The Elon community officially welcomed freshmen and transfer students during new student convocation, the first event of the academic year, held Under the Oaks Saturday, Aug. 26. Details and photos...
More than 1,275 freshmen and transfer students took part in new student convocation Under the Oaks on Elon’s historic West campus Saturday morning. Family and friends looked on as the newest members of the Elon community took part in the first formal function of the academic year.
Michael Bumbry, a senior and executive vice president of the Student Government Association, welcomed the Class of 2010 on behalf of the student body. He told students that it is important to maintain contact with classmates and to take advantage of the opportunities that await here.
“My advice to you is to live every moment and challenge yourself daily to learn something new….Do your best to uphold the reputation of Elon University.”
>>Listen to Bumbry’s remarks
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President Leo M. Lambert urged the new students to set aside feelings of nervousness they might have as they embark on their college careers and instead enjoy the excitement and challenges ahead.
“This school and your experiences here will become an important chapter in your life,” Lambert said. “You will leave Elon someday, but Elon will never leave you.”
Be ready for the “tap-on-the-shoulder” moment, Lambert said, the moment that will come when a faculty member helps a student recognize a particular gift or talent.
“Be awake, for something wonderful is going to happen to you here,” Lambert said. New students should expect to develop intellectually, become global citizens, explore their own faith and the faith of others and value integrity and community during their time at Elon.
Tom Mould, assistant professor of sociology and anthropology, spoke on behalf of the Elon faculty. Curiosity and integrity are at the heart of life as a member of an academic community such as Elon’s, he said.
“We as faculty don’t expect you to think like us, walk like us, talk like us,” Mould said. “But we do expect you to be curious…and we expect that you will act with integrity. The Honor Code calls each of us to be honest and to respect each other as individuals. Simply put, we expect that you will act with integrity, and you can expect the same from us.”
Kevin Trapani, whose daughter, Caitlin, will be an Elon senior this year, brought greetings from the Elon Parents Council. He told Elon parents to expect the university to be supportive of their sons and daugthers.
“There are exceptional resources here that will help your child celebrate successes and recover from disappointments. Elon values family.”
Convocation concluded with new students marching past faculty members lining the sidewalks. In keeping with Elon tradition, each student received an acorn, symbolizing the potential of their education here. Tradition dictates that graduating students also receive an oak seedling at commencement, to plant and nurture after they leave Elon.
“Today, we plant the seed symbolically that will germinate and grow into the oak seedling you will receive at commencement,” President Lambert said. “On your commencement day, you will again pass through the assembled faculty line, having accomplished so much. You will have completed your time at Elon and you will be changed in ways you cannot now imagine. On that day—a day that will come much more quickly than you expect—you will exchange your acorn for an oak seedling and go out into the world with the assurance that your Elon education has prepared you for life’s journey. So, we have a date, all of us, to meet under the oaks in four years at commencement.
“May God bless and guide and inspire you on the wonderful journey ahead. Long live Elon!”