Three longtime faculty and staff members were awarded the university's highest service honor during the Opening Day ceremony on Aug. 17.
Three individuals with strong commitments to Elon University were awarded the university’s most prestigious service award, the Elon Medallion, during the Opening Day ceremony on Aug. 17 in Alumni Gym.
Jim Donathan, longtime associate director of academic advising and academic support; Mary Thornton, founder and president of Harvest Table Culinary Group; and Don Grady, associate professor emeritus of cinema and television arts, heard from former mentors, friends and colleagues before being bestowed the honor by Elon President Connie Ledoux Book.
Jim Donathan
Jim Donathan arrived to Elon in 1994 as associate director of academic advising and director of academic support, drawn specifically to work with mentor Lela Faye Rich. He carried the largest advising load in his department, taught Elon 101 (now Elon 1010), and was known for his sustained support of students on academic probation and for mentoring students well beyond the classroom.
Rich, who served Elon for 29 years and received the Elon Medallion in 2008, read Donathan’s citation for the award.
“Jim Donathan is the only one on this stage that has two medallions. I just happen to be wearing one of them,” Rich said. “In the advising center, I was the loudmouth. I was a loud-mouthed advocate for students. Jim was the listener. The heart, the soul of academic advising. Without his total commitment to students’ success, to our academic advising staff, to mastering all those intricacies of creating an online degree audit. I would never have received this medallion.”
Donathan advised Elon’s chapter of Kappa Alpha Order for more than a decade and received the university’s Ward Family Excellence in Mentoring Award in 2012. His mentorship of one Elon family led to the establishment of the Donathan-McAllister Endowed Scholarship in his honor. He retired in 2020, having shaped the academic support and mentoring experience for generations of Elon students.
“I recently came across this quote from one of my favorite novelists, Pat Conroy: ‘I had read like a man on fire my whole life, because the genius of English teachers touched me with the dazzling beauty of language,” said Donathan when accepting the honor. “Elon does that for students. It touches them with the dazzling beauty of language. That might be the language of literature or biology, or political science, or art history, or so many other disciplines. Students can carry that language into their lives and into their future.”
Mary Thornton
Mary Thornton is the founder and president of Harvest Table Culinary Group, the dining partner that has served Elon University since the company’s founding. She spent years in leadership roles at Aramark, including vice president of compliance beginning in 2007, before proposing in 2016 the creation of a culinary group built around healthy, sustainable food and transparency about where food comes from.
Harvest Table launched in 2018 as an independent division of Aramark, with Elon among its earliest partner institutions alongside Wake Forest and the University of Rochester. Under her leadership, Harvest Table has emphasized locally sourced ingredients, chef-driven menus tailored to each campus, and deeper engagement with student communities.
“Highly respected for her work ethic, expertise, relentless commitment to excellence, Mary has demonstrated a deep understanding of Elon’s mission and the critical role dining plays in building community and contributing to a welcoming campus environment,” said Janet Williams, vice president for finance and administration and chief financial officer.
Most recently, Harvest Table Culinary Group made a gift supporting Elon’s Slattery Center, reflecting the company’s ongoing commitment to student health and wellness. Her partnership has helped shape the dining experience for generations of Elon students.
“I accept this medallion with humility and deep appreciation and as a reminder to continue serving others, leading with purpose and striving to make a positive difference,” said Thornton, upon accepting the award. “Thank you very much for this incredible honor. It means more to me than words can express.”
Don Grady
Don Grady served Elon for 35 years. He arrived in 1985, before Elon had a formal communications department, and taught broadcast courses and senior capstone classes throughout his career. He chaired the communications department from 1987–1993 and again from 2004–2009, became associate dean in 2010, and helped guide creation of the nation’s first undergraduate major in media analytics. He was twice elected to the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications and received the Broadcast Education Association’s Distinguished Education Service Award in 2022.
Gerald Gibson, the university’s first full-time communications professor and Grady’s undergraduate roommate at NC State University, read Grady’s citation.
“Dr. Grady distinguished himself as an outstanding teacher, mentor, and advisor, by teaching broadcasting, senior research capstone, … and study abroad courses, supervising as many as 50 internships a year,” said Gibson. “Mentoring students through research, internships, and professional employment, leading study abroad programs in Great Britain and Europe, and becoming much loved by students who sought him out for guidance, encouragement, and wise counsel, even long after graduation.”
Grady’s administrative leadership and personal investment in students and faculty helped build Elon’s School of Communications into a nationally recognized program. He retired in 2020, leaving a legacy colleagues describe as foundational to the school’s success.
“So many of our graduates (are) doing great work in media markets all over the country. They’re the reason we do this work,” Grady said. “Toward the end of my time, it was my privilege to regularly teach the senior theory and research capstone course that gave students the opportunity to dig into why communication professionals do what they do, and how what they do ripples through the lives of individuals and society.”
