Elon faculty and staff will participate in a full week of activities, gatherings and workshops as the university looks to begin the 2023-24 academic year.
Planning Week begins Monday, Aug. 14, as Elon University prepares to welcome more than 6,300 undergraduate students to campus.
Elon faculty and staff will start the week by gathering in Alumni Gym on Monday morning for a reception for new faculty and staff, a presentation to honor this year’s Elon Medallion recipients, and then an announcement of new professorship selections and then an opening address by President Connie Ledoux Book.
Other events throughout the week include a session on the Boldly Elon strategic plan, open houses and tours of locations on campus, meetings of each school at the university, and various faculty and staff receptions. The full list of events and programs can be found on the Planning Week webpage.
Planning Week Highlights
Opening Day
On Monday, Aug. 14, we will officially kick off the 2023-2024 academic year. Events of Planning Week will begin in Elon University’s Alumni Gymnasium.
We will gather Monday morning for a community-wide reception at 8:15 a.m. in the concourse of the Koury Athletic Center. This is a great opportunity to greet friends and colleagues, meet new members of our community and congratulate the most recent Elon Medallion, Distinguished University Professorship, Trustee Chair for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching and Senior and Emerging Professorship recipients.
Immediately following the reception, presentations to the honorees will take place at 9 a.m., followed by the president’s Opening Address. Be on the lookout for communication from President Book with more information about this exciting ceremony. In addition to the full schedule available online here, the following new events and updates will also be made during this year’s Planning Week:
- Strategic Plan Sessions: Meaningful Relationships and Mentoring Beyond the First Year – Community-wide event; Boldly Elon
- Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education (3 sessions offered throughout the week) – Community-wide event; Boldly Elon
- Center for Writing Excellence: Strategies for Designing AI-enhanced Writing Assignments
- Charting the Course: Navigating the Faculty Handbook and Embracing Shared Governance
- Data Nexus: Launching the QEP
- Introduction to Seeking External Grants that Support Elon’s Mission
- Regional Learning Centers information session
University Directory photographs
All Elon faculty and staff members are encouraged to have their photo included in the university’s online directory. Please make plans to have a new or updated photograph taken. If you are new to Elon, if your photo is missing from the campus directory, or if your photo is more than three years old, please have a new photo taken by the Office of University Communications. No appointment is necessary, simply just drop in during a session that suits you. The portraits are taken from the chest up on a gray backdrop in a photo studio.
The photo studio is now located in the southwest corner of Alumni Gym, close to West Haggard Avenue. Please enter through the external doors in the southwest corner of Alumni Gym, noted by a red star on this map.
- Tuesday, Aug. 15: 2 p.m. — 4 p.m.
- Wednesday, Aug. 16: 10 a.m. — noon
Once your photo is in the directory, you may download a high-resolution version for your own professional use. To do so, visit www.elon.edu/directories. Log in at the bottom left, and the editing page will open. Beneath your photo, click the download link to download a high-resolution copy of your portrait to your computer.
Calendar Events
Detailed instructions on how to use the Events Calendar and add events directly to your personal calendar can be found on the Planning Week website by clicking “Schedule” on the navigation bar on the left or the featured link icon near the top of the front page.
The events listed on the Planning Week webpage are managed through 25Live, Elon’s event management system managed by the Office of Event and Space Management. 25Live provides the means to add calendar events for a variety of email clients and services. Whether you use a Windows or Mac computer, or use Outlook, Outlook Web Access, or Apple Mail & Calendar to manage your email and individual calendar, we recommend using the Microsoft Office Outlook Calendar option. Instructions for this method are provided below.
School supplies
Elon will once again participate in collecting school and personal hygiene supplies for K-12 Alamance County students in need. Please support the education of young people in our county. This effort, which will continue through Aug. 21, is co-sponsored by the Student Government Association and the Kernodle Center for Civic Life.
Name tags
Name tags for new employees only hired since June 1 will be delivered to each office by Aug. 11. Please pick yours up from your department assistant. If you are unable to get to your office prior to planning week, you may stop by the name tag table on Monday morning, Aug. 14, at the reception beginning at 8:15 a.m. in Schar Center. After Monday, please see the assistant in your area to get your name tag.
College Coffee
Elon’s weekly tradition of community gathering begins with this year’s first College Coffee. Come (re)learn about the ERG’s on campus and pick up some Phoenix swag to show your school spirit. College Coffee continues throughout the year on Tuesday mornings from 9:40 a.m-10:20 a.m.
The following Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) will be available to engage with faculty and staff members at this event
- Amazing Admins
- Advocates for Diversity and Accessibility
- API (Asian and Pacific Islander)
- Black
- Caregivers
- Cultivating Emerging Professionals
- Divorce
- Employees with Children
- Global Connections
- Hispanic/Latinx
- LGBTQIA
- Mindfulness
- Remote
- Supervisors of Student Employees
- Sustainability
- Thrive After 55
- Women’s Forum at Elon
New Student Convocation
New Student Convocation will be Under the Oaks on Saturday, Aug 19, at 9 a.m. Rain location will be Schar Center. All faculty and staff of Elon University are welcome to volunteer during the ceremony. Staff teaching Elon 1010 courses may wish to serve at the ceremony prior to advising sessions.
The New Student Convocation marks the official opening of the academic year and welcomes the Class of 2027 and transfer students. Volunteers are needed to greet guests, assist with seating, and answer general questions. You can sign up to volunteer by filling out this survey. The survey will close on Aug 11.