New members鈥� first meeting with the full board will be on Friday, Oct. 9 as part of Homecoming & Reunion Weekend.

Andrew Gillette 鈥�08
Andrew Gillette is the lead commercial architect at EY. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Elon and his Master of Business Administration from the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School in 2017. He regularly shares his expertise with students in the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business by serving as a judge for their undergraduate case competition and at the Tremont Center in Charlotte.

While at Elon, Gillette was active with Sigma Phi Epsilon, as an Isabella Cannon Leadership Fellow, and with Elon Volunteers!.

Dan Hanson 鈥�05
Dan Hanson is currently the change management lead at Under Armour. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Broadcast Communications from Elon and a Master of Arts in Government from Johns Hopkins University. Dan has stayed actively engaged with Elon and his alumni network since graduating and has also served on the Young Alumni Council.

Hanson lives in Baltimore with his wife Kristin Simonetti Hanson 鈥�05.

Jeff Michel 鈥�83
Jeff Michel was a member of the Elon Football Team and Kappa Alpha fraternity during his time at Elon. Since graduating, he has remained connected to Elon through the Phoenix CLub and Elon Athletics, Life @ Elon and as a regular volunteer.

Michel lives in Burlington, North Carolina and serves as a vice president at Glen Raven.

Caroline York-Ingram 鈥�12 G鈥�15
While at Elon, Caroline York-Ingram was active with Omicron Delta Kappa, Elon Research Forum, Summer Fellow, Admissions Campus Visit Assistant, was a Leadership Fellow, and a Watson-Odyssey Scholar. She received both her Bachelor of Science and Master of Physician Assistant Studies from Elon. As an alumna, she has served as an Elon Q&A volunteer, Class Speaker and Elon Day volunteer.

Currently, York-Ingram is a Physician Assistant at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist and lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

CAP provides eligible Elon undergraduates with the opportunity to complete their undergraduate degree and the Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling on an accelerated timeline. But the program is designed to offer much more than a faster route to a graduate degree. From the beginning, CAP students are invited into a community where they can explore the counseling profession, build relationships with faculty and peers, and begin developing their professional identities well before entering the graduate phase of the program.

Kicking Off the CAP Community

The inaugural CAP cohort gathered in Belk Library on August 24 for the program鈥檚 first CAP Kickoff, an opportunity to meet one another, connect with faculty and advisors and talk about what the next several years will look like.

The CAP program is led by an interdisciplinary faculty team representing the undergraduate programs from which students enter the pathway as well as the graduate counseling program: Judy Folmar, interim program director of Clinical Mental Health Counseling; Bilal Ghandour, associate professor of psychology; Amanda Davis, assistant professor of psychology; and Tony Reyes, associate professor of human service studies.

The kickoff brought students, staff and faculty leaders together as a community for the first time. Students learned more about the CAP experience, upcoming opportunities, advising and ways they can begin preparing now for graduate study. Steve Folger from the School of Health Sciences also welcomed the CAP students. Just as importantly, the gathering gave students an opportunity to begin forming relationships with others who will travel a similar path.

Although CAP students remain fully engaged in their undergraduate majors and the broader Elon experience, they are also beginning to see themselves as future members of the counseling profession.

Advising for both the present and the future

Individualized advising is a central part of the CAP experience.聽Students are paired with CAP faculty advisors who can help them navigate their undergraduate programs while also keeping the accelerated counseling pathway in view.

With faculty leadership spanning Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Psychology, and Human Service Studies, students benefit from advising that bridges their undergraduate education and future graduate training.

These conversations extend beyond simply determining which course to take next. CAP advising provides space for students to think intentionally about their academic progress, interests, experiences, professional goals and readiness for graduate-level counselor preparation. As students progress, advisors will help them connect the pieces of their Elon experience鈥攆rom coursework and co-curricular involvement to professional development and their eventual transition into the Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling program.

Beginning Professional Development Early

CAP students will also have opportunities throughout the year to begin exploring what it means to become a professional counselor. Planned experiences will bring students together with CMHC faculty, graduate students, practitioners and community partners for conversations and activities related to the counseling profession.

