Guilford County Schools. She also launched the

{ Tawanna Williams Maryland ’83 at her Greensboro, N.C. studio.

Below: “Hello Individuality,” part of “The Hello Truth” series. }

Out-of-School Art Academy, an organization that provides mobile learning and enrichment labs in the arts and sciences for young people. Last fall, a chance encounter with Greensboro public relations consultant Mebane Ham led Maryland to take part in the Entrepreneurship for Visual Arts program at Bennett College. “It changed my life,” she says.

As part of the program, designed to teach business and marketing skills to female artists, she had to put on a show, and “The Hello Truth” series was born. This time, Maryland used clay to sculpt the dolls’ faces, though she purposely made them with their eyes closed.

Just like “Miola,” the latest 12 dolls, which she called “Gabrielle,” are meant to confront people with who they really are. But above all, the dolls are symbols of Maryland’s life journey, for each represents a quality she possesses or is trying to attain: Love. Courage. Individuality. Wisdom.

Forgiveness.

“When you say hello to something, you’re facing it,” she says of the collection. “When I look at the dolls, I can see the situations that brought those traits out.”

Emboldened by the entrepreneurship

program, Maryland took a leap of faith and left her school job in June to focus full time on her art and literacy programs. She is also pursuing a bachelor of fine arts at Guilford College. Her goal is to use her talents to improve literacy and empower others, particularly women. Though it has taken her this long to find herself, Maryland is ready for the next chapter of her life.

“Right now, I’m OK with Tawanna,” she says. “I see me in the beginning of the career I was intended for. ... This will be a year I’ll never forget.”

To see Maryland’s art and other ventures, visit gabriellezgifts.com, which launches this fall.

summer 2013 33

CLASS NOTES

TURN YOURSELF IN! ONLINE AT …

elon.edu/classnotes Help us keep you in touch with your classmates at Elon.

and learning consultant at Promethean Inc. The family lives in Frankfort, Ky.

welcomed son Matthew James on 5/2/13. The family lives in Encinitas, Calif.

daughter Shelby James on 12/10/12.

The family lives in Mansfield, Mass.

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Adina Dorch, Ben Glover, Jennifer Black Gallagher, Lauren Vilis Nelson, Anne Machowski, Greg Robson, Joy Ross and Nicole Wright are serving on the Class

Troy Adams is now the

business development director for Andrew Roby General Contractor, which was recently named the best general contractor in Charlotte, N.C., and one of the city’s 50 fastest-growing companies. He was previously the executive general manager for Sports Connection and SportsLink. Troy also owns and operates Carolina Golf Tournaments and Carolina DJ Professionals, which provides music for high profile events, such as the ACC Tournament, Food Lion Speed Street, Charlotte Checkers hockey games and the Elon Senior Gala. Carolina Golf Tournaments organizes golf tournaments “Fore Everyone and Fore Charity.” This year Troy will be working with Susan G. Komen of Charlotte, Alzheimer’s Association of Western North Carolina, Wounded Warrior and Dog Days of Charlotte, as well as starting an adaptive golf program of his own.

Kelly Hayman Steele and husband John Steele welcomed daughter Harper Grayce on 1/18/2013.

The family lives in Raleigh, N.C.

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Stephanie Walz-Vining

and husband Travis Vining

Cara Citrowske is excited

to announce the launch of her company, Kick It Catalyst, LLC. As a certified wellness coach and tobacco treatment specialist, Cara focuses on helping women become smoke-free for life and empowering them to stop “the pack mentality and get more of the health, love and freedom they crave.” Through her website, www.CaraCitrowske.com, Cara has coached women in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Barbados. She and her family live in Prior Lake, Minn.

Julie Paynter Deisler and husband Scott Deisler welcomed son Owen William on 5/9/13. He joins older siblings Jackson and Alice.

The family lives in Columbus.

Kelly Hale and Jeremy Taylor were married 5/12/12. Amanda Smith was part of the wedding party. The couple live in Beaufort, S.C. Emily Wolff and husband Chris Powers welcomed son Sullivan on 6/29/12. Sullivan joins older brother Oliver. The family lives in Fort Mitchell, Ky.

