11 // � e Legacies of Elon’s Leaders

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When Janna Anderson, an Associate Professor in communications, approached Colin Donohue about a position as Coordinator of Student Media and instructor in communications, Donohue thought he had nothing to lose.

He had just fi nished his graduate studies at the University of Memphis, and he thought he might as well apply for the job at his Alma Mater.

“I fi gured why not,” Donohue said. “I applied thinking I had no shot.”After he submitted his application, Donohue was asked back for an interview.

He said he thought it was just a courtesy interview because he was a previous student.

Quite the contrary. He was offered the job, and he took it immediately.Donohue graduated from Elon in 2005, with a journalism major and minors

in French and political science.After graduating from Elon he went to Memphis for two years, where he was

a graduate assistant and earned a master’s degree in journalism.Donohue said he really began thinking about teaching in his last few years

at Elon.“I’ve grown up around teachers, and I’ve always appreciated teaching,”

Donohue said. “I’ve always taken great joy in making content accessible to students, but I thought I’d become a teacher maybe after 15-20 years of being a newspaper reporter.”

During his time at Elon, Donohue said there were three people who affected him and his perception of what a leader was.

First was Anderson. Donohue took three classes from Anderson, and she served as The Pendulum adviser when he was on staff, fi rst as the sports editor, and later as the managing editor and the editor-in-chief.

“Janna was a constant source of support, motivation and criticism, but she was always hands-off about it,” Donohue said. “She trusted us to make the decisions.”

The second was J. McMerty, Coordinator of Video Projects. McMerty graduated in 2000 and taught when Donohue was in school.

“I saw how he interacted with the students,” Donohue said. “There’s a directness that he has and an authoritativeness that he has.”

The fi nal person was Paul Parsons, Dean of the School of Communications. Parsons was responsible for hiring Donohue.

“There is a decisiveness that he has,” Donohue said. “He is always carefully contemplating the ideas he has.”

There were also two coaches Donohue had when he was growing up that shaped who he is as a leader.

One was Harold Payne, his middle school travel basketball coach. Payne’s coaching style was characterized by yelling, Donohue said, but that never bothered him.

“I appreciate the attention he paid to us,” Donohue said. “He wasn’t just

teaching us about basketball. He was teaching us about life because we were just boys trying to grow up and be men.”

Another basketball coach, Jim Albert, led Donohue on his high school team. He said he admired the way Albert interacted with the players.

“He could be gruff and demanding, and he expected perfection, but there could still be a levity and looseness about him,” Donohue said.

Each of these people, with his or her different leadership characteristics, helped Donohue create his own defi nition of leadership.

“Leadership, fi rst and foremost is about trust,” Donohue said. “The people leading have to trust in others’ abilities to make the right decisions.”

Donohue said the availability of a leader to those he or she leads is important, as well as an openness and a willingness to include a wide variety of people. Decisiveness and the ability to think analytically and then explain why a decision was made are important characteristics of a leader.

“You have to realize that your idea isn’t always the best one,” Donohue said. “And it’s ultimately about the people you surround yourself with. You have to be able to put the right people in the right positions.”

While Donohue has only been at Elon for three years, he has established a valuable presence inside the offi ce of The Pendulum and has created close relationships with many of the students who work there.

He was part of a turnaround in the student newspaper that saw its hard work come to fruition with the honor of a Newspaper Pacemaker award in 2009.

As an adviser, he uses a hands-off approach to leading, but this does not mean he doesn’t have a large role, and thus a stake, in the outcome of the newspaper.

“I’m not in charge,” Donohue said. “But it’s nice to have people acknowledge, in some quiet moments, that I had a part in that.”

One of the things Donohue said he loves about teaching at Elon is the immense amount of student interaction available. It is what he loved about the university as a student, and it’s what he continues to love about it as a professor.

“I’m helping play a part in students’ lives, and I have a pride in seeing them succeed,” Donohue said. “I want people to feel like this person loved coming to work every day and enjoyed being there, that he was accessible and could be trusted.”

One of his main goals, not only as a professor, but also as an adviser is to make sure when students leave, they are prepared, well-trained and professional in the fi eld of journalism.

He said he wants to instill this idea of analytical thinking and correct news judgment. Most of all, he said he wants to see students become better writers.

“What invigorates me is coming into work every day and getting to see what students are working on,” Donohue said. “I revel in the products of students’ hard work.”

Story By Sam Calvert

RETURNING TO LEAD WHERE HE bELONgs

� e Legacies of Elon’s Leaders // 12

Colin DonohuePHOTO BY JUSTINE SCHULERUD

GET TO KNOWCol in Donohue

Arrived at Elon in 2007 (graduated from Elon in 2005)

Hometown: Columbia, MD

“If your mother says she loves you, check it out.”

Favorite sports team(s): All the Washington area sports teams – Orioles, Capitals, Redskins

If he were a font: Calibri “It’s fun, but still distinguished.”