Professional development will include opportunities to explore counseling specialties and career paths, connect with professionals in the field, develop professional communication and networking skills, learn about graduate school preparation, and consider wellness and sustainability in the helping professions.

Students will also begin building an emerging counseling portfolio, providing a place to document meaningful experiences, reflect on their developing interests and skills and see their professional growth over time.

The goal is not for CAP students to have their professional identities figured out as undergraduates. Instead, CAP creates intentional opportunities for them to ask questions, explore possibilities, make connections, and gradually discover the kind of counselors they hope to become.

Building the path together

As the inaugural cohort, this year鈥檚 CAP students are not simply participating in an established program鈥攖hey are helping shape what the CAP experience will become for future Elon students.

The kickoff was only the beginning. Through advising, community gatherings, professional development and ongoing connections with the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program, CAP students will continue building relationships with one another, their faculty mentors, and the profession they are preparing to enter.

Nearly 1,600 new students arrived at 福利亚洲国产精品 on Friday, Aug. 21, as the university welcomed the Class of 2030.

Despite a mix of rain and sunshine, staff members in Student Life and Residence Life worked to make the Move-In Day process as seamless as possible for students and their families. Student organizations and Elon Athletics teams also lent a hand, helping unload vehicles and carry students鈥� belongings into their new homes.

Familiar items in a new home

For many members of the Class of 2030, those belongings include more than the essentials for college life. As they begin a new chapter at Elon, students brought photographs, books, keepsakes and other reminders of the people and places they call home.

Ale Furano 鈥�30 arrived at Elon from Greenwich, Connecticut, with three Polaroid photos of his family and friends. A Communications Fellow who plans to study sport management, Furano said he is looking forward to the opportunities ahead.

鈥淚鈥檓 excited to meet new people and have a great opportunity and a new way of life,鈥� Furano said. 鈥淚 think the opportunities at Elon are really great, especially in the sport management field.鈥�

Avery McTigue 鈥�30, who plans to study nursing, is looking forward to joining clubs and organizations and exploring study abroad opportunities. Among the items making her new room feel more like home is an Elon-themed Jellycat plush toy with a special connection to her friends.

鈥淭he special item I brought from home is my Elon 鈥楯ellycat,鈥欌�� said McTigue, who is from Bergen County, New Jersey. 鈥淢y friends threw a 鈥榖ed party鈥� for me, and it reminds me of them. Basically, they decorate your whole room, and it鈥檚 all Elon stuff.鈥�

For George Schneider 鈥�30, from Seattle, Washington, the move to Elon meant finding room for his vinyl collection. Schneider chose Elon because of its acting program. The Princeton Review recently ranked Elon No. 1 for Best College Theater, while The Hollywood Reporter included Elon on its list of the “25 Best Drama Schools in the World.”

鈥淚鈥檓 very excited to be independent and expand on my training,鈥� Schneider said. 鈥淚 brought my record player and about 20 of my records. I knew I wasn鈥檛 going to bring a lot for my room, but I wanted to bring something to remember home by.鈥�

An avid reader, Ryan Parker 鈥�30, who plans to study journalism, made sure one of her books made the trip from Dallas, Texas. For Parker, attending Elon also means experiencing a new part of the country.

鈥淚 chose Elon because I felt it was the best for me, and I felt it would be a good transition as well,鈥� Parker said. 鈥淚鈥檓 most excited to meet new people, especially being from Texas and being in a different part of the country.鈥�

A class from around the world

The students arriving on campus bring a wide range of backgrounds, experiences and academic interests. Members of the incoming class come from 40 states and Washington, D.C., as well as 19 countries, including Singapore, Spain, Norway, Canada, Serbia, South Korea, China and New Zealand.

The most represented states are North Carolina, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Virginia, Maryland, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Georgia and Illinois.

Fourteen percent of incoming students are the first in their families to attend college. The class also enters Elon with a strong academic record, with an average high school GPA of 4.09.

Students are bringing a broad range of academic interests to campus. The 10 most popular intended majors among incoming students are psychology, finance, biology, business analytics & AI, marketing, nursing, exercise science, elementary education, sport management and political science.

Several programs are seeing notable increases in interest compared with last year鈥檚 incoming class. The number of new students intending to major in elementary education increased 41%, while finance increased 39% and biology increased 16%.

