Ballroom turns
up the heat at
Elonthon
page 3
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contest? page 5 Check out what’s new at CELEBRATE
page 12
E Pendulum
ELON, NORTH CAROLINA | WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008 | VOLUME 34, EDITION 12
www.elon.edu/pendulum
Miracle families, miracle students
TIFFANY WARNER | Photographer
Elonthon dancers perform part of the event's morale dance. More than 1,000 people registered to participate in this year’s Elonthon.
Jacqui Seidel
Reporter
A quick countdown from three and
a flicic of a switch was all it took for
the glow of hope to be seen in Alumni
Gym. The room silenced as young
Lizzy Lindley turned on the ever-
famous Elonthon sign, adorned with
glowing Christmas lights.
For many, this small sign is a
constant reminder of the hope and
inspiration behind the 24-hour
dance marathon for Duke Children’s
Hospital.
Cheers quickly quieted as Tracey
Lindley crossed the stage to once
again share her family's story.
But this year, her message was
different.
Since her son Mason’s passing,
Tracey has been searching for a way
to fill the vast hole in her heart. For
her, the answer is Elonthon.
Coming out and seeing the kids
and students who have dedicated
themselves to her son's memory is a
type of therapy no doctor can offer.
Now Tracey wants to give back to the
students that have given her so much
hope.
“What you all are doing today and
tomorrow, is not just about today and
tomorrow,” Tracey said. “It’s much
bigger than that.”
A quick glance around the dark
gymnasium showed students faces
sprinkled with tears of love for this
“miracle family.”
Miracle families are the
motivation behind Elonthon and
dance marathons across the nation.
By sharing their experiences and
troubling pasts, they offer motivation
to the students as they strive to stand
for 24 straight hours.
According to these families,
though, it is the students who are the
true heroes.
See ELONTHON I Page 3
Honors convocation highlights performers
DAVID WELLS | Assistant Photo Editor
“A I Students sang the world premiere of
le More Homework," composed by Jason Rob-
“fown for his upcoming Broadway musical "13.”
Megan Schneider
Reporter
As convocation unfolded last
Thursday, Elon students shared their
perspectives through performances,
speeches and video confessionals.
Different from last year—when Elon
focused on the ELR requirements
the convocation was dedicated to
appreciating Elon’s performing arts
department.
Elon has been nationally
recognized for its commitment to
students and as the community _
continues to enrich every student s
experience, students take guest
speaker Hal Prince’s words of wisdom
and hope to keep growing wherever
"’'!Etaffcul,y.nds,.fril,erallv
took me by the hand and helped
me,” alumna Nancy Snow said. They
wanted me to succeed: they challenged
me so I could face tomorrow. Elon is
a place to explore and take risks, we
don’t get better if we don’t fall; they
gave me a place to fall.”
Aside from recognizing the
students that have received honors this
past academic year, Elon’s performing
arts department helped in welcoming
Prince to the stage.
Considered a “giant” of the music
theater world, Prince has won 22
Tony Awards and is known as one of
the most influential individuals in
American musicals today.
Considering Prince’s identity, many
students were hooked on every word
he said; Alumni Gym was silent one
moment and full of laughter after
every joke.
“I think it went well and I was
honored to perform in front of Elon
and Hal Prince,” said sophomore
Rachael Fine. “It was a great way
to show the community what the
performing arts department is all
about."
Prince's final remarks included a
closing message that was well
See CONVOCATION I Page 4
Blackout Elon
revealed: buzz
campaign seeks to
change perspectives
1
Flyers displaying only two fingerprints were
posted across campus as part of Live Oak Com
munications' Black Out Elon campaign.
Kaitlin Ugolik
Futures Editor
The mysterious fingerprint flyers
that created a buzz during the past
two weeks were finally explained
at College Coffee on April 8 when
members of Students Promoting
Awareness, Responsibility, Knowledge
and Success (SPARKS) peer education
and Live Oak Communications passed
out free T-shirts explaining their
Blackout Elon campaign.
It is a “social norms” campaign
thought up by Lee Bush's corporate
campaigns class and executed by Live
Oak Communications and SPARKS to
change Elon students' perception of
drinking on campus.
Students in the corporate
campaigns class looked at the 2007
Core Alcohol and Drug Survey, a
survey given out every two years
to freshmen, and found what they
described as surprising results: Of
students who choose to drink, most
only do so once a week and only
8.6 percent of students reported
drinking five times per week. But the
survey showed that many students
think their peers drink five times per
week.
“Students think their peers drink a
lot more than they do,” junior Andrea
Grissey said. “If we put the facts out,
maybe those who drink more will
change to fit in.”
Grissey said that the goal was
to use a peer-to-peer method of
getting the facts out, first by getting
students’ attention and generating a
buzz — that’s where the fingerprints
came in.
Sophomore Chrissie Cordeira, peer
educator for SPARKS, explained the
name of the campaign.
“‘Blackout’ on this campus
means getting drunk to the point
that you don’t know what you’re
doing,” she said. “We're trying to
change the definition of the word
and make it positive, to blackout
misconceptions.”
Cordeira said that although Elon
students do drink more than students
on other campuses, according to
the survey, a lot of them drink
responsibly.
She said that the campaigners
want to show students that not
everyone at Elon lives the same
lifestyle: There is a population of
responsible drinkers and students
who don’t drink at all.