Vision — the creation, then pursuit of it — changes the world.

In recent months, I have had the pleasure of experiencing the culmination of faculty vision for student success in profound moments. One was this past spring in New York City’s Carnegie Hall, where the Elon Wind Ensemble performed the closing act of the 24th Annual New York Wind Band Festival. Faculty members worked closely with students to produce a magnificent performance that filled the hall with breathtaking joy and marked the university’s first appearance in the storied venue — a historic and wonderful realization of our vision for excellence in the performing arts.

This summer, sitting in the heart of the Medici Palace in Florence, Italy, I watched another vision come to life as students, joined by Italian and American performers, brought a first to the city: a production of the musical “The Light in the Piazza.” Associate Teaching Professor of Music Polly Cornelius first imagined the idea two years earlier, then worked with our partners in Florence and her colleagues in the Department of Performing Arts to make it a reality. Her vision was felt by us all as we watched the students and actors perform to the sold-out audience.

These are among the many visionary moments inspired by our mission to engage and mentor students throughout their learning journeys and help them achieve more than they imagined for themselves during college. Possibility begins with learning and experience, and it ultimately leads to growth.

This year I’ve also been working diligently with the university’s trustees on a different kind of vision — one that adds another pillar to our foundation, looks out ahead to the next century and asks how we can prepare �þ���to meet the emerging landscape of higher education from a continued position of strength and innovation. Our merger with Queens, successfully approved by our accreditor and now in process with the Department of Education, brings that vision closer to reality.

Faculty and staff members from both campuses have been imagining potential programs together, and the growing list is full of exciting possibilities.

When people imagine innovation, they often think of a single “eureka” moment, like Alexander Graham Bell’s first telephone call or Thomas Edison’s filament beginning to glow. But scholars have shown that innovation is more often one idea leading to another until, further downstream, someone shouts “eureka!” and a vision becomes reality, perhaps in Carnegie Hall or the Medici Palace.

Most importantly, through bold vision and shared commitment to our mission, ideas advance, lives are transformed and the world becomes a better place.

�þ��� will host “United in Purpose” on Thursday, Nov. 5, bringing together alumni, parents and friends of �þ��� and Queens University of Charlotte for an evening of connection and community.

The event will be held at Urban Garden in Charlotte and begin at 6:30 p.m. with a hosted reception featuring hors d’oeuvres. Guests will gather at 7:30 p.m. for a special program featuring remarks from �þ��� President Connie Ledoux Book. A dessert reception will follow the program and conclude the evening. Business attire is requested.

United in Purpose
Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026
6:30 p.m. — Hosted reception with hors d’oeuvres
7:30 p.m. — Program
Dessert reception to follow until 9 p.m.

Urban Garden
150 N. College St.
Charlotte, NC 28202

Register at or contact advancement@elon.edu.

For Jacob Bradshaw ’27, the answer turned out to be milk.

During his first weeks at Elon, Bradshaw was eating lunch in McEwen Dining Hall with two new friends when they noticed that all three happened to be drinking glasses of milk. They joked about making it a regular gathering. Days later, Bradshaw brought the idea to Elon’s Organization Fair. Armed with little more than a handwritten interest sheet, he collected 68 signatures in two hours.

What began as a spontaneous idea has since become an award-winning student organization whose events have brought hundreds of students together. But as Bradshaw and President Connie Ledoux Book discuss in the latest episode of “Elon Beyond the Bricks,” Milk Club has never really been about the milk.

“The real magic of the Milk Club is that it’s the relationships that form,” Book said during their conversation. “Milk is really just the vehicle for forming the relationship.”

That vehicle has taken many forms, including Spilled Milk Poetry Night, the Cownival and the Milk Soirée, where roughly 300 students dressed formally to listen to live jazz and drink milk — and dairy alternatives — from wine glasses. The organization also collaborated with Student Union Board on Milk Bingo, filling Sato Commons with roughly 500 students. Book remembered the event, too, because she announced a few of the rounds that evening.

Behind the playful names, however, is something Bradshaw and his fellow club leaders have taken seriously: cultivating an inclusive environment that gives students a reason to spend time together.

Bradshaw said the club’s executive board often begins with an activity and asks a simple question: How can they make it milk-related? Those conversations have helped the students create events around a theme almost anyone can join, regardless of whether they prefer whole milk, chocolate milk, oat milk or no milk at all.

That low barrier to participation has helped Milk Club become a place where students can form friendships and shared memories without needing a particular academic, professional or athletic interest to bring them together. It also connects closely with Elon’s broader focus on well-being.

