Mynhardt lawsuit moves forward in Alamance County (Feb. 11, 2009)
A follow-up story about the case of John Lee Mynhardt, a former Elon student who sued Elon University, Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and individual members of the fraternity following an altercation at a 2007 off-campus party that left him paralyzed from the neck down. This piece was written when the lawsuit was transferred from Guilford County to Alamance County and new details about the case emerged. I also placed in the top 20 in the Hearst Spot News Writing Competition with this story.
Elon employee arrested, case now dismissed (May 6, 2009)
A story I broke about the arrest of Elon’s coordinator for personal health and community well-being, who was arrested by the Town of Elon Police when she refused to disclose information a rape victim told her confidentially. The case was quickly dismissed by the Alamance County district attorney, but ramifications of the arrest resulted in tension between the university and the police department.
Royster case raises questions on confidentiality of sexual abuse victims (May 13, 2009)
A follow-up to the previous story about the arrest of an Elon employee who refused to disclose information a rape victim told her in confidence to the Town of Elon Police. Following the dismissal of the case, the Editor-in-Chief and I co-wrote this in-depth piece about the ramifications of the arrest. The story also contained new comments from the employee, the university and the police.
ACLU files Taser lawsuit against Elon Police (April 8, 2009)
A lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina on behalf of a man, John Paylor, who was tased during an altercation with an officer from the Town of Elon Police. The incident occurred in 2006 but the lawsuit had just been filed when this article was written. The complaint suggested that the officer had used “excessive and unlawful force.”
Burundi activist speaks of plight of her country’s children (April 22, 2009)
Coverage of a speech by Goretti Kurgat, who was born in Burundi and now lives in Burlington. She returned to Burundi in summer 2008 and was shocked to see the conditions in which orphaned children live, suffering from malnutrition and digging for garbage looking for things they can sell as a result of the conflict between Burundi’s two primary ethnic groups.
New study indicates collegiate mental health issues are of concern, on the rise (April 29, 2009)
Story about a study that found a rise in mental health issues like depression and anxiety among college students has led to increased self-injury, suicidal thoughts and alcohol and substance abuse. The story localizes the study by including the opinions of an Elon psychology professor and and Elon counselor.
Inexperience, reliance on technology make college students prime targets for scams (Oct. 7, 2009)
A piece about the prevalence of scams on college campuses. The story takes a national topic and localizes it by including an anecdote from Elon students who fell victim to a scam on campus, Elon’s vice president for technology’s thoughts about the increase in online scams and the captain of Campus Safety and Police’s input on other common campus scams.
Forty-five years of funny (Dec. 8, 2009)
Feature about Jeanne Robertson, a 66-year-old Elon trustee who has spent the past 45 years working as a humorist and professional speaker. The story discusses how she used the experience she gained speaking as Miss North Carolina to start a career out of making people laugh.
Kal Penn stumps for Obama at Elon (May 7, 2008)
A story about actor Kal Penn (“House,” “Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle”) campaigning for Barack Obama at Elon. He came on May 4, two days before the North Carolina primary, to speak to students about the importance of voting, why he supports Obama and his experiences working at the polls in Iowa during the Writer’s Guild of America strike.
