Current students, alumni and faculty gathered on Nov. 1 during Homecoming & Reunion Weekend to toast five decades of informing Elon鈥檚 campus community.
During Homecoming Weekend, a few minutes past 6 p.m. Friday, The Pendulum鈥檚 past met its present.
Surrounded by a group of alumni, current students and faculty gathered to celebrate the 50-year anniversary of Elon鈥檚 student-run newspaper, Debbie Cochran 鈥75, the paper鈥檚 first editor, found a corner to talk with Avery Sloan 鈥25, ENN鈥檚 executive editor and managing editor of The Pendulum. Alongside Sloan stood Erin Martin 鈥25, ENN鈥檚 design chief and another constant presence in the ENN newsroom and studio spaces.
It was a touching moment during the Nov. 1 gathering to see the paper鈥檚 beginning share stories while standing in the Elon News Network newsroom, a space that has been lively in recent weeks in preparation for Election Day.
And fittingly, a poster of The Pendulum鈥檚 first edition 鈥 dated Oct. 14, 1974 鈥 hung over Cochran鈥檚 shoulder.
Intermixed with the current Pendulum staff mingled several alumni, including Tim Moore 鈥78, Robin Moser ’79, Joel Maness ’83, Loukia Borrell ’85, Chuck Buckley 鈥00, Colin Donohue 鈥05, Tommy Hamzik 鈥17, Alex Simon 鈥17, Erik Webb 鈥19 and Abby Gibbs 鈥21. Likewise, there were several past advisers on hand 鈥撀燝lenn Scott, Byung Lee and Donohue 鈥 as well as Paul Parsons, founding dean of the School of Communications.
To commemorate The Pendulum鈥檚 50th anniversary, the news outlet鈥檚 student staff and faculty mentor, Senior Lecturer Kelly Furnas, created a robust website, . The site includes stories from past editors, reflections from advisers, numerous photos, and a short documentary featuring Pendulum staff members discussing the paper’s lengthy production process. There鈥檚 also a section highlighting the evolution of the publication鈥檚 nameplate.
Didn鈥檛 make it to the celebration? Aidan Blake 鈥26 compiled an highlighting the anniversary event.