During the episode, Book connected Milk Club with HealthEU, Elon’s university-wide initiative centered on six dimensions of well-being. For Bradshaw, those ideas have shaped more than the organization he founded.

An Isabella Cannon Leadership Fellow studying neuroscience and psychology on a pre-med track, Bradshaw has also served as an Orientation Leader and biology �þ��� assistant. He said conversations about the dimensions of well-being through Leadership Fellows helped shape how he approaches his different roles at Elon.

“Trying to integrate all of that has been one of the most valuable things that I have been able to take away from my Elon experience,” Bradshaw said.

That intentionality extends into his everyday life. During the episode’s recording, Book noticed a wall behind Bradshaw covered in colorful sticky notes. For roughly a year, he had been writing down one thing each night that made him happy or grateful that day. The practice gives him another reason to stop and reflect on the people and experiences filling his life.

Milk Club operates on a similar principle. Milk may provide the theme, but the reason students return is the opportunity to laugh, participate and spend time with one another.

As Bradshaw begins his senior year, the organization that started around a dining hall table has become part of his Elon legacy, serving as an example of how even the simplest idea can give people the reason they need to come together.

Learn more about “Elon Beyond the Bricks.”

University Chaplain and Dean of Multifaith Engagement Rev. Kirstin Boswell opened the event with the invocation, followed by the tradition of the bell ringing by Student Government Association President Michael Swartz ’27. The bell arrived in North Carolina in 1854 on one of the first North Carolina railroad trains. It was later used at Graham College, a predecessor institution to Elon College.

During the event, three individuals with strong ties to the university were awarded the Elon Medallion, the university’s most prestigious service honor: 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.

Katy Rouse, professor of economics in the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business, was named the Trustee Chair for Excellence. For seventeen years, Rouse has taught Elon’s Principles of Economics and Intermediate Microeconomics courses, along with a capstone she built herself on educational disparities in the United States, earning student evaluations among the highest in her department for more than a decade.

She has personally mentored more than 30 senior and honors theses, co-authored research with �þ���s, chaired the Love School’s curriculum committee and published her �þ��� scholarship in the Journal of Economic Education.

“I truly believe that being a teacher scholar mentor at Elon is one of the best careers I’m going to have,” Rouse said. “Every day we come to work, we have the opportunity to make a lasting impact on students during one of the most pivotal points in their lives.”

Mapping the course

During her annual Opening Day address, Book reflected on Elon’s progress while looking toward a year that will include the launch of new academic initiatives, continued work surrounding artificial intelligence, the opening of the Roberts Academy and the planned merger with Queens University of Charlotte.

Book centered her remarks around the idea of a map — the markers that show where Elon has been and the guideposts that will help the university navigate what comes next. The theme was inspired by a visit this summer to Elon students participating in the Summer Opera Workshop at the Accademia Europea di Firenze. The students came together for a historic production of “The Light in the Piazza” in Florence, Italy, where the musical is set.

As part of their work, students were also tasked with creating a map of the city, something that inspired Book.

“There is something powerful in this mapmaking assignment, and it left me wondering about our collective �þ��� map,” Book said. “How would we each draw it?”

At the center of that map, Book said, is Elon’s mission. She highlighted several markers of progress during the past year, including the Odyssey Program surpassing 300 scholarships, record participation in �þ��� research, strong Fulbright success and new academic programs, including cybersecurity, Clinical Mental Health Counseling and the Charlotte PA program. She also celebrated the upcoming launch of the School of Engineering and Computing under inaugural Dean John Walz and the growth of the university’s nursing program.

Mapping new territory (together)

On Tuesday, Aug. 18, the first students of the Roberts Academy at �þ��� will arrive at the school’s temporary home in Trollinger House. The school will be the state’s only university-based private school for children with dyslexia. Book described the academy and the Center for Dyslexia and Engaged Learning as an opportunity that “will change lives from day one.”

Among the most significant new territory is Elon’s planned merger with Queens University of Charlotte. Book noted that the institutions received accreditation approval this summer to proceed with their merger, with a single Board of Trustees now overseeing both universities. Sixteen administrative units are also becoming shared teams supporting the two campuses, while a federal review of the merger is expected to take 18 to 24 months.

Megan Isaac, professor of English, and Senior Vice President for Advancement and External Affairs Jim Piatt gave brief updates on the merger as part of the SOAR Strategic Planning Committee.

“Our two institutions will be stronger together, will better serve students together, and will have a brighter future together,” Book said. “And now, we are working to build that vision together, to grow opportunity to advance learning — together.”

