President Leo M. Lambert and senior staff members previewed the 2010-2011 academic year on Aug. 18 for university employees. In two separate meetings, administrators provided a summary of recent work and initiatives planned for the coming months.
Susan Klopman
Vice President for Admissions and Financial Planning
• Projected size of the freshman class is 1,365
• Incoming freshman grade point average in core courses is 3.94 with an SAT average of more than 600 points in each of three sections (verbal, math and writing)
• The class gender ratio is 42 percent male, 58 percent female; 17 percent are minority or international students, an increase from last year
• The most popular intended majors are business, communications, biology, psychology and education
• The top five home states for this year’s freshmen class are North Carolina, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia
• Elon has pre-admitted students for spring 2011. Thirty-six applicants have committed to date
Steven House
Provost
• Welcomed Alison Morrison-Shetlar, the new dean of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences
• A plan will be formally presented to faculty and to the board of trustees this fall for a proposed physician assistant graduate program
• The physical therapy graduate program will expand starting in January 2012
• 132 students were admitted into the Elon University School of Law Class of 2013
• Professors Rosemary Haskell and Tom Mould are continuing their work as co-chairs of the committee to review general studies curriculum
• The university will soon begin its search for a director of leadership and professional development
• Mary Wise, associate vice president of academic affairs, will take a key role in the university’s preparation for reaccreditation through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Gerald Whittington
Senior Vice President for Business, Finance and Technology
• Colonnades C/D/E residence halls are on schedule for completion by fall 2011
• Five new Greek houses are on schedule for completion by fall 2011
• The new Alumni Field House north of Rhodes Stadium is expected to open in December
• Renovations to the playing surface in Latham Park are complete
• Planning continues for a new multifaith center, a new “Senior Class Village” residence hall complex, and for the new “Danieley East,” formerly a Smithfield plant on East Haggard Avenue that will eventually house the DPT program.
• Fourteen parking spaces around campus will be designated for low-emission vehicles
• The Zimride carpool service launched for faculty and staff over the summer. Students will have access to the same service in September
• A new take-out option, with reusable containers, will be piloted at the McEwen dining hall this year
Jim Piatt
Vice President for University Advancement
• The university has raised $79.3 million for Ever Elon: The Campaign for the Future of Our University
• More than 125 new endowed scholarships have been created through the generosity of donors.
• Starting this fall, school deans will begin working with advancement officers to ask alumni to support specific academic units to which they have affinity
• The division will expand its use of social media for fundraising this year
Smith Jackson
Vice President for Student Life
• Campus Kitchen, a nonprofit organization with chapters at 25 colleges and universities in the United States, comes to Elon this fall. Students volunteer to package and deliver to area agencies excess food from dining hall kitchens for redistribution to members of the community who lack food.
• The BioBus/East Burlington Service Loop counted more than 1,000 passengers in the spring, and it expands this fall with additional stops at Cummings High School and the Walmart in East Burlington.
• Elon President Leo M. Lambert will be meeting with more than 200 student leaders to have conversations about alcohol abuse and hazing among students and how young leaders can contribute to shifting the culture on campus to reduce the impact of both issues
• The Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life will begin offering a nondenominational Protestant “Sunday Service” this fall.
• 60 percent of current Elon students live on campus. With new construction underway in the Loy Center and the Colonnades, plus additional plans for a “Senior Village” to be built on the Firehouse Fields in the coming years, the goal is to reach 75 percent
Dave Blank
Director of Athletics
• 53 percent of student athletes currently maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher
• 12 of 16 sports teams have a cumulative GPA higher than 3.0, and every team surpasses the APR mark required by the NCAA
• Elon is in the final stages of its NCAA reaccreditation process; the university hopes to receive its reaccreditation in February
• Three Elon teams – football, baseball and softball – advanced to their respective NCAA tournaments in 2009-2010, a record number for the university
• John Keegan will be leading fundraising efforts for Athletics with help from newly hired Jonathan Miller, the new director of annual giving for Athletics