Academic Programs

Black Lumen Project

The Black Lumen Project is a new university effort that evolved from Elon’s participation in Universities Studying Slavery, an international consortium of roughly 70 colleges and universities that seeks to address both historical and contemporary issues related to race and inequality in higher education. Elon’s USS subcommittee evolved into The Black Lumen Project: An Equity Initiative, which aims to build on existing work related to the Black experience at Elon in collaboration with the Center for Race, Ethnicity and Diversity Education and African & African-American Studies.

Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society

The Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society is the research and scholarship arm of the university’s multifaith initiative. It offers a set of programs dedicated to promoting mutual understanding and respect across and within religious traditions and belief systems and contributes to the development of global citizenship.

Center for Research on Global Engagement

The Center for Research on Global Engagement fosters research related to global engagement on campus, develops national and international partnerships, shares best practices in global education, promotes the integration of global education into the Elon curriculum and supports Elon’s mission to prepare students to be global citizens.

Civic Engagement Scholars

The Civic Engagement Scholars program educates, prepares and inspires students to become agents of change in their communities and in society. Building on academic study, service-learning, community-based research and critical analysis of social issues, the scholars link knowledge and social action to address unmet human needs in collaboration with the local community.

Diversity Course Database

All of Elon’s undergraduate and graduate programs offer a host of resources for students who want to incorporate diversity, inclusion and global engagement into their academic work both inside and outside the classroom. The Diversity Course Database includes courses from the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Communications, Love School of Business and School of Education and identifies courses according to the way they address seven dimensions of diversity – race, class, gender, sexual orientation, religion, ability and global.

Interdisciplinary Minors

Many of Elon’s interdisciplinary minors expand students’ understanding of diversity, inclusion and global engagement by encouraging them to think from a variety of perspectives and disciplines and preparing them for an increasingly interlinked world:

Multifaith Scholars

Multifaith Scholars is a two-year educational opportunity for juniors and seniors who show great potential as intellectually curious and socially engaged multifaith leaders. Students commit to developing a sophisticated knowledge about religious diversity and multifaith issues, interacting with local and global religious communities and advancing a public intellectual project.

Project Pericles

Project Pericles was initiated in 2002 when Elon became one of 10 universities to accept a challenge from the Eugene Lang Foundation to provide a learning experience that would “instill in students an abiding sense of social responsibility and civic concern.” The centerpiece of Project Pericles is the Periclean Scholars program, which strives to empower students through civic engagement both locally and globally with emphasis on cohort-based learning and student leadership.

School Initiatives

Elon’s six schools have their own resources, programs and initiatives related to diversity, equity and inclusion, preparing students to be global citizens and informed leaders and fostering respect for human differences. Learn more about the work each of them do in and out of the classroom to advance social equity, inclusivity and justice.