New facilities, special campus events and a talented freshman class will highlight the beginning of Elon University’s 117th academic year. The first day of classes is Tuesday, Aug. 29. Details...
Sixty-four percent of this year’s freshman class graduated in the top quarter of their high school class; 20 students were valedictorians. The average SAT score is 1216, with the mid-range of the class falling between 1140-1300. The average high school grade point average is 3.9, with the mid-range of the class between 3.47-4.4.
This year’s projected undergraduate enrollment of 4,825 is about 125 more than last year.
Freshmen will move into campus housing beginning at 8 a.m., Friday, Aug. 25, as they begin four days of orientation sessions. The new student convocation will be held Under the Oaks at 9 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 26. Residence halls open for returning students at 9 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 26.
New Facilities and Services
The Elon University School of Law opened in downtown Greensboro Aug. 10. The charter class of 115 students come from 48 colleges and universities, including the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Elon University, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, North Carolina State University, Wake Forest University, East Carolina University, Furman University, Harvard University, Yale University, Duke University, the University of Virginia and Davidson College.
The Ernest A. Koury Sr. Business Center will be ready for the start of the academic year. The 60,000-square-foot building is the new home for the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business. The three-story facility offers the latest technology and provides students and faculty members with an attractive space for teaching and learning. A new parking lot with 243 spaces and a new tram road running to the Danieley Center were also added during the summer.
Students will begin moving into The Oaks this fall, a new 500-bed student residence complex that replaces Jordan Center along Williamson Avenue. The complex will include six residence hall buildings plus a commons building. The move will take place in phases, with building A expected to open between Aug. 22-27; building B to open by Aug. 27; building C to open by Sept. 8; and building D to open by Sept. 22. The final two residential buildings will open in February.
The Stewart Fitness Center in Koury Center has been doubled in size, with the move of the dance studio from Koury Center to the Center for the Arts. The art department has expanded space and classrooms thanks to its move from the Center for the Arts to Elon West, located just west of the central campus on Haggard Avenue.
Long Building, which formerly housed the Love School of Business, has been renovated and will serve as the new home of the psychology department.
Powell House, home of the sociology department, has been moved from Haggard Avenue to College Avenue next to the Truitt Center. Two new parking lots are being completed between Powell House and the softball field.
New lighting has been added to Hunt Field, the football practice facility, and installation work for lighting is under way at Rudd Field (soccer) and the softball field. Revisions are being made to Phoenix Club Sports Fields on South Campus, with the club baseball field moving to the fire station field on Williamson Avenue.
A total of 808 new computers were installed on campus this summer. Eight new computer labs were added in various locations during the summer. A total of 21 new classrooms will go online this fall, all equipped with new audio and video equipment, while seven existing classrooms were updated with the latest audio and video equipment.
Belk Library will introduce the new Millennium catalog, which provides access to a collection of more than 265,000 books and 15,000 DVDs and videotapes. The system allows users to save and customize their searches, to receive e-mail reminders when a book is due and to renew books online. Belk Library now subscribes to more than 100 databases and offers more than 24,000 full-text online journals.
Special Events
Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor will dedicate the Elon University School of Law and deliver the address at Fall Convocation on Sept. 19. O’Connor retired in February after 24 years on the U.S. Supreme Court. During her distinguished career, O’Connor served as a partner in her own law firm, as a lawyer for local, state and federal governments, as a state trial and appellate court judge, a state legislator and a committed civic and political volunteer and leader.
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Frank McCourt will deliver the Baird Pulitzer Prize Lecture Feb. 13. McCourt wrote “Angela’s Ashes,” a highly acclaimed memoir that incorporated stories from his childhood, in 1999. The book soon moved to the top of the bestseller lists, winning the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Los Angeles Times Award. His latest book, “Teacher Man,” published in 2005, recounts tales from his years as teacher.
Radio personality Bob Edwards, former host of NPR’s “Morning Edition,” will speak March 6. He now hosts “The Bob Edwards Show” on XM satellite radio. Edwards is the recipient of two Gabriel Awards, the 1984 Edward R. Murrow Award from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for outstanding contributions to public radio, and the prestigious 1999 George Foster Peabody Award for his hosting duties on “Morning Edition.”
Bill George, professor of management practice at Harvard Business School and former chairman and CEO of Medtronic, Inc., will be the Isabella Cannon Distinguished Visiting Professor of Leadership and give a public lecture March 12. George has been an advocate for responsible and ethical leadership in business. His book, “Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value,” published in 2004, provides examples of leadership challenges drawn from his experience as chief executive officer of Medtronic, Inc., from 1991 to 2001.