“The best essays are the ones where we don’t just want to admit the student, we want to take them out for coffee once they’re here. We’re not admitting academic machines—we’re admitting classmates and roommates and kids who will make thoughtful contributions to our community.” -- Macy Lenox, associate dean of admissions, University of Virginia
Elon News Network: "The Phoenix, whose identity remains a secret to the Elon community, serves as Elon University’s mascot. While The Phoenix wishes it could be in pictures with the community and attending sporting events alongside every Elon University student right now, it is still keeping busy ... Normally, The Phoenix would be attending sports games, visiting elementary schools, going to alumni events and anything else that involves spirit at Elon. However, with physical distancing guidelines preventing The Phoenix from attending in-person events, it needed to find other ways to be seen by students."
“I’m basically a giant hype man, so anything involving school spirit and promoting Elon in the community they will most likely send me to,” The Phoenix said.
"The Phoenix has been dropping in on Zoom classes and attending virtual town halls so that the Elon community can still see their symbol of spirit. It can also be seen around campus on many signs and posters where it is demonstrating how to properly wear a mask and abiding by physical distancing guidelines ... The Phoenix’s suit is also washed and dry cleaned regularly, the inside and the helmet piece is constantly wiped down and washing hands is a must."
Fire: "The Ivy League offers students sterling credentials, but is miserly when it comes to offering them free speech — try the University of Chicago instead. That’s just one of the findings from the first-ever rankings of the free speech climates at 55 of America’s largest and most prestigious campuses, based on the largest free speech survey of college students ever performed ... Other highlights: Seven of the top 10 colleges for free speech are public, and only one of the top 10 is in the Northeast, while the bottom 10 include many schools that repeatedly make headlines for campus censorship."
"The top-five colleges for free speech are: The University of Chicago, Kansas State University, Texas A&M University, University of California, Los Angeles, and Arizona State University. The bottom-five: Syracuse University, Dartmouth College, Louisiana State University, University of Texas, DePauw University."
"The 2020 College Free Speech Rankings take into account the varied dimensions of free expression on campus — from the ability to discuss challenging topics like race, gender dynamics, and geo-political conflicts, to whether students hold back from openly sharing their views. The rankings are designed to help students and parents make enrollment decisions based on a range of factors including openness, tolerance, self-expression, administrative support for free speech, and campus policies. The rankings capture and score, on a scale from 0-100, the overall speech climate, as well as the distinct experiences of conservative and liberal students."
