Home Care In Elon, NC

Taylor Casey ’16 secured a $50K NC IDEA Seed Grant for Kahmino, her neighborhood-matching startup, with support from Elon mentors, fueling plans for nationwide expansion.

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When Taylor Casey ’16 graduated from Elon University with degrees in marketing and accounting, she pictured a steady corporate climb. Eight years later, the former Phoenix tennis player is steering her own venture.

This spring, her Raleigh-based company, Kahmino, captured one of just six NC IDEA Seed Grants, a $50,000 award drawn from more than 120 statewide applicants.

The idea for Kahmino began the first time Casey tried to buy a home.

“My agent asked where I wanted to live, and I realized I knew nothing about Raleigh’s neighborhoods. It was easy to find the available 2 bed/2 bath, much harder to find the right lifestyle fit,” said Casey.

The frustration lingered until 2023, when she paused her career to backpack through Europe. While walking Spain’s 500-mile Camino de Santiago, Casey met fellow pilgrims who were also re-imagining their lives, a moment that clarified how profoundly community shapes happiness.

“The Camino showed me you can choose the life you want, but you need the right place to live it,” Casey said. “I came home, named the company Kahmino and started coding.”

When working with home buyers, real estate agents use Kahmino’s AI services to assist buyers in finding their perfect neighborhood match. Buyers fill out a survey that asks them about their priorities. Questions include their typical weekend activities, their preference for a home’s character, and preferences for the quality of a school district, among others.

For example, a homebuyer looking for a historic bungalow in a good school district with trendy brunch options will have their preferences submitted to Kahmino’s AI model, yielding results that show neighborhood matches for that buyer.

Within months she had a working prototype and a small roster of paying customers in the Triangle and Charlotte.

Back on campus for Elon’s Night of Networking for student-athletes, Casey’s former teammate introduced her to Raychel Lockwood, director of development for the Love School of Business.

Lockwood reviewed Casey’s NC IDEA micro-grant proposal, offered alumni introductions and pointed her toward additional campus resources.

Dean Haya Ajjan paired Kahmino with two graduate analytics teams that explored revenue models and a potential pilot for graduating seniors and relocating faculty.

Dina Rousset, director of the Doherty Center for Creativity, Innovation & Entrepreneurship, drew on her experience mentoring previous NC Idea grant winners to critique Casey’s slide deck, organize mock interviews and make Triangle-area introductions.

Casey quickly began paying the help forward, judging the Elon Innovation Challenge and speaking with Innovation Scholars about the realities of launching a company.

“Their questions were sharper than mine at their age,” she says. “Being back at Elon keeps me energized.”

Kahmino’s traction and Casey’s success with last year’s $10,000 NC IDEA Micro Grant helped the startup navigate the Seed program’s rigorous three-month gauntlet of applications, reference checks and a 30-minute final pitch.

When the congratulatory email arrived, Casey’s four-person team immediately outlined two goals for the new funding: hiring additional engineers and expanding into four more metro markets.

“The capital will speed up everything on our roadmap, but the bigger win is NC IDEA’s network,” Casey said. “They surround you with mentors who selflessly provide all of the network access and expertise they can.”

Her three-year vision is national: Kahmino in every major U.S. market, working with real estate agents and using lifestyle data to match renters and buyers with neighborhoods that feel like home.

“Elon University felt like home the moment I stepped on campus,” she says. “I wanted that same feeling in my neighborhood. Everyone deserves that certainty when they move.”

About the Doherty Center for Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Established through an endowment from Ed and Joan Doherty, the Doherty Center cultivates an entrepreneurial growth mindset among Elon students and positions alumni for economic and social impact worldwide. Students and graduates interested in mentorship, speaking opportunities or collaboration can contact [email protected].

Posted in: Academics & Research Alumni Careers & Outcomes

Tagged: Accounting Doherty Center

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Anu Räisänen, director of HealthEU Initiatives, Jana Lynn Patterson, assistant vice president for Student Life and dean of Students and Charlotte Williams, director of health promotion, presented at the 2025 Behavioral Health Convening in May.

The eighth annual North Carolina Behavioral Health Convening brought together representatives from the UNC System, NC Community Colleges, and NC Independent Colleges & Universities. Hosted by Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, with the theme of “Adapting, Thriving, and Emerging Stronger.”

In a breakout session, Räisänen, Patterson and Williams presented on “Innovative Well-being Initiatives: Empowering Students through Programs and Resources.” This presentation highlighted resources and programming funded by the Andrew Bennett ’08 Endowment, including the Serenity Suite in Counseling Services, the Mind-Body Connection Suite in the Koury Center, and the Student Wellness Innovation Grants.

The Serenity Suite and the Mind-Body Connection Suite were established to meet students’ need for relaxation and stillness. The Serenity Suite offers amenities such as a rocking chair, aromatherapy, light therapy, sand tray, coloring books, virtual reality guided meditation and a sound machine. The Mind-Body Connection Suite features a massage chair with aromatherapy that serves as a complementary health practice.

Keynote speaker David Jackson, president and CEO of the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce, shared a story of resilience, collaboration and service demonstrated by App State and Boone area community organizations during recovery efforts after Hurricane Helene. Jackson emphasized Boone’s readiness to welcome tourists back to enjoy the area.

The Andrew G. Bennett Student Wellness Innovation Grants support student-led initiatives that positively impact student well-being and success. In 2025, four projects were funded: a Puppy Yoga event, an arts and crafts service initiative, a peer support program for nursing students, and the renovation of the philosophy suite in Spence Pavilion. The call for the next grant applications will be announced in fall 2025.

Elon was represented with two teams, comprised of both didactic and clinical year students.

