The class of 2023 has moved in

August 24 was the first day of Welcome Week for the incoming class of 2023. The day started out with the new freshmen moving into their assigned residence halls, making their next step to beginning their first year of college.

As the streets were backed up with cars and trailers, volunteers were there to assist with moving boxes and furniture into the residence halls. A crew of yellow shirts flocked the streets making the stress of the transition new students and their parents faced somewhat of a relief.

When asked why they chose to volunteer for move-in day freshmen K’Lee Barnaby and Britta Thompson both had some input. “We’re a part of the Bison Dance team so while we get volunteering hours for our organization, we are also helping our fellow freshmen out,” Thompson said. They both agreed that if they had help on their move-in day it would have been a quicker process.

Kim Whaley was another volunteer waiting in line to receive her yellow move-in crew t-shirt. When asked why she chose to come out and help the new class move in Whaley answered, “I didn’t really have anything to do today so I decided it would be nice if I helped the freshmen move into their dorms.” Whether or not she feels like she is taking off some of the stress new students and parents face Whaley responded: “Hopefully. I would like to know that I could make the process a little easier on them.” Thinking back to her freshmen year move-in day Whaley agreed that the move-in crew made her feel welcomed and ready for starting college.

Though move-in day lasted from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., that was just the beginning of the freshmen’s first day on campus. After having brunch together families were encouraged to leave at 4:30 p.m. letting the freshmen get used to the feeling of being independent.

After the parents left students came together for their community gathering and dinners. This was when students could meet their neighbors in the residence halls and enjoy a meal together. The community gathering made meeting new people a little easier and let the students become acquainted with others they will be living with for the rest of the school year.

When dinner was over students made their way to Churchill Field for the Green and Yellow Rally. The rally signified the new experiences they will face their first year at North Dakota State University. Students gathered to learn of the traditions they will withhold becoming a part of the NDSU family while having some school spirit.

To end the night freshmen attended Saturday Night Live held in the Memorial Union. While there, students could partake in activities hosted by organizations around campus.

After move-in day was over freshmen were able to feel like they are part of the bison family as they met with a variety of their new classmates and familiarized themselves with the campus organizations.

Though the day ended sooner than expected, Saturday was just the first day of Welcome Week with many more events scheduled throughout the week. Some of these other events were: the class photo, the president’s welcome, wellness events and the first day of school photos at the bison statue.