The community classroom experience

Those statistics are reflected in the individual journeys bringing students to Elon.

Alexis Jacobs 鈥�30 of Westport, Connecticut, was drawn to the university because of its size and sense of community. To personalize her new space, Jacobs brought handmade frames filled with reminders of the people, places and experiences important to her.

鈥淚 made these frames with different prints, photos, places I鈥檝e been and family members,鈥� Jacobs said.

Peter Matijevic 鈥�30, who plans to study business analytics and applied mathematics, brought a reminder of his Massachusetts roots: a Drake Maye NFL jersey.

鈥淚t reminds me of Massachusetts and my favorite NFL player,鈥� Matijevic said. 鈥淚 chose Elon because it鈥檚 a beautiful campus and has small classes, so I could get to know my teachers.鈥�

Elon’s teacher-scholar-mentor model among its faculty is a touchstone of the university’s academic experience. For five years in a row, Elon has been ranked best in the nation for undergraduate teaching, and The Princeton Review recently ranked the university as No. 4 Best Classroom Experience.

Following Move-In Day, students attend New Student Orientation, including New Student Convocation on Saturday, Aug. 22.

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聽Michael Swartz 鈥�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.聽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 undergraduates, chaired the Love School’s curriculum committee and published her teaching 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鈥檚 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 鈥� 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 鈥淭he Light in the Piazza鈥� 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.

鈥淭here is something powerful in this mapmaking assignment, and it left me wondering about our collective 福利亚洲国产精品 map,鈥� Book said. 鈥淗ow would we each draw it?鈥�

At the center of that map, Book said, is Elon鈥檚 mission. She highlighted several markers of progress during the past year, including the Odyssey Program surpassing 300 scholarships, record participation in undergraduate 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鈥檚 nursing program.

Mapping new territory (together)

On Tuesday, Aug. 18, the first students of the聽Roberts Academy at 福利亚洲国产精品聽will arrive at the school’s temporary home in Trollinger House. The school will be the聽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 鈥渨ill change lives from day one.鈥�

Among the most significant new territory is Elon鈥檚 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.

鈥淥ur two institutions will be stronger together, will better serve students together, and will have a brighter future together,鈥� Book said. 鈥淎nd now, we are working to build that vision together, to grow opportunity to advance learning 鈥� together.鈥�

Mapping a new look

Athletics Director Jennifer Strawley was also invited to the stage to announce a for the university鈥檚 athletics program, which had what Book called a 鈥渇ormidable year,鈥� with seven Elon teams, the most in the university鈥檚 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鈥檚 history.

鈥淚 understand change can be daunting. Shifting national headwinds are challenging higher education,鈥� Book said. 鈥淔ortunately for us, Elon has never succeeded by standing still. We鈥檝e joined together, developed new strategies and guided by our mission 鈥� built the number one institution for engaged learning and student success.鈥�

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

鈥淚t is not simply education; it is a journey of human transformation,鈥� Book said. 鈥淭hank you for the everyday commitment, kindness and integrity that are our enduring guideposts.鈥�

Expanded academics
School of Engineering and Computing

The new School of Engineering and Computing will open in Fall 2026, anchoring聽the university鈥檚 Innovation Quad聽in the heart of campus. It will include聽20聽full-time faculty and three full-time staff positions with more than 300 undergraduate students. The school will include three new majors: , and . 闯辞丑苍听奥补濒锄, a former president of the聽Milwaukee School of Engineering聽and聽longtime leader in engineering and technology education, will serve as the school’s inaugural dean.

Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Elon’s new Clinical Mental Health Counseling program will welcome its first cohort this fall. The graduate program, at Elon鈥檚 main campus and Charlotte national campus, will work to prepare competent, compassionate and ethical counselors committed to promoting mental wellness and addressing an urgent need for counselors.

Charlotte Physician Assistant Studies

Elon will welcome Charlotte, North Carolina鈥檚 first Physician Assistant program with its inaugural class in January 2027,聽pending achieving Accreditation-Provisional status at the September 2026 ARC-PA meeting.聽Rooted in Elon鈥檚 pillars of engaged learning, leadership, and global impact, the 福利亚洲国产精品 PA program in Charlotte is designed who uphold clinical excellence, are community-focused, and equity-driven.

