Hilton Kelly, dean of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences, delivered the keynote address at an annual symposium for Alamance County high school seniors participating in an Elon University college access and civic engagement initiative.
When he was a junior in high school, Hilton Kelly asked one of his teachers how she had time to read so many books. Her answer: She kept a book on her nightstand and was committed to reading at least one chapter every night before bed.
That advice has stuck with Kelly, who today serves as dean of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences, at Elon University.
“Until then, I was not a reader,” Kelly told Alamance County high school seniors selected as 2024-2025 Elon Freedom Scholars. “I did not read for pleasure outside of schoolwork. I was intrigued and remember going home that afternoon to make a nightstand out of a box I found around the house.”
Kelly recalled that pivotal moment when he delivered keynote remarks on June 27, 2025, at an annual symposium for students participating in the Elon Freedom Scholars Program.
Launched in 2022 in partnership with the Teagle Foundation’s “Knowledge for Freedom” network, the Elon Freedom Scholars Program brings upward of two dozen college-bound students to campus for a residential experience where they to learn to be difference makers in their communities.
Students present civic engagement research, conducted with guidance from mentors, at a symposium that serves as a capstone to their campus stay. The theme for the 2024-25 Freedom Scholars Symposium was “Cherished Freedoms.”
“So much of the work of the Elon Freedom Scholars, The Teagle Foundation and the Knowledge for Freedom initiatives centers on the value of a liberal education,” said Associate Professor Prudence Layne, director of the Elon Freedom Scholars Program. “Similar to, but more pronounced among this year’s cohort, is the focus on the arts and sciences: creating pathways, building accessible and sustainable futures and the value of a liberal education in promoting cultural diversity.”
During this year’s symposium, Freedom Scholars presented on research topics such as expanding resources for post-secondary education, celebrating cultural diversity, and using the practice of recycling to inspire studies to pursue studies in the arts and sciences.
Kalyn Faille, a recent graduate of Walter M. Williams High School in Burlington, N.C., and one of two incoming Honors Fellow at Elon University from this cohort, described how she and her group organized and hosted an event to teach kids about using recyclable materials to explore art and science.
“I have been a music student for 13 years, so my work focused on renewable ways to access music and create equitable music access,” Faille said. “The Freedom Scholars program taught me to collaborate well with others and build teamwork skills which will prepare me for college.”
And it starts with a passion for the written word.
Kelly, in his symposium remarks, described how the thread that connects all intellectual pursuits is a love of reading. Over time, he said, his own reading went from nothing more than required homework to a fuel that shaped his academic and professional career.
Use books as a compass to dream about the future, Kelly concluded, and embrace reading in pursuit of lifelong learning – make it part of a “freedom dream.”