Freshmen and transfer students unloaded clothes, computers and everything in between Friday, Aug. 26, moving into residence halls across campus in preparation for the 2005-2006 academic year. Details from move-in day...
More than 1,240 freshmen, transfer students and their families spent time Friday morning getting situated in campus residence halls. With help from Residence Life and Physical Plant staff, as well as other staff members, Elon’s newest students settled into their rooms.
Roommates Ashley Noval of Lexington, Ky., and Shannon Cain of Annapolis, Md., were most excited about the size of their room in Virginia hall. “The room is bigger than I thought it would be,” said Shannon, who is planning to major in political science. Ashley’s biggest concern was “plugging in the fridge and getting the lofts where we want them.” Though the girls had not met face-to-face until Friday morning, they talked several times over the summer and exchanged email. “We’re very excited and I think we’re going to get along fine,” said Shannon. “I’m looking forward to meeting new people and doing well in school.”
Like Ashley and Shannon, David Vollrath of Annandale, Va., was making similar decisions about his Sloan residence hall room. “Probably the biggest decision was whether to loft the bed or not,” said David, who plans to major in cinema. His mother, Joan, liked Elon because it allowed her son to pursue a cinema major without having to go to a school on the West Coast.
“I wasn’t excited about him being so far away in California,” Joan Vollrath said. “I’m excited about him being here, but it’s a real transition for us. And now, there’s no one to yell at at home!”
Chris Eydt of New Canaan, Ct., and Andrew Jones of Pittsburgh had plenty of parental help with their move into a third-floor room in Smith hall. Both chose Elon through the early decision plan and had a chance to meet each other in the spring, which they said eased the transition to college life.
“I’m very excited,” said Andrew, a potential business major. “I couldn’t wait for this day for quite a while, and now it’s finally here.”
Chris’ sister, Sarah, will be a junior at Elon this year, so his mother, Lisa, already knew what to expect on move-in day.
“The check-in procedure was very efficient,” Lisa Eydt said. “Everyone was very helpful and made it a pretty stress-free situation.”
Knowing her son is excited about coming to Elon made this day easier for her. “It’s going to be different at home, but he’s so ready to be here,” Lisa Eydt said. “I’ve seen him grow and mature so much this summer that I know he’s going to be just fine.”
Freshmen and transfer students will have their first mandatory residence hall meetings Friday night, before freshman convocation Under the Oaks at 9 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 27. Orientation activities continue through Monday before classes begin Tuesday, Aug. 30.