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Heidi Sipes Lamb and hus-

band Kevin Lamb welcomed

03

Reunion

of 2003 10th reunion committee. They want to encourage all classmates to come back to Elon’s 125th Homecoming weekend, Nov. 8-10, to celebrate. For more information, contact Jozi Snowberger ’07, associate director of annual giving, at (336) 2784687 or jsnowberger@elon.edu.

Kellie Brielmaier and Christopher Mayrides were married on 2/23/13.

Alumni in attendance included Blaire Galaton-Kelleher, Brian Kelleher, Cassie Mansbach and Jessica Messier. The couple live in Philadelphia, where Kellie works as director of facility rentals and special events for the National Constitution Center and Christopher works as senior graphic designer for the architectural firm Ewing Cole.

Rebecca Lestner Hauser has joined Business Volunteers Unlimited Maryland as manager of marketing and communications. In her new role, Rebecca coordinates the organization’s external communications initiatives, including program promotion, digital support and publicity. Jennifer Hopkinson and Brad Quarry were married on 9/29/12. Alumni in attendance included Amanda Novissimo Goforth, Elizabeth Moody, Leila Saliba, Jessica Siiro, Victoria Smith, Jennifer Perry Susienka and Margaret Arden ’04.

The couple live in Scottsdale, Ariz. Brad Pinkerton and Emily Walker ’06 were married on 10/20/12. Alumni in attendance included Eric Cantrell ’02, Stephanie Dukta Cantrell ’02, Jason Tuttle, Tyson Blocker ’04, Shane Flannery ’04, Michael Fratoe ’05, Brian Hensen ’05, Bucleigh Newton Kernodle ’05, Gary Morris ’05, Lori Corso Morris ’05, Andrew Barnes ’06, Lindsey Paquette Barnes ’06, Natalie Bystry Flannery ’06, Kellyn McLamb Harrod ’06, Michelle Mastaler Hensen ’06, Bryan Kernodle ’06, Elizabeth Kernodle Kohns ’06, Kirsten Kolb ’06, Tina Mayer ’06, Smith Sydnor ’06, Sam White ’06 and Laura Tillistrand ’07. The

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Lindsay Hege ’04, Brian Hege & twin sisters Alivia & Penelope

Christina Pilafas Jackman ’05 & friends

Matt Sally ’06, Elizabeth Sally & daughters Madden & Kate

Lauren Summers Austin ’07, Brad Austin ’07 & friends

34 the MAGAZINE of ELON

Melissa Hlinovsky ’06 & son Jon Wesley

CLASS NOTES

As I palmed the clutch of her strands,

TELLING HIS STORY

worried over the neat horizon of hair, her manner suggested to me, There is time to get better. I planted the split ends in the wastebasket and knew we’d both grow from this.

Alumnus finds success in following his passion for poetry

Excerpt from the poem “From These Split Ends,” featured in Los Angeles Review.

BY TAYLOR SHARP ’16

M

ark Jay Brewin Jr. ’08 is a poet.

But if you ask him, he would tell you he is a storyteller—for if you listen, he says, the world is full of stories to tell and journeys to share.

“Everybody wants somebody to know that they exist,” Brewin says. “The little journeys we have, and telling others about them, is where the driving force of my work exists.”

Brewin tells some of those stories in his first collection of poetry, Scrap Iron, which won the prestigious Agha Shahid Ali Prize in Poetry and was published in April. The prize is awarded annually and is sponsored by The University of Utah Press and The University of Utah Department of English. The contest is open to any poet writing in English.

Brewin had entered a handful of poetry contests and was amazed and humbled when he learned his manuscript won. “A lot of my life is really just lucky moments,” he says.

“And those lucky moments are also where a lot of my work comes from.”

Brewin graduated from Elon with a double major in art and English with

concentrations in creative writing and photography. He later received a master’s degree in fine arts for poetry from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. He credits many of his Elon professors, including Kevin Boyle, Cassie Kircher, Drew Perry and Tita Ramirez, with inspiring him and shaping him into a more mature and focused artist. It’s not surprising that Brewin, in turn, has become an inspiration for one of his mentors.