Roberts Academy at 福利亚洲国产精品

The Roberts Academy,聽North Carolina鈥檚 only university-based private school for children with dyslexia, officially opens this fall. It will serve as a statewide and national model for structured literacy education. The school was established through the philanthropic vision of Marjorie and Hal Roberts, who have witnessed the transformative power of a multisensory approach to reading education.

The school will initially welcome third- and fourth-grade students in Trollinger House, before expanding its capacity to grades one through six in a state-of-the-art facility planned for East Haggard Avenue, set to open in Fall 2028.

New sights

Several construction projects have been underway this summer, ahead of the 2026-27 academic year.聽The聽Slattery Center聽will be the university鈥檚 new health and wellness center, a central component to the university鈥檚 broader聽HealthEU聽initiative that focuses on six dimensions of health and wellness: community, emotional, purpose, financial, physical and social.

Renovations of the Mooney Building, home to the Dr. Jo Watts Williams School of Education, are underway, including the replacement of windows and HVAC systems, upgrades to electrical and plumbing systems, and the addition of waterproofing.

The journalist encouraged the reader to identify their expected walking speed based on age and sex by posting a to a systematic review on normative values for comfortable walking speed in adults that Andrews, Vallabhajosula, Boise, and another colleague published in the Journal of Physiotherapy in 2023: “Normal Gait Speed Varies by Age and Sex but not by Geographical Region: A Systematic Review.”

Related Articles

• Elon holds largest-ever Spring Undergraduate Research Forum
• Personal experience inspires Elon student鈥檚 research to help children experiencing homelessness

Dozens of students showcased research projects inspired by personal experiences and academic interests, guided by faculty mentorship, during the 2026 Summer Undergraduate Research Experience presentations on July 23 in Schar Hall.

The most recent SURE symposium featured more than 50 students from both 福利亚洲国产精品 and Queens University of Charlotte, marking the latest example of collaboration between two institutions in the process of merging into a united community.

鈥淪URE continues to be one of the flagship events of Elon鈥檚 Undergraduate Research Program. This poster session is a celebration of their dedication and growth as budding young scholars,鈥� said Justin Clar, director of undergraduate research and associate professor of chemistry. 鈥淚 was especially pleased that we were joined by amazing students from Queens who shared their work with the Elon community.鈥�

At Elon, the Summer Undergraduate Research Experience has for years provided student researchers with a stipend to spend eight weeks working full-time on a project in collaboration with a faculty mentor with substantial and recognized expertise in the discipline.

The program concludes every July with a symposium that deepens students鈥� knowledge of the research experience while offering an opportunity to grow their public speaking and presentation skills.

“It was a great opportunity for the students to share their summer research in a low-stakes environment,” said Kira McEntire, director of undergraduate research and creative work; and associate professor of biology at Queens. “It was also fun to see the Elon students sharing their summer projects and to learn about some of the interests of Elon colleagues.”

At Queens, the university holds its annual in the spring, a campus-wide celebration of academic inquiry and community impact. The day starts with oral and poster presentations, followed by service activities in the afternoon.

Personal connections

For many students at SURE, like Elon student聽Thomas Gress 鈥�27, projects carried a deeply personal connection. Gress designed a four-week study comparing exercise approaches for people with chronic fatigue syndrome, inspired in part by his brother鈥檚 experience with the condition.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the condition is a serious and often long-lasting illness that keeps people from doing their usual activities. It makes physical and mental exertion difficult, and symptoms include difficulty thinking, severe tiredness, and other issues.

鈥淏efore I started this project, (my brother had) been suffering for four years, and there seemed to be no end in sight. So, this was something small that I could do to be of use,鈥� said Gress, a biology major from Savannah, Georgia. 鈥淔or all of these patients, there鈥檚 no other option. There are no drugs available, only a few supplements with very little efficacy. So, it seems the best option is experimenting with lifestyle. And if not this, then there is nothing.鈥�

Queens student Isabella Sherman 鈥�27 has a love for nature that inspired her to explore plant communities at the Carolina Wildlands Foundation with mentor E. Davis Carter, assistant professor of biology at Queens.