Mapping a new look

Athletics Director Jennifer Strawley was also invited to the stage to announce a for the university’s athletics program, which had what Book called a “formidable year,” with seven Elon teams, the most in the university’s history, winning conference titles. A new physical mascot will be unveiled at the first College Coffee of the academic year on Aug. 25.

“The new Phoenix wears a gold sweater with a monogram ‘E,’ paying tribute to our first mascot, the Fighting Christian,” Strawley said. “The focused expression conveys the determination, confidence and purpose that defines our university community. The Phoenix continues to be fueled by the flames, symbolizing our rebuild from the ashes, and capturing the spirit and resilience of the Elon community.”

Book acknowledged that the changing higher education landscape brings challenges, from enrollment pressures and federal regulations to declining public confidence. But she reminded faculty and staff that adapting to change has long been part of Elon’s history.

“I understand change can be daunting. Shifting national headwinds are challenging higher education,” Book said. “Fortunately for us, Elon has never succeeded by standing still. We’ve joined together, developed new strategies and guided by our mission — built the number one institution for engaged learning and student success.”

She closed by returning to the journey ahead, and the role faculty and staff play in shaping the lives of Elon students.

“It is not simply education; it is a journey of human transformation,” Book said. “Thank you for the everyday commitment, kindness and integrity that are our enduring guideposts.”

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 25 years 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. �þ��� 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 �þ��� 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 �þ��� 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 �þ��� roommate at NC State University, read Grady’s citation.

“Dr. Grady distinguished himself as an outstanding teacher, mentor, and advisor, by �þ��� 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.”

Below is a selection of events open to the entire Elon community; more can be found on the official Planning Week website below.

Monday, Aug. 17

Opening Day
Alumni Gym, Koury Athletic Center; Events start at 8:30 a.m.

Planning Week 2026 kicks off with Opening Day on Aug. 17, first with a community-wide reception in Alumni Gym followed by the presentation of Elon Medallions to Jim Donathan, Don Grady and Mary Thornton. Katy Rouse, professor of economics, will also be named the Trustee Chair for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. Following these recognitions, President Connie Ledoux Book will delivery her annual Opening Day address.

Since 2011, the Elon community has collected school supply items for the children in Alamance County. Donations can be made at the Opening Day breakfast or at campus drop-off locations through Thursday, Aug. 20. Details on donation sites and needed items will be emailed to faculty and staff. This initiative is co-sponsored by the Office of the Dean of �þ���, Staff Advisory Council, and Kernodle Center for Civic Life.

Breakout Sessions

Following the president’s address from 10 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. a variety of breakout sessions will be available for all members of the Elon community, including:

• Recommendations from the SOAR Strategic Planning Committee
• Building the Innovation Hub: Elon as a Regional Center for Creativity
• Preparing Together for Student Success
• Thriving Together: The Sport Collaborative and the Opportunity in Club Sports
• Summer at Elon
• Changing the Trajectory – Roberts Academy and the Roberts Center for Dyslexia and Engaged Learning
• HealthEU, the Slattery Center, and Our Research Coalitions
• Mentoring in Meaningful Relationships Implementation Gallary Walk and Next Steps
• Wise Moves During Higher Education Pressures
• School of Engineering and Computing

All members of the Elon community are then invited to a picnic on the Lakeside Patio at noon. Members of Elon’s schools and colleges will meet from 12:45 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Tuesday, Aug. 18

Student Employment Essentials
Moseley 215; 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

The goal of the workshop is to provide staff and faculty with an understanding of student employment policies and processes, to include recruiting, job posting, screening candidates, work agreements, payroll, orientation, onboarding, evaluations and termination. Please contact Kameryn Taylor at ktaylor54@elon.edu for any questions about this workshop.

Championing First-Generation Student Success
Koenigsberger Learning Center Room 127; 2 to 3 p.m.

This session will provide participants with an understanding of the first-generation community on campus and how Elon approached first-generation student success. Participants will identify ways they can incorporate ways to support first-generation college students in their classes and extracurricular opportunities.

Merger and Integration Q&A
LaRose Student Commons 200; 3:15 to 4:15 p.m.

Wednesday, Aug. 19

Merger and Integration Q&A
Turner Theatre 101; 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.

Embedding Inclusive Excellence in Our Work
Belk Pavilion 208; 10:45 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.

Inclusive excellence remains a strategy for creating an academic community reflective of well-being and a sense of belonging. In striving for greater levels of student success and employee vitality, initiatives across the university demonstrate partnerships and efforts to infuse inclusive excellence principles in daily work. This session is an opportunity to gain an update on what is happening to foster respect for human differences and to share ideas for ideas for how faculty and staff might make inclusive excellence embedded rather than additive in �þ���, mentoring, and service.