“I wish I could make the leaps of imagination and association that Mark makes in his poems, seemingly so effortlessly,” says Boyle, who nominated Brewin for the 2013 Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Alumnus in the Arts and Humanities Award. The two worked closely while Brewin was an undergraduate and have kept in touch since. “He’s the real deal—passionate, intelligent, with a great ear I hope he never cuts off. In his poetry, the world of the unfettered imagination cohabits very nicely with the world of work, sadness, emptiness and distance.”

Much of Brewin’s debut book centers on the legacy of his father, a hardworking

blue-collar worker, and the complex family dynamics resulting from moving away from his home in New Jersey. His work also focuses on the stories of others—people he met at Elon, coworkers at summer jobs as a young adult, residents at a retirement home where he once worked and those he met while studying abroad. “People have opened up to me in ways I couldn’t expect,” Brewin says.

“I’m so grateful for it.”

Now back in North Carolina after a short teaching stint at Johnson and Wales University in Providence, R.I., Brewin is working on his second book, which will focus on travel and love. More specifically, hiking the Camino de Santiago in Spain with his wife, Jessica Keough ’07, whom he met in a photography class his junior year.

“Elon was where it all began for me,” Brewin says. “This place, these people I met here. I don’t think I’ll ever get over the inspiration that was sparked those few years ago. Let’s hope I never do.”

Scrap Iron is available online at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and The University of Utah Press’s website.

summer 2013 35

CLASS NOTES

couple live in Matthews, N.C., close to where Brad works as a senior editor at Sporting News and Emily works as a program director at Queens University of Charlotte.

Crystal Webb has been named senior vice president, change management and organizational effectiveness at Sun Trust Bank.

She lives in Atlanta.

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Lindsay Hege and husband Brian welcomed twin daughters Alivia and Penelope on 1/27/13.

The family lives in Durham, N.C.

05

This spring, Samantha Hobbs received an MBA from Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business. Samantha is currently living in Houston and working at a management consulting firm that specializes in energy and utilities space.

Christina Pilafas and Thomas Jackman were married on 12/8/12 in Bethesda, Md. Alumni in attendance included Kara Ege Clasing, Alexandria Gilkey, Alexandra

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Candice Hogan Lyna ’08 & Josh Lyna

Kelly McCarty McLaughlin ’09 & Matthew McLaughlin

Alison Billings Lambert ’09, Van Lambert & daughter Rylie Kay

Kelsey Lodge Robinette ’09 & Paul Robinette ’09

Ginny Payne McCreary ’09

Dan Browne ’10 & Sarah Baker Browne ’11

Hacking Hadfield, Gillian Ruttkay, Melissa Villemarette Scanlon, Kathy Schwartz, Lisa Spachtholz, Andrea Ronzoni Wierengo and Maggie Plattner ’06. Christina is a

band Marc Holt welcomed son Reagan Marc on 4/6/13. The family lives in Woodstock, Md. Lauren Summers and Brad Austin were married on 6/16/12 in Madison, N.J. Alumni participating in the wedding included Mallie Colavita ’05, Andrew Fitzgerald ’05, Christine Hopewell Fenn ’06, James Rill ’06, Caity Cummings Cardano, Elliott Cardano, Austin Fenn and Samantha Holland.

Other alumni in attendance included Mark Van Hook ’03, Natalie Sampson Fitzgerald ’05, Blake Stonbraker ’05, Christopher Ahlgrim ’06, Benjamin Ezrine ’06, Shane Gerken ’06, Charles Keenan ’06, Alison Fiske Lopriore ’06, Kyle Lopriore ’06, Roberto Torres ’06, Haley Carr, Elizabeth Colquitt, Kimberly Miller Iannucci, Kristin Jennings, Hank Miller, Kristen Payne, Michelle Savary, Katie Collins ’08 and Leslie McFarland ’08. The couple reside in Charlotte, N.C., where Lauren is a literacy coach for the Charlotte Mecklenburg School System and Brad is a project manager for Controls Southeast, Inc.

Young Alumni Homecoming Party on Friday night and check out the Class of 2008 tailgate tent.

For more information, contact Colleen Cooper, coordinator of young alumni and student engagement, at (336) 278-7424 or ccooper4@elon.edu. Go Phoenix!