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Elon University’s Physician Assistant Studies students traveled to the Trent Semans Center at Duke University on May 10, 2025 to compete in the second-annual NC Scan competition, earning third place.

The event was organized by a small group of Duke University’s PA students and modeled after the national iScan competition which is held annually by the Society of Point-of-Care Ultrasound during the American Academy of PAs (AAPA) conference.

The NC Scan competition took place just a week before the AAPA iScan event, so it was a chance for students to get a taste of the competition and a great opportunity to learn more about the clinical significance and abilities of ultrasound testing.

Seven PA programs from across North Carolina showed up on Saturday, with a total of 10 teams. Elon was represented with two teams, comprised of both didactic and clinical year students.

The competition was designed to challenge students while fostering collaboration and learning. It featured six interactive stations, each focused on a different aspect of ultrasound knowledge. Teams had 15 minutes at each station to answer clinical questions and practice scanning under the guidance of experienced facilitators. In a creative twist, the organizers added a “phone a friend” option, available twice per team, which helped reduce the pressure and encouraged learning without the expectation of perfection.

Although Duke’s student team claimed first place, the true value of the day lay in the hands-on experience, peer collaboration and opportunity to refine essential ultrasound skills in a supportive environment. This competition served not only as a platform to test knowledge, but also as an excellent warm-up for Elon PA’s upcoming appearance at the AAPA National Medical Challenge Bowl and AAPA iScan competition, further highlighting the strength of Elon’s clinical education and student preparation.

Elon’s first NC Space Grant Undergraduate Research Scholar will be graduating in spring 2025, and now she’s reflecting on all of the opportunities, both on and off campus, that have made her Elon career out of this world.

Jules Levanti ‘25 didn’t believe she was a “STEM girl” until an astronomy class during her first Winter Term changed her perspective and academic path. Now, she’s graduating from Elon University with a degree in astrophysics and preparing to earn a doctorate.

Levanti was originally a finance major, but after taking an introductory astronomy course, she decided to switch her major to astrophysics, with minors in computer science and mathematics.

“One thing I can say about the physics and astronomy department is that they have done more for me than I can put into words, and not only that but I would not have been able to experience all the opportunities and meet various people in my field if I wasn’t at Elon,” Levanti said.

Levanti is Elon’s first and only student to be named an N.C. Space Grant Undergraduate Research Scholar, investigating dwarf galaxies and black holes. In July, the North Carolina Space Grant selected 16 students from the state to receive the $8000 undergraduate grant. The application process was Levanti’s first time writing in depth about her research, and it taught her how to effectively communicate her research.

The grant allowed Levanti to buy a computer that could handle the intensive codes and programs needed for her research and fund her travel expenses to Paris, where she visited colleagues at the Institute of Astrophysics and CEA and also gave a talk. Levanti attended multiple conferences through the grant, including the American Astronomical Society National Conferences; the Joint Space Science Institute Workshop in collaboration with the University of Maryland; and she traveled to the Goddard Space Flight Center for a talk and to collaborate with researchers. Her research mentor, Chris Richardson, associate professor of astrophysics, traveled with Levanti and introduced her to the collaborators and conferences abroad that she would work with in the future.

One thing I can say about the physics and astronomy department is that they have done more for me than I can put into words.

Elon is currently the only degree-granting institution for astronomy and astrophysics in North Carolina. The program in Elon College, the College of Arts & Sciences has grown from allowing students to take astronomy elective courses, to then a minor and now a full bachelor’s degree program in astronomy and astrophysics.

Levanti believes her growth in the program is also due to how caring and understanding the physics professors and advisors are, as they have helped her pass classes and get homework done through office hours, responding to emails, and providing constant support.

“They know how tough this major can be and they understand that the major is not the only thing that their students are passionate about, like their jobs and other organizations that are important,” Levanti said. “Just having that constant support allows us to do more activities and take advantage of opportunities that we probably wouldn’t have gotten the chance to do with professors who cared a little bit less.”

In addition to her academics, Levanti mentored students in Alpha Kappa Psi, teaching pledges and new members about professional development, including email etiquette, professionalism in the workplace, and soft and hard skills.

Since her first year, Levanti has worked at the Technology Service Desk, played intramural volleyball and joined Phi Eta Sigma and Omicron Delta Kappa National Honor Society. She’s also been an Elon 1010 Peer Educator, a teaching assistant for Introduction to Astronomy, and a member of Sigma Pi Sigma, the Physics and Astronomy Honor Society. She is also a co-author on a publication submitted to the Astrophysical Journal and is currently writing her own first-author publication

“How I balance it all is being organized, and sometimes doing work does not always feel like work if you are enjoying it,” Levanti said “You need to be organized and passionate to be able to balance life and school and anything else you want to do.”

After graduation, Levanti will be pursuing her doctorate in astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Texas at Austin, a top 15 astronomy program in the U.S. According to Richardson, it is the highest-ranking astronomy doctoral program in which an Elon Department of Physics and Astronomy student has been accepted.

Levanti was attracted to UT Austin because of its involvement in extragalactic research, studying objects beyond the Milky Way galaxy. She hopes to get published more and contribute her understanding about the universe to the scientific community. At UT Austin, there are opportunities for her to apply for full-time researcher positions or professorships that would allow her to continue her research following graduate school.

“I will have so many opportunities to work with esteemed faculty in the field, and I’m so blessed and so excited to be going there. I don’t know if I will do full-time research after graduate school, but having a Ph.D. in astronomy would open a lot of doors for me even outside the field,” Levanti said.

Levanti was recently able to meet incoming first-year students interested in the astronomy and physics department and advised them to be passionate and hard-working.

“Make sure you really like what you are doing research on, because that will be what drives your work ethic and the passion you have for the project. Your drive is what is going to push your research into advanced stages,” said Levanti.