Vivvi Childcare and Early Learning Information Session
Sankey Hall 206; 2 to 3 p.m.

Learn more about the Acorn Academy, Elon’s partnership with Vivvi to provide employer-sponsored child care on campus.

Elon �þ��� and Community Resource Fair
Sato Commons Great Hall in the Global Neighborhood, 3 to 4:30 p.m.

Open to all faculty, staff, and student leaders who may already be back on campus, this event is meant to be an interactive tabling fair to highlight what everyone needs to know to provide resources to students. Explore more than 50 departments/tables – whether you have been here for more than a decade or are brand new to Elon, come learn about resources for students and faculty/staff, take a moment to reconnect with offices on campus, or learn about opportunities for collaboration and partnerships! Refreshments and Raffle.

Thursday, Aug. 20

Working with Accommodations & Accessibility: A Partnership for Access
Sankey 106; 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.

This session will highlight how the Office of Academic Accommodations & Accessibility, the Office of Compliance, the Disabilities Advisory Committee, and faculty partners collaborate to support access at �þ���. Presenters will share updates from the past year, including themes from campus listening sessions, revised faculty/staff resources, accessibility and accommodations data, and practical guidance for supporting students and colleagues.

College Coffee – Employee Resources Groups
Phi Beta Kappa Commons (Rain Location: Koury Concourse); 10:15 to 10:45 a.m.

Elon’s weekly tradition of community gathering begins with this year’s first College Coffee. Come (re)learn about the ERGs 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 to 10:20 a.m.

• Advocates for Diversity and Accessibility
• Amazing Admins
• API (Asian and Pacific Islander)
• Black
• Carpool Connections
• Catholic
• Christian
• Elon Alumni
• Employees with Children
• Jewish
• Latinx/Hispanic
• LGBTQIA+
• Social Media
• Staff Advisory Council
• Supervisors of Student Employees
• Sustainability
• Veterans
• Women’s Forum
• Young Professionals

Friday, Aug. 21

Move-In Day

�þ��� officially return to campus on Friday, Aug. 21. More information about Move-In Day and New Student Orientation can be found online.

Saturday, Aug. 23

New Student Convocation
Under the Oaks (Rain Location: Schar Center); 9 a.m. to 10 a.m.

New Student Convocation marks the official opening of the academic year and welcomes the Class of 2029 and transfer students.

University Directory Photos

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 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, August 18: 2 to 4 p.m.

Thursday, August 20: 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

�þ��� President Connie Ledoux Book recently spoke with Capital Analytics Association’s , for a wide-ranging conversation about the evolving landscape of higher education, �þ���’s strategic priorities and the role colleges play in preparing graduates for a rapidly changing workforce.

During the conversation, Book discussed the importance of experiential learning and Elon’s commitment to preparing students with the knowledge, adaptability and interpersonal skills needed to succeed in careers that continue to evolve alongside advances in technology. She reflected on the university’s expanded law and healthcare offerings in Charlotte, as well as the planned merger with Queens University of Charlotte.

“One major priority is for the merger with Queens University to be successful,” Book said. “Another is the continued rollout of our new and expanded graduate programs. However, our core student is an �þ��� student, and we want to make sure that we continue to evolve the Elon experience so we have a compelling differentiator as a university to attract them.”

Book also addressed the growing influence of artificial intelligence in higher education, emphasizing that institutions have a responsibility to help students use emerging technologies ethically and effectively. She highlighted Elon’s efforts to lead national conversations around AI while reinforcing the enduring value of human connection, critical thinking and experiential education.

“I am proud of the success we have when students arrive. They graduate in four years and have great employment afterward,” said Book. “Over the next few years, we want to continue building on that, expanding our reach in key markets like Charlotte, deepening our impact in North Carolina’s communities, and staying true to the mission that has guided Elon’s growth.”

Matt Belanger ’05 begins most weekdays when much of the Twin Cities is still asleep.

His alarm sounds at 2 a.m. By 4:30, he is on the air at KSTP-TV, anchoring three hours of live morning news for viewers across Minneapolis and St. Paul.

The schedule requires discipline, but for Belanger, the responsibility is also a privilege. In the latest episode of “Elon Beyond the Bricks,” he tells President Connie Ledoux Book that thousands of people rely on his newsroom to explain what happened overnight, prepare them for the weather and commute ahead, and provide the information they need to begin their day.

“We set people up for success every morning,” Belanger said. “That commitment to serving the public is really what it’s all about.”

Belanger’s commitment to journalism began at Elon, where the promise of hands-on learning helped convince him that he had found the right university. He knew he learned best through experience and was drawn to the opportunity to work with cameras and begin developing his skills from the start of college.

