Queens And Elon Share A Powerful Morning With First-Ever “College Coffee”
Faculty and staff from Elon University traveled to Charlotte for collaborative learning sessions and a social gathering at Queens that marked a milestone in bringing together the two campuses as a united university.
The day started in the Sarah Belk Gambrell Center for the Arts and Civic Engagement on July 16, 2026, with Queens’ first-ever College Coffee, an Elon tradition that offers students, faculty and staff weekly opportunities during the semester to connect over coffee and pastries.
“This is a powerful morning,” Queens Acting President and CEO Jesse Cureton said in remarks to attendees. “You’re going to learn today a lot about Queens and the history of the university, but as I’ve shared with so many, Queens is not just about this campus – it’s about a 170-year history, and it’s about this phenomenal city, one of the fastest-growing in the country. Sports, healthcare, manufacturing, energy – all these things are creating opportunities for our students.”
Following a campus tour for Elon visitors, employees from both locations participated in an interactive professional development workshop, “Own the Moment: Practical Tools for Navigating Change with Confidence,” led by Rochelle Stojnic, director of the Office of Leadership and Professional Development at Elon.
Grounded in the idea that the most meaningful moments during institutional transitions occur in ordinary, everyday interactions, the session provided attendees with strategies to approach organizational evolution with a curious and open perspective.
Employees were encouraged to serve as a steady, grounding presence for colleagues and students, and learned how to leverage personal and collective strengths to fuel community growth.
“This is a historic transition, and navigating it successfully requires an ‘all hands on deck’ approach,” Stojnic said. “Leadership isn’t just for a few people at the top. Everyone needs to feel empowered to lead through this change, which starts with understanding how we handle transition personally.”
“At Elon, prioritizing professional development is a core value. We invest heavily in our people because we believe that for our universities to grow and get better, our employees must have the space to expand their skills, navigate uncertainty with balance, and feel genuinely supported along the way.”
Shawn Bowers, director of the General Education Program at Queens, attended the professional development session.
“As an educator, I consider myself a lifelong learner, and I deeply appreciate how both institutions invest in us as holistic individuals. When resources and energy are poured into faculty and staff, it allows us to show up as the best versions of ourselves,” she said. “Ultimately, that yields incredible dividends for our students, who are the main constituents we serve.”
The collaborative energy of the workshop and joint sessions highlighted a shared commitment to building a unified, resilient community.