Danielle Gaquin Davis, married to Timothy Davis, is a 2013 recipient of The Daily Record’s 20 in Their Twenties award, which recognizes creative, entrepreneurial-minded young professionals who are accomplished in their profession and involved in their communities. She was honored June 26 during a cocktail reception.

Since majoring in political science and public administration and minoring in communications at Elon, and receiving a master’s of public administration degree from American University, Danielle has served as deputy communications director to Rep. Tom Price, vice chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Budget. Now, she works at a public relations agency in Baltimore, Md. In her free time, Danielle volunteers as a program manager to the Claude Moore Community Builders program, where she has worked with youth to complete more than 13,000 hours of community service since 2007. Danielle is also a chair on the Career Networking and Student Transitions Committee of Elon’s Young Alumni Council. Candice Hogan and Josh Lyna were married on 3/9/13. Several Elon alumni attended the ceremony and took part in the bridal party. Candice is a project manager with Sinclair & Co. The couple live in Cary, N.C. Colleen Miller graduated from New York Law School in 2012 and recently passed the New York State Bar. She works for Napoli Bern Ripka Shkolnik & Associates. Molly Pearson and Robert Campbell were married 10/13/12 in Bermuda. Elon alumni in attendance included Sarah Wobbecke ’07, Jessica McShane ’07 and Jacquie Chamberlain.

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strategy consultant with Deloitte Consulting. The couple live in Kensington. Courtney Ryerson and husband Stephen welcomed daughter Casey Grace on 3/2/13.

The family resides in Rockville Centre, N.Y.

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Laura Cordell and husband Brian welcomed daughter Elizabeth Mary-Jean on 2/15/13.

The family lives in Tampa.

Melissa H. Hlinovsky and husband Jon welcomed son Jon Wesley on 7/28/12. The family lives in Windsor, Va. Matt Sally and wife Elizabeth welcomed daughter Kate on 9/7/12. Kate joins older sister Madden. The family lives in Madison, Wis.

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Lisa Cochran Holt and hus-

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Reunion

Bonnie Brackett, Ashley Gardiner and Garrett Turner have

Ashley Ward Brown ’11

Abigail Baumann Garcia ’11 & Angel Garcia

36 the MAGAZINE of ELON

l-r: Linda Kurtz ’11, Julie Smith ’11, Riley Beetner ’11 & Maggie Pahos ’11

teamed up to chair the Class of 2008 5th reunion committee. They encourage the entire class to return for Elon’s 125th Homecoming celebration Nov. 8-10, attend the

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Alison Billings Lambert

and husband Van Lambert welcomed daughter Rylie Kay on 12/14/12. The family lives in Concord, N.C. Kelsey Lodge and Paul Robinette were married on 7/28/12. Alumni and students in attendance

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CLASS NOTES

BOSTON STRONG

{ Kristin Feeney ’11 and her boyfriend’s mother, Lora Gross-Kostka, at the Boston Marathon in April. }

BY ERIC TOWNSEND

I

f you don’t know Kristin Feeney ’11, you might recognize her footwear: a pair of pink and orange Vibram Bikila “barefoot” running shoes that became part of an iconic image in the days following the Boston Marathon terror attack.

Feeney was less than a half mile from the finish line on April 15 when two bombs went off, killing three spectators and injuring scores more. Feeney, a clinical researcher at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, had been running in honor of her father’s battle against cancer.

Though stopped short of her goal, Feeney would soon offer her shoes to Boston magazine, which used them at the top center of a cover photo days later featuring the footwear of marathon participants.

Feeney talked with The Magazine of Elon about her memories of that day, her motivations for participating in the marathon and her plans to return to the streets of Boston next April.

Had you run a marathon prior to the race, or was Boston your first? It was my first so I call it my “almost marathon” because, technically, I didn’t run a complete marathon. And the only way you can actually get into Boston (if you haven’t run a marathon before) is to connect to a charity program.

You chose to run for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Yeah. They are one of the most reputable cancer research organizations in the country, and one of the reasons I was drawn to them is that they donate all of the money—not just a percentage—to a lab or a research group actively trying to find new ways to treat all different kinds of cancers.

How were you feeling when you entered the final stage of the race? They always tell you it’s that last couple of miles that really get you.