As a student, Belanger worked across both television and print journalism through ESTV and The Pendulum. That crossover experience taught him that a strong story begins with the same essential facts, even when it is adapted for television, print, web or social media.

“I just thought a good story was a good story,” Belanger said. “It turns out that’s actually true.”

Elon also provided the supportive environment and direct feedback he needed to grow. Belanger remains connected with former faculty members, including Professor Tom Nelson, and credits those relationships with giving students a foundation that extends well beyond graduation.

After Elon, Nelson encouraged Belanger to begin his career at KELOLAND Media Group in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. At the smaller-market station, Belanger reported, filmed stories, worked on the assignment desk and produced weekend newscasts. The ability to experience nearly every role in the newsroom gave him what he describes as a strong foundation for his television career.

That foundation later supported his investigative work in Pennsylvania.

While waiting for an interview on the floor of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, Belanger and a photographer noticed paper clips and folded pieces of paper wedged into lawmakers’ electronic voting buttons. The discovery led to months of reporting on “ghost voting,” a practice through which some lawmakers could appear in the official record as present and participating even when they had not traveled to Harrisburg. Because attendance records could be tied to taxpayer-funded travel reimbursements, the reporting raised broader questions about accountability and public trust.

Belanger compared investigative journalism to building a legal case: reporters must gather enough evidence and research to feel confident in what they present to the public. That deeper work, he said, distinguishes investigative journalism from the basic updates audiences can find throughout the day on their phones.

Today, Belanger continues to bring that same sense of responsibility to his work in the Twin Cities, where he has reported through some of the region’s most difficult and consequential moments. He said the work requires journalists to remain authentic, approach painful stories with care and never lose sight of the people whose lives are affected by the news.

Near the end of the conversation, Belanger recalled another lesson from Elon—and from President Book, who taught him as a communications professor.

“You have to do the work in life,” he said. “You have to put in the time. You have to do the research. You’ve got to do the work in order to succeed.”

For Belanger, that work now begins at 2 a.m., helping ensure his community is informed and prepared when a new day begins.

Learn more about “Elon Beyond the Bricks” online.

Three Elon Los Angeles area alumnae attended the world premiere of their grant-funded films at the sold-out inaugural �þ��� Los Angeles Alumni Short Film Festival at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, California.

Julie Boyd ’15, Bex Evans ’16 and Mirai ’07 were recipients of $3,000 each through the 2025-26 �þ��� Los Angeles Alumni Short Film Grant Competition last fall.

Grant recipients were selected through a review and ranking process by a selection committee comprised of industry leaders, including several Elon alumni. The selection committee was co-chaired by Jordan Roman ’15.

To view photos from the festival, .

Production of the three short films – Boyd’s “The Life and Times of,” Evans’s “Shadow Dusk” and Mirai’s “#StopAsianKate” – took place in the spring and included opportunities for spring 2026 �þ��� Los Angeles students to participate in and observe the production process.

In addition to the screenings of the three films, the festival included a panel discussion with Elon alumni Lindsey Emerson, vice president of streaming, global strategy & operations at Paramount Skydance and Alex Stevenson, account lead at Creative Artists Agency. They each offered perspective and advice to both current students and alumni about creating job opportunities and career growth in a shifting industry landscape.

A meet-and–connect reception on one of the studio’s back lot streets followed the festival screening program.

Unique alumni engagement opportunities for Elon Los Angeles students are at the core of the �þ��� Los Angeles experience. Based in the heart of historic Hollywood, applications are now being accepted for students to participate in the spring 2027 and National �þ��� Programs Los Angeles experience that also features specific LA-focused academic courses, site-based internships and community service.

The “Never Be at a Loss for Words” workshop idea was created through a partnership between �þ��� and The Groundlings, an industry improv training leader in Los Angeles. The workshop was led by actor, improv performer and The Groundlings improv coach Andres Parada. Parada has spent many years �þ��� actors critical communication skills that prepare them for anything that comes up in an audition, in a live performance or on a film set. Actors Will Ferrell, Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolph and Lisa Kudrow are among the many well-known alumni of The Groundlings.

Now, Elon LA students have learned how to apply those techniques to benefit them along both their career and personal journeys ahead.

�þ��� Los Angeles, offered by Elon’s �����Ի���National �þ��� Programs, offers spring and summer immersive experiences for students that feature academic courses taught by instructors who are working professionals in their fields and on-site experiential learning at internship sites across the city. The Elon LA experience also includes alumni engagement, community service and unique professional development opportunities.

Based in historic Hollywood, applications are now being accepted for the spring 2027 semester.