Elon University holds a lasting appeal for students, some of whom stay in Burlington or elsewhere in Alamance County after graduation. | Facebook/Elon University
Elon University holds a lasting appeal for students, some of whom stay in Burlington or elsewhere in Alamance County after graduation. | Facebook/Elon University
Sam Santos left a small town in Massachusetts to attend Elon University and she not only got an education, but she fell in love with Burlington.
She loves the area so much that she is looking for a job that will keep her here for a while.
“A lot of the student base is coming from the Northeast, and a lot of them want to go home afterward, which I think is why, as a university, we push Boston, New York and LA for post-grad opportunities,” Santos told the Elon News Network. “Burlington has a lot to offer in terms of businesses and different majors, but I think it’s just overlooked because of the fact that that’s where we’ve been for four years, and it’s like, ‘Okay, I want to go somewhere new.’”
Not only does the city lure people who are from elsewhere, it also is bringing some folks back to their hometown, like Simone Royal.
“Alamance is a very unique county,” Royal, who initially left the area after she graduated but has since come back, told Elon News Network. “It offers a lot of different perspectives, and there’s a lot of culture here as well. Try new things. I always say, ‘Don’t be scared to take risks. It’s okay if someone says no.’”
Elon is a jewel in an area that has seen its share of struggles.
“Elon is a very pretty place, and the rest of Alamance County is not that,” Royal said, according to Elon News Network. "And I mean that in a lot of different ways. Not just looks, but people. Interactions with people will be different.… There’s poverty, there’s food scarcities across Burlington that many students at Elon do not know, homelessness, and so it’s just more of the real world.”
Considering those realities, Elon is seen as a sanctuary.
“I tell everybody that if I’m not back at Elon in two and a half years, I failed in life,” graduating senior Camryn Black told Elon News Network. “I definitely want to stay here and go to their PA (physician's assistant) program.”
Black sees the university as a way to get back in touch.
“If I ever feel uncomfortable or feel like it’s too much new, I could just take a stroll through campus and feel like I’m a student again,” Black said, according to Elon News Network.
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