Elon strives to change students’ lives through academics and involvement, but often students also have the chance to meet lifelong friends and sometimes even their future spouse. For Katie and Reed LaPlante, this happened on their first day of college in 1999.
By Kristin Moore '19
Elon strives to change the lives of students through academics and involvement, but often students also have the chance to meet lifelong friends and sometimes even their future spouse. For Katie and Reed LaPlante, this happened on their first day of college in 1999.
Katie and Reed came to Elon both looking for memorable experiences and to figure out their career paths. Both were passionate about community service and involvement, and decided to apply to be in the Service Learning Community Living and Living Community their first year.
The SLC, the oldest living and learning community on-campus and advised by the Kernodle Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement, is designed for incoming first-year students who are who have a passion for service and social justice. For the pair, the SLC provided the perfect opportunity to become involved in the community they now call home.
When the LaPlantes were students, the Service Learning Community was housed in a residential building that used to exist where the Moseley Center is now currently located. “It is crazy to see how much the Service Learning Community has evolved since we were students at Elon,” said Katie LaPlante. “I love watching it grow more and more each year!”
Katie and Reed met the first day they arrived at Elon’s campus, and got to know each other well through community service activities. At Elon, Katie was involved in a sorority, and continued volunteering throughout their time on-campus. Reed was a member of Pi Kappa Phi, and Elon’s Cheerleading Team where he served as captain.
The LaPlantes graduated from Elon in 2003. Katie LaPlante shared that “college is such a memorable and important time of your life and being able to share that with your spouse is so special.”
The LaPlantes married shortly after graduating from Elon and still live close to campus. Katie currently works for Elon Academy, a nonprofit college access and success program for high school students in Alamance County, and Reed works in the banking industry where he was recently recognized as a young leader by the Triad Business Journal for his professional, personal, and community accomplishments.
The LaPlantes both agree that giving back is extremely important and continue to be active in their community today. Reed noted that “It is such an incredible experience to see your kids want to take up the same activities you were involved with at their age and begin to see their own interests in service start to bud.”