I trained a lot, and I did a lot of preparation but they’re right. … I had been crying for probably about two miles, just to let it out and keep going and to push myself, when a woman turned around and said to me, “You have to stop. There was a bomb. People are dead at the finish line.”

They basically stopped everybody at (mile marker) 25.8 and safely corralled people who literally had no idea what was going on. I hit a wall of people.

What was your reaction when you saw that wall and heard what had happened? It was surreal. That’s the only good word I really have for it. I had gone through so much at this point and then suddenly this intangible goal that I had been working toward for so long was robbed. I thought it was a joke at first. A split second later I’m thinking, “Oh, my gosh, my family is there.” I was able to find my boyfriend and reunite with my parents. It took many more hours to find out everyone who had been there for me was safely accounted for.

How do you think this experience is going to change you? When my dad got diagnosed with cancer that really changed everything for me.

Something terrible had happened in my life, I was motivated to do something good, and then something terrible happens when I’m doing something good. It teaches you that there will be a lot of really bad things that happen to you in life and they don’t make any sense. … I think that you begin to realize pretty quickly how to turn something tragic into something inspiring and to keep living in spite of it.

Are you planning on running the marathon next year? Absolutely. I have a very good community in the charity group. They’re very supportive and have really motivated me to think how it’s one more opportunity. It’s also cool because my dad, even though he’s sick and is still actively receiving cancer treatment, is hoping to get his doctor’s blessing to actually train and run himself. That would be really awesome, too.

Read the full interview online at elon.edu/magazine.

summer 2013 37

CLASS NOTES

TURN YOURSELF IN! ONLINE AT …

elon.edu/classnotes Help us keep you in touch with your classmates at Elon.

included Keith Lodge ’04, Matthew Casavecchia ’06, Ryan Kinahan ’07, Heather McGuire ’07, Katie Dondero ’08, Laura Heisch ’08, Bobby Brennan, Jessica Casavecchia, Kirsten Gonzalez, McKenna Leonetti, Suzi Rice, Taylor Korzun ’10, Sami Leonard ’10, Caitlin McGuire ’10 and Lindsay Lodge ’15. The couple

live in West Haven, Conn., where Paul is a SCADA engineer for United Illuminating Company.

John Lottes graduated in May from Long Island University-Brooklyn with a doctorate in physical therapy. He also received a dean’s award for clinical excellence. John lives in Glen Head, N.Y. Julian Martinez has been accepted into Yale University’s School of Drama.

He joined the Class of 2016 in August. Kelly McCarty married Matthew McLaughlin on 10/6/12.

The groom’s sister, Julia Marie McLaughlin ’13, participated in

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In Memoriam Irene Hook Covington ’41 P’73 ’75 ’79 ’86 ’92 GP’01 ’02 ’04 ’07, Sanford, N.C. 07/14/13. One of Elon’s most dedicated alumnae, Irene was the daughter of the late Jessie Dawson Hook, a 1915 alumna, and Alonzo L. Hook, a 1913

alumnus and beloved longtime faculty member at Elon.

Part of a long line of Elon alumni, Irene grew up in Elon and counted late husband Dr. M. Cade Covington ’41, three sisters, five children and five grandchildren among her fellow Elon alumni. She was member emerita of the Elon Alumni Board and a longtime volunteer with the Elon Alumni Association.

Charles Alan Lynam ’52, Greensboro, N.C. 6/8/13.

Frank Lee Ward ’52, High Point, N.C. 6/7/13.

John Terry Kelly Jr. ’53, Virginia Beach, Va. 5/7/13.

Robert “Bob” E. McAdams ’57, Scottsdale, Ariz., 6/1/13.

Robert Thomas Hobbs ’59, Burlington, N.C. 6/5/13.

James “Dale” Shepherd ’59, Greensboro, N.C. 1/8/13.

The Rev. John Rex Thomas ’59, Ashland, Pa. 5/23/13.

Ronald Wesley Durham ’60, Burlington, N.C. 4/18/13.

Clinton Rex Hardy Sr. ’62, Wilmington, N.C. 1/13/13.

Joan Marie Pegram Reece ’62, Pittsboro, N.C. 5/13/13.