鈥淚t was an excellent experience,鈥� said Sherman, a conservation biology major from Charlotte. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really close to what I want to do with my career. I love research, I love forestry, and every time I went out there, I was like, 鈥楾his is exactly what I want to do.鈥� This kind of information is what people take into consideration when they鈥檙e trying to develop land or provide an additional environment for fauna and flora.鈥�

Mentoring relationships

A common thread among many of the projects was the close relationship students developed with their faculty mentors.

Anna Grace Gilbert 鈥�27, an Elon psychology major from Knoxville, Tennessee, says Associate Professor of Psychology Sabrina Perkins 鈥渃ompletely changed鈥� her undergraduate experience through their work studying infant motor development.

鈥淚鈥檝e worked with (Professor Perkins) technically since the summer of my freshman year. I just reached out to her and was like, 鈥業 love babies. I鈥檇 love to work with you,鈥� Gilbert said. 鈥淚鈥檓 very grateful. We鈥檝e really bonded over these almost three years.鈥�

For Jack VanValkenburg 鈥�27, a Queens student majoring in data analytics, undergraduate research provided an opportunity to apply his technical skills. He worked with Queens Assistant Professor of Biology Denni Einersson to develop a computerized system for organizing trash collected during community cleanup events.

鈥淚t was a great opportunity to work with people who know more than me. The coding that I鈥檝e done in the past is more analytical and this was more developmental,鈥� said VanValkenburg, who is from Atlanta. 鈥�(Clean-up crews) would go out with field cards, like pencil and paper, and just mark things down, which was super timely and it鈥檚 very inconvenient, and then that just led to a lot of data that wasn鈥檛 being used.”

Pushing through the learning process

Elon business analytics major Chase Hannibal 鈥�28 examined the sense of belonging among Black business students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Predominantly White Institutions. It can sometimes feel isolating as a Black female business student, Hannibal said.

鈥淚 just wanted to see if other students felt that way, and if it was a pattern, what could be fixed,鈥� Hannibal said. 鈥�(I wanted to) let other students know that you鈥檙e not alone.鈥�

Hannibal says her mentor, Shanetta Pendleton, assistant professor of strategic communications, pushed her to be better, even when she was at her 鈥渟topping point.鈥�

鈥淓ven when I felt at the worst of the worst, she supported me throughout everything,鈥� Hannibal said. 鈥淪he was great, and I鈥檓 very excited to work with her in the future.鈥�

Amelia Weaver 鈥�28 also explored the experiences of college students, particularly women. Her Elon Honors Fellows research examines the motivations of college-aged women who participate in sports betting after she noticed women were less vocal about the topic in class discussions.

鈥淚t made me think about why the women in the class weren鈥檛 as talkative or excited about their own experiences with sports betting,鈥� said Weaver, a sport management and media analytics double major with a minor in . 鈥淚 wondered if this was because they didn鈥檛 participate, didn鈥檛 care, or they just didn鈥檛 want to say anything.鈥�

Weaver said her mentor, Alex Traugutt, an assistant professor of sport management, has helped guide her through the process.

鈥淗e immediately said, 鈥楾his is going to be a partnership. We鈥檙e going to take steps together. We鈥檙e going to figure this out together. I鈥檓 not just going to throw you into everything,鈥欌�� said Weaver. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 been really helpful in the learning process.鈥�

At the conference, faculty members Shirley Etienne, Jeanmarie Koonts and Lori Hubbard also highlighted unique features of the innovative Elon Nursing curriculum scaffolded to build equity competence through intentional community and global engagement. Nursing courses delivered across the sophomore, junior, and senior years focus on population health concepts, social and structural determinants of health, and patient advocacy.

Etienne, who recently championed an Advancing Equity Requirement (AER) designation for NRS 2000 Healthcare Relationships I, shared how students critically examine their own cultural identities, biases and values to understand how these factors influence practice. Experiential learning occurs through an Affinity Bias Analysis, cultural immersion activity, and Bridging Racial Health Disparities group project focused on advocacy and nursing interventions.

