Elon University extended its reach into downtown Burlington with the purchase of a building at 217 E. Davis St. The building will undergo slight renovations to create office space for the Village Project and the Kernodle Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement’s community outreach efforts.
The Village Project, an initiative headed by Jean Rattigan-Rohr, associate professor of education, began in 2007 to help children in the Burlington area improve their reading skills. The program pairs education majors with local students in kindergarten to fifth grade. For six weeks during the second half of each semester, about 50 Elon students meet with local children and their parents in the May Memorial Library each Wednesday night. But the library is small, and the program is growing to include tutoring in science, as well, so additional space was needed.
When Rohr expressed the need for additional space, the university assessed the available real estate in downtown Burlington and contacted local churches with the capacity to host the students. This year, tutoring for reading will remain in the May Memorial Library and science tutoring will be offered in the First Presbyterian Church at 508 W. Davis St. What used to be the offices of Alamance and Alamance Woman magazines will provide additional office space for both the Village Project and the Kernodle Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement.The university finalized the sale last week.
Two of the building’s four office spaces will most likely be combined to create a 16-person meeting room, but the university is also considering a 24-person classroom, Francis said. Rohr will occupy one of the remaining offices, and the Kernodle Center volunteers will occupy the other.
Mary Morrison, director of the Kernodle Center, said she is excited about the opening of the community outreach office.
“We’re hoping that having a downtown center will encourage faculty and staff to come down to the downtown area, utilize that space and familiarize themselves with the center of the city,” she said. “We’re going to focus on accommodating the needs of faculty, staff and students as they do more for the community.”