Willis “Bill” Bilderback ’63, Annapolis, Md. 4/6/13.

Lillian Mae Sharpe ’64, Mebane, N.C. 4/14/13.

Timothy A. Edwards ’69, Staunton, Va. 12/15/11.

Richard “Dick” Alan White Jr. ’71, Greensboro, N.C. 5/15/13.

Margaret “Peggy” Jane Zint ’84 P’79 ’81 ’84 GP’08, Burlington, N.C. 5/18/13.

Michael David Witt ’90, Trumbull, Conn. 4/9/13.

the bridal party. Other alumni in attendance included James Gorsuch ’10, Molly McGowan ’10, Ned Dibner ’12, Patrick Ma ’12 and Jordan Smiley ’12. Kelly was recently promoted from communications and development assistant to development associate at the Washington Office of Latin America. In her new role at the human rights organization, she coordinates donor giving programs and fundraising events, including the annual WOLA Human Rights Awards Ceremony and Benefit Gala. The couple live in Washington, D.C. Ginny Payne McCreary, daughter of Gus ’78 and Robbie ’78 Payne, has joined Pennsylvania-based marketing communications agency Godfrey as a public relations associate account manager and coordinator. In that role, she manages public relations projects from conception to completion and provides media relations support to different clients in the manufacturing industry. Prior to joining Godfrey, Ginny was the marketing and events coordinator at Barley Snyder. She and husband Ryan live in Lancaster. Nicole QuarlesThomas and husband Antonio Thomas welcomed son Dylan Nathaniel on 3/2/13. The family lives in Atlanta.

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Dan Browne and Sarah Baker ’11 married on 6/22/12.

Alumni in attendance included Conor Britain ’09, Meredith Gibson ’09, Lauren Caldwell, Hunter Cavell, Paul Chabai, Lauren Fitzpatrick, Ben Huggins, Heidi Hurrell, Jerome Lewis, John Lynn, Jon Mahlandt, Abby Remein, Alex Trevisan, David Wilson, Jeremy Williams, Clayton Winkelvoss, Walt Yates, Sara Baker ’11, Rachel Bertone ’11, Ellen Boyle ’11, Catie Kelly ’11, Alex Lawrence ’11, Erika Pescatore ’11, Allie Priar ’11, Kelsey Renner ’11, Jo Beth Stoddard ’11, Sarah Talbott ’11 and Kate Vogt ’11. The couple live in Malvern, Pa. Andie Diemer recently joined Martha Stewart Living magazine as its associate photo editor. In that position, Andie develops concepts, assigns photographers and produces and edits feature shoots for all sections of the magazine, particularly gardening and crafts. She lives in Brooklyn. Caroline J. Fox

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38 the MAGAZINE of ELON

graduated from the University of Richmond School of Law on 5/11/13, earning a J.D. with a specialization in intellectual property law. She lives in Trappe, Md.

11

Abigail Baumann and Angel

Garcia were married on 3/23/13. Abigail is a financial analyst and carrier data contact for National Agents Alliance. Angel is an assistant director of residence life at Elon University. The couple live in Elon. Peter Bock has been awarded a Silver Stevie Award by the American Business Awards (Marketer of the Year category) for his contributions as a marketing analyst for Everblue, a leading sustainability training provider based in Huntersville, N.C. The awards, which are held annually, recognize achievement in business across a variety of U.S. businesses.

Peter attributes much of his success to skills learned while at Elon. When he joined Everblue in 2011, he says he had minimal experience in marketing. His Elon degree was in political science and international studies. “However,” he writes, “the skills I attained during my academic studies, mostly notably writing, research, data collection, critical thinking and analysis, have allowed me to excel in my position at Everblue.”

He continues, “I am a proud Elon alumnus who would like to demonstrate to students that passion and dedication to work pays off in a big way. Although I did not have plans to work in marketing upon graduation, I am happy that I made that difficult decision to step outside my comfort zone and found my passion in both marketing and sustainability.” He lives in Cornelius. Ashley W. Brown recently received a master’s degree in counseling from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

She’s now serving as an admissions counselor for McMurry University in Abilene, Texas, where she lives with husband Jonathan. Linda Kurtz ran the inaugural Nike Women Half Marathon DC, which raised $6 million for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. She trained with Team in Training along with Jessica Glasser, Maggie Pahos and Taylor McKee ’12. Other participating alumni included Cheri Armour ’10, Riley Beetner, Julie Smith and Ashley Gill ’12.