Hubbard expounded on students鈥� opportunities in NRS 4200 Population and Community Health to critically analyze community-level health disparities, identify barriers to equitable care, and develop and implement strategies to promote health during clinical rotations in the local community. Hubbard was also featured in a poster session with results from her study 鈥淐hildbirth Self-Efficacy and Factors Influencing Labor and Birth in the Dominican Republic.”

Koonts finished the presentation by describing how the preparatory seminar and both NRS 4300 (local) and NRS 4315 (global) Healthcare Relationships II foster intercultural awareness, ethical engagement, and global health literacy. Through the intentional design and sequence of these courses, Elon nursing students examine intersectionality and cultural influences on health outcomes. They develop responsibility as local and global citizens committed to reducing health disparities.

During the recent accreditation process, curriculum design to promote competence in health equity was highlighted as one of the most compelling features of the Elon Nursing program. Program outcomes demonstrate increased cultural humility, population health competency, and a deeper understanding of the structural determinants of health. This experiential, evidence-based model exemplifies how nursing programs can intentionally cultivate equity competence that bridges theory and practice to prepare nurses for inclusive, compassionate, and globally responsive and informed care.

The PA program in Charlotte will be the Queen City’s first, with the university expecting聽its inaugural class in January 2027.

During the PA event, attendees will:

• Hear directly from the Charlotte PA faculty/staff about curriculum, clinical experiences, and program outcomes
• Connect with聽faculty members and gain insight into the student experience
• Participate in small group tours of the Charlotte campus facilities
• Connect with Graduate Admissions staff to discuss the application process and next steps

Location:
福利亚洲国产精品 Charlotte
330 W Tremont Ave
Charlotte, NC 28203
United States

Complimentary parking is available in the surface lot adjacent to the campus, but please refrain from parking in spots labeled Ava Parking as these are designated for residents of the neighboring apartments. Overflow paid parking is available on Doggett Street and Tremont Avenue as well as at the Design Center Garage located at 269 Doggett Street.

The entrance to Elon Charlotte is located on the side of the building facing the apartments, towards the end of the walkway near the steps. Look for the Elon sign to indicate the correct entrance. Once inside, please proceed through the double glass doors and take a right into the social hub.

A previously scheduled Open House for the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program has been canceled.

The article, 鈥�,鈥� continues the Rivera-Serrano Lab鈥檚 work exploring the potential of reoviruses as cancer-targeting agents. The study examined a panel of genetically distinct reoviruses across three epithelial cancer cell models. The work found that different reovirus strains showed cell line-dependent patterns of infectivity and cancer cell killing, with some reassortant viruses showing enhanced activity compared with parental strains. The findings suggest that the effectiveness of reovirus-based cancer-targeting approaches may depend not only on viral genetics, but also on the specific cancer cell context.

Reoviruses are being studied as potential oncolytic agents, or viruses that preferentially infect and kill cancer cells. While much of the field has focused on one prototype strain, the Elon study highlights the importance of exploring broader reovirus genetic diversity. Because reoviruses contain segmented genomes, different strains can exchange genome segments through a process known as reassortment, generating viruses with new combinations of traits that may influence infection, replication and cytotoxicity.

The article reinforces the value of comparative screens in cancer virotherapy research. The study found that viral infectivity and cancer cell killing did not always fully overlap, suggesting that efficient infection alone does not necessarily predict how strongly a virus will reduce cancer cell viability. Instead, the findings point to a more complex relationship among viral entry, replication, antiviral responses and cell death pathways.

The project builds on ongoing research in Rivera-Serrano鈥檚 laboratory, where undergraduate students use cell biology, virology and immunology approaches to understand how viral genetics influence cancer cell susceptibility. Hutchinson, the article鈥檚 first author and Nursing major, contributed to experimental work and data analysis as part of his mentored research experience in the lab for three semesters and participation in Elon鈥檚 2025 Summer Undergraduate Research Experience.

Carter, who performed research as a visiting high school student in the summer of 2025, contributed to data analysis, highlighting the lab鈥檚 broader commitment to expanding access to biomedical research experiences beyond the undergraduate level. Dagli, who recently co-authored a related study in Virus Genes on reovirus reassortants with enhanced activity against fibrosarcoma cells, also contributed to the current work as part of the lab鈥檚 continuing effort to evaluate how viral genetic diversity shapes oncolytic potential.