Activities Bring Campus Alive During Week 1

Staff Photo

Students tumble through the American-Ninja-style bouncy obstacles during the First Week activities.

Lindsey M. Foster, Editor
September 1, 2022

 

  • Connection Leaders and Resident Assistants kick off training with a volleyball game in the Fitness Center!

    '

  • Freshman Laurin Gregory helping clean up for community service during Connection Weekend at the Blue Ridge Institute

    '

  • Justin Muse, Director of Student Activities, dons the Afro wig and platform shoes in observance of Throw Back Thursday.

    '

  • Kevin Reilly, Vice President for Academic Affairs; Angie Dahl, Vice President for Student Development and Campus Life; and Jason Powell, Dean of Arts and Sciences, Professor of Chemistry and Physics; take time out on Throw Back Thursday to pose for a shot.

    '

  • Coach Sam Martin, Assistant Football Coach for Special Teams; and Melanie Rooks, Coordinator of Student Engagement and International Student Programming; participate in the photo booth on the quad.

    '

  • Spin Art was one of the attractions during the opening week festivities.

    '

  • Students ‘pitched in’ for the cornhole games.

    '

  • Faculty and Staff take time for a photo during Throw Back Thursday.

    '

  • President David Johns, right; Special Assistant to the President Courtney Brown, center; and Chief of Police Jim Owens stroll around the grounds during Throw Back Thursday.

    '

  • Candela Castellanos, freshman, flashes a peace sign during Throw Back Thursday.

    '
Navigate Left
Navigate Right

Music blares across the quad.

Screams of BINGO! are heard.

Balls fly across the Fitness Center.

Campus was filled with daily activities for involvement to begin the first week of classes. These activities were planned and held by the Office of Student Life and Engagement. 

This year, the faculty decided that it was time to have more involvement on campus after being more or less shut down due to  the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“We just decided that with Covid, kind of moving into an endemic it was time to bring back an excitement to this campus,” said Angie Dahl, Vice President of Student Development and Campus Life.

This year, Connection Weekend returned with fewer restrictions since the fall of 2019 and welcomed the new freshman and transfer students for a weekend of activities with their Connection Leaders. 

“It was very eye-opening to help the incoming freshmen–just to give them guidance and help in any way they needed,” said Kelsey Smith, senior

During Connection Weekend, the freshmen also met their new classmates and were given information about campus regarding academics, activities, and how to be involved. 

“Adjusting to college was a bit overwhelming for me at first because everything was new and I never really been alone, but now I know I made a great choice,” said Freshman Hanah Dix. 

A new hashtag to Ferrum was introduced as #ForgedAsOne to chronicle more involvement and that and drive home the idea that everyone in the Ferrum community is a unit. 

“As a freshman and being away from home, it makes me feel like I’m home and I don’t have to feel out of place,” said Dix. 

Academics also decided to introduce a community hour on campus where all students, faculty and staff do not have any classes and are free to connect with each other. 

“I think it was just kind of a group decision amongst my team and then we just built a schedule around keeping that time-frame,” said Kevin Reilly, Vice President of Academic Affairs.  

The community hour takes place every day from 11:30-12:30 and the attendance has been increasing.

“I think it’s going well,” Reilly said. “There has been a lot of student and faculty engagement to try to keep the momentum going.” 

To kick-off the first week of classes, the Office of Student Life and Engagement assembled daily events for involvement on campus. 

“We wanted to get the returners involved because the new students got that whole weekend,” said Jill Adams, Dean of Campus Life. “It was to get everyone involved, all students, faculty and staff.”

Events included games on the quad, bingo night, backlight dodgeball, a late-night DJ party, live music on the Quad, and many more activities. 

The two most attended events during the first week was bingo and black-light dodgeball, as there were almost 200 attendees. 

“I think that the students are getting engaged, being involved, and the faculty are going out to events, I think it’s great to see,” Adams said.  

Campus involvement has increased more now compared to previous years. 

“We’ve had a lot more engagement than we’ve ever had in the past, maybe four to five years,” Dahl said. 

The Office of Student Life hopes to continue getting everyone involved on campus. 

“We are looking for students to get involved and come out and help with building clubs and organizations and Greek Life up,” Adams said. “We hope that they will come out and support, too.”