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MAKING A DIFFERENCE

BY MEGAN MCCLURE

{ Right: Mary Briggs Haskell ’ then & now. Below: A snapshot of the Student Christian Association as featured in the  Phi Psi Cli. }

{ Left: Peter "Mark" James ’ then & now. Above: Photo of Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity from the  Phi Psi Cli. }

BRINGING ALUMNI TOGETHER T he tradition of Elon’s class reunions began more than 100 years ago when a small group of graduates organized a reunion to encourage classmates to return to campus.

Today, alumni volunteers like Mary Briggs Haskell ’63 and Peter “Mark” James ’83 remain committed to commemorating important class milestones.

As a member of Elon’s 50th reunion committee, Haskell is spreading the word to classmates about upcoming reunion events during Nov. 8–10, Elon’s Homecoming weekend. She is also encouraging their support of the class gift, which the Class of 1963 will present to President Leo M. Lambert during a Nov. 8 luncheon when the group will be inducted as Golden Alumni, or alumni who graduated from Elon at least 50 years ago.

Her work on the reunion committee and support of the class gift are a meaningful way for the Melbourne, Fla., resident to give back to the university that guided her to a successful career as a federal government employee in Washington, D.C. “Elon was the launching pad for my future, and it’s important to help those who come behind us,” says the retired Haskell, whose family includes several Elon alumni: twin sister Charlesana Briggs Bureau ’63, father

C.V. “Lefty” Briggs ’30, four uncles and three cousins.

“By supporting Elon, we are helping students who might not be able to attend unless some of us give a little so that they might gain a lot.”

Mark James already gives to Elon and is a part of The 1889 Society, which recognizes alumni donors for their annual support. Yet James’ 30th class reunion and Elon’s historic anniversary inspired him to make an additional gift to his alma mater.

“The gift I made for my upcoming reunion and Elon’s 125th anniversary comes from the heart,” says James, who now lives in Alexandria, Va., and works for the U.S. Library of Congress. “I recall my years at Elon and remember the good work of Marydell Bright (former dean of admissions), who let me know I would fit at Elon. She was right—the folks, students and life at Elon have been grand.”

After recently stepping down from a local nonprofit board, James has directed his volunteer efforts to Elon and partnered with other classmates to plan their class reunion.

“It’s a different way for me to give back to Elon,” he says. “If alumni continue to give of their time and resources, we will guarantee that Elon remains the special place it’s always been for the students of tomorrow.”

LEARN MORE

about how you can join Elon’s vibrant alumni network as a partner, advocate and investor at elon.edu/bvan and elon.edu/giving.

  39

COMMENCEMENT 2013

Thousands of undergraduate and graduate students participated in Commencement exercises in May. (l-r) Members of the MBA, Master of Arts in Interactive Media and Law graduating classes.

To see more photographs taken by Office of University Communications staff, as well as some submitted via Instagram by our newest alumni, go to elon.edu/magazine.

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Raleigh, NC Permit # 686

Office of Alumni Engagement PO Box 398 Elon, NC 27244 Toll Free: (877) 784-3566 elon.edu/alumni Change Service Requested

2013 SoCon champs In May, the Elon Phoenix claimed its second Southern Conference Baseball Tournament title with a 6–5 victory over The Citadel. The win gave Elon an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament. The team made it to the final round of the Charlottesville Regional but lost to No. 6 national seed and regional host University of Virginia. The Phoenix won seven of its last nine games, upending UNC-Wilmington twice to reach the regional final for the first time in its six NCAA Tournament appearances.

The team finished its 2013 season with a 34–30 record and five standout players selected in the Major League Baseball draft: Junior Ryan Kinsella (Arizona Diamondbacks), who ended the season with All-America and All-Atlantic Region honors, senior Alex Swim (Minnesota Twins), junior Antonio Alvarez (Diamondbacks), senior Kyle Webb (St. Louis Cardinals) and junior David Whitehead (Philadelphia Phillies).