Admiring the first home in Elon’s new EcoVillage Living-Learning Community at Loy Farm, visitors will notice the innovative design, the precise construction and the meticulous attention to architectural detail. What they won’t see: the heart and soul poured into the build by dozens of students over the 2023-24 year.
Overseen by Associate Professor of Environmental Studies Robert Charest and led by peer mentors, students put thousands of hours of labor and love into building the 600-square-foot, sustainably designed home. From framing to finishing, students developed skills in project management, home maintenance and construction that will serve them throughout their lives and careers.
Devoted to creative solutions in sustainable living, The EcoVillage Living-Learning Community opened in fall 2024 with the first six homes and commons building completed. An additional six homes will be constructed in 2024-25, providing housing for 24 students dedicated to learning about sustainable living and agriculture at Loy Farm.
Pi Sigma Alpha, the national political science honor society, selected Elon’s Department of Political Science and Public Policy to host the Undergraduate Journal of Politics for a second three-year term through 2026. The department was first selected to host the journal in 2019.
Mentored by Associate Professor Baris Kesgin and Assistant Professor Aaron Sparks, the student editorial board reviews hundreds of manuscripts each semester in the POL 2710 Analyzing Political Inquiry course. After evaluations for methodology, thoroughness and originality, they select three to four papers to publish in each volume. The experience hones students’ own research and analytical skills, while immersing them in scholarship across the political spectrum.
Chances are you’ve experienced being “in the zone,” also called the flow state — when focus is so complete that distractions and the sense of time disappear. Achieving it leads to stronger performance, research shows.
Guided by Assistant Professor of Music Theatre Courtney Liu, a team of dance science students researched the conditions for and effects of the flow state through improvised dance performances. Reviewing psychological and dance science literature, they developed pre-performance rituals to enable them to get “in the zone.” Researchers with Virginia Tech’s Embodied Brain Lab measured their brain activity during rehearsals.
The study culminated in a concert and presentation on Spring Undergraduate Research Forum (SURF) Day, with some audience members invited to measure and view their brain activity with an EKG.
The African and African-American Studies Minor celebrated its 30th anniversary with events highlighting its history and future scholarship. In 1994, Elon received a grant from the U.S. Department of Education to found an International and Global Studies program with a concentration in African studies. Associate Professor Emerita of English K. Wilhelmina Boyd first led the interdisciplinary program, which encompasses courses in history, literature, psychology, political science, music and the performing arts. Longstanding global study courses in Ghana and South Africa remain popular with students seeking to deepen intercultural inquiry. Current program coordinator Keshia Wall, assistant professor of dance, organized events in 2023-24 that included a faculty panel discussion of the importance of Black history in understanding current events, and a gala with remarks by President Connie Ledoux Book, President Emeritus Leo Lambert and Provost Rebecca Kohn.
