The Scoop on WWU Orientation

This year, I was hired as an Orientation Leader for the incoming class. It was a really neat experience! So, if you are thinking about becoming an orientation leader, or want to know the behind-the-scenes of college orientation, keep reading!

                Since we had to go through training before the incoming class arrived, we got to move in a week before classes started. It was nice to be able to move and settle in before all the chaos began! Victoria, my roommate, had already moved in since she was working at the barn all summer, so I wasn’t completely alone. On Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, all the orientation leaders and Greek recruitment counselors went through training. Training consisted of team building, reviewing the orientation schedule, learning the different resources and tools that the school offers to students, and doing some role play with the faculty to get some practice answering potential questions. We also decorated our clipboards, signed up to run events, took pictures for orientation signs and stuffed the goodie bags and information folders for the new students. This year they received either a sling-bag or a fanny pack filled with snacks, a foam finger and fidget spinners.

Middle schools take them away, college gives them to you!

                All the new students arrived on Thursday morning. All the orientation leaders, along with some residential and financial aid staff, were positioned to check them in, give them their goodie bags and information folders, gave them residential hall information and make sure they knew where they were supposed to go next. My job was to attach lanyards to their orientation name tag. There was lots of happy bustling and excitement as everyone was checking in and moving into their new home for the school year. After everyone had checked in, I was free to hang around or eat lunch while other orientation leaders either ran a photo booth with the school mascot (Screech the Owl) or ran the meet-and-greet for commuter students. After lunch, we all went to our positions to prepare for the Ivy Ceremony. The Ivy Ceremony involves all the students lining up in pairs and walking across the bridge over Senior Lake. When the students graduate, they will walk back across holding the symbolic ivy chain. Half of us were assigned to help line the students up in front of the bridge while the rest of the leaders were helping seat parents in the auditorium. We had to make sure everyone was in the right group (Red, Green or Yellow) so we all had umbrellas with our group color on it so students would know where to go. I had a yellow umbrella, so I was lining up students in the yellow group at the front of the line. All the students were a little confused as to where they were supposed to be, so it was cool to be able to tell them what was going on, as well as tell parents where they should go to watch their child.

There's me with the yellow umbrella! Photo: Fulton Sun

                After the ceremony, all the groups split up to go on the rotation schedule. My group (the Red group) first headed out to tour the sorority and fraternity houses, then back to the auditorium for a speech about academics, and then to meet their Connections class. My job, along with the other leaders in the red group, was to lead the students to the next location and made sure that everyone knew what they were doing and where to go. At the Greek house tours, I felt a little useless since I don’t know much about Greek life while all the other orientation leaders are in a Frat or Sorority. So, while the other leaders were answering questions and talking with students and their families about the houses, I gave myself the very important job of holding the red umbrella high at the meeting spot where everyone was supposed to go when they had finished touring. As people slowly trickled to the meeting spot, it was fun to talk to people and get to know a few of them! At the next location, the academic speech, we just waited outside and sat down while the students were in the auditorium. After that, we took our group to the academic building and split them up into their Connections classes (which I will explain soon). After the rotations, all the Greek recruitment counselors and orientation leaders went with the students and parents to the BBQ dinner to eat and mingle. After dinner, we were free to go until later that night when we had to set up supplies for an Ice Cream Social. We all served ice cream and mingled with the new students until it got late and we decided to break up the party.

             

   The first day of orientation was the craziest for both us and the new students. For the rest of the weekend, most of the events did not require us to be there, except for the Connections classes, a few speeches and some social events. I had signed up to run a game night in the freshmen dorms along with some CAs (the residential staff), which meant I got to go set up some games and play them with some new freshmen friends and some familiar CA friends (like Megan!).

                The other major responsibility for Orientation Leaders is to be a student mentor for the Connections classes. