“Lives from the Archives: Lithuanian Faculty at Elon” Story Map
Between 1949 and 1978, three Lithuanian faculty taught in Elon’s Department of Languages and Department of History. Dr. Konstantinas Avizonis, Angele Avizonis, Dr. Kostas V. Cepas, and Lidija Cepas immigrated to the United States after World War II. A Story Map is a method of integrating text, pictures, documents, and maps to creatively showcase information. There are few (if any) limits to the topics one can engage with, and the blend of text and digital materials makes it great for archival research. With the Avizonis and Cepas’ travel across Europe and the United States, their story seemed particularly well-suited to the format. This story map showcases information from their lives, from their early education in Lithuania, to their displacement during World War II, to their careers at Elon College. Many of the documents, correspondence, and pictures are housed in the Elon University Archives. Make sure to click on the map…
Read MoreElon College and the First World War, part 4: After the War
By Randall Bowman, Archivist and Assistant Librarian. In December 1918, the SATC unit at Elon was officially disbanded; members of the company were discharged, and the officers who had trained them departed just before Christmas, to be reassigned by the Army. In May 1919, at the end of the academic year, President Harper informed the Board of Trustees that the college was in debt due to the cost of housing the SATC unit. The cost of hosting the company had exceeded the War Department’s payments to the college by $14,065.05 ($233,368.53 in 2017 dollars). College officials reached a compromise with the U.S. Government that reduced the deficit to $4,896.86 ($81,249.13 in 2017), still a large sum of money for the small college. Over the course of the following year, things began to return to normal at Elon. Many college activities that had been suspended during the war resumed; the PhiPsiCli…
Read MoreElon College and the First World War, part 2: Patriotism at Elon, 1917-1918
By Randall Bowman, Archivist and Assistant Librarian. As soon as the United States entered World War I, Americans began volunteering to enlist in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Merchant Marine, and the Red Cross. Elon students were no exception to the patriotic fervor that swept the country. On the very day war was declared, three Elon students volunteered for military service: W. F. Odom, William M. Horner, and Elvin Tuck. Such enlistments soon had a visible effect on Elon’s campus; some members of the graduating class of 1917 were graduated in absentia since they were already in uniform. This was possible because the faculty chose to give credit for courses to any male or female student whose studies were interrupted because they were serving. Elon College encouraged other ways of supporting the war effort; it was announced by the Board of Trustees that the college would give three…
Read MoreCelebrating Women’s Athletics at Elon
Jennifer Smith March 14, 2014 On March 11th, 2014 the Elon University Women’s/Gender Studies Program and the Athletics Department sponsored a panel about the history of women’s athletics at Elon. Panelists for the event included: Ana Nicksic ’16: Elon sophomore from Valparaiso, Ind., exercise science major and setter on the volleyball team. She was named to the NCCSIA All-State Second Team, and earned Elon’s top newcomer award in 2012. Sloane Kessler ’17: Lacrosse player, first-year Elon student and communications major from Owings Mill, Md. At McDonogh High School, she was a 2012 IAAM all-star and also won awards in basketball and field hockey. Priscilla Awkard ’95: Starting setter for Elon’s volleyball team from 1991-94 where she broke numerous records that still stand today. She is a member of the Elon Sports Hall of Fame, continues to play competitive volleyball and is a coach and administrator at Jammers Volleyball Club. Jackie Myers:…
Read MoreBryan Burney, 1991 Elon Sports Hall of Fame
Shaunta Alvarez January 31, 2014 You may have seen him strolling into the library during the late afternoon as he makes his way to the newspaper rack. To look at him, you would never know that this quiet man with laid-back mannerisms set impressive records during his time at Elon.
Read MoreWGS Program Turns 25
Jennifer Smith November 15, 2013 The 2013/2014 academic year marks the 25th anniversary of Elon University’s Women’s/Gender Studies program. A minor in Women’s Studies was first offered at Elon in the Fall of 1988 after having been approved during a February 1988 faculty meeting. In the mid-1980s Elon professors, Dr. Seena Granowsky and Dr. Martha Smith attended a conference on Women’s Studies programs at Duke University and were inspired to create a program at Elon. The two worked together to create the minor and the program of Women’s Studies in order to expose students to women’s issues through courses in English, History, Philosophy, Economics, and other related fields. Some examples of early course titles included Introduction to Women’s Studies, Feminist Approaches to Literature, and History of Women in the United States.
Read MoreHome Economics Maven with a Heart of Gold
Shaunta Alvarez November 13, 2013 Edith Ruth Brannock ’39 received the Heart of Gold Award this year during Homecoming festivities. This lifetime achievement award was presented on behalf of members of the Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority and its predecessor, Tau Zeta Phi, to a sister alumnus that has “motivated and inspired others to know the power of one heart touching another heart; that has led a life that has exemplified to others that selfless service is a noble virtue.” This was the second time the award was been presented. The inaugural presentation was in 2010 when the award was given to Dr. Jo Watts Williams ’55, Vice President Emerita. One could say that service and dedication to the Elon community are in Edith Brannock’s blood, even going all the way back to Elon College’s very beginnings. Ms. Brannock is a descendant of Rev. James O’Kelly, founder of the Christian Church,…
Read MoreJulia W. Covington
Katie Nash October 4, 2013 Julia Wilson Covington was Elon College’s first full-time African-American professor. She joined the Business Administration faculty in 1970. Covington taught at Elon until August 1971 when she resigned to spend more time with her family. Julia W. Covington was born in Cheraw, South Carolina on May 11, 1940. She was married to Francis A. Covington. In July 1970, she listed on her Elon personal data form that she had a two-year old daughter, Roxanne E. Covington. Correspondence from July 1971 states that she was expecting another child in the coming months. In May 1962 she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from South Carolina State College in Orangeburg, SC. In August 1963 she received a Master of Business Administration degree from Atlanta University in Atlanta, GA. During the summer of 1962 she was a bookkeeper with Allied Federal Savings and Loan Association…
Read MoreThe first Faculty at Elon
Katie Nash August 16, 2012 As both new and returning faculty begin to arrive on campus this week and next, we thought it would be fun to look back at the first group of faculty at Elon. Elon opened its doors on September 2, 1890 and the faculty that taught the first students at the college included: Rev. William S. Long, Rev. J.U. Newman, Rev. J.O. Atkinson, Emmett L. Moffitt, S.A. Holleman, and Miss Alberta Moring.
Read MoreNASCAR and Elon
Katie Nash June 15, 2012 You’re probably wondering what NASCAR and Elon have to do with each other. It all started during a winter term session in January of 1994 when “The Business of NASCAR” class was first offered, taught by Dr. Janie Brown. This course was initially offered through the department of Health, Physical Education, Leisure/Sports Management. Since 2001, the course has been offered through the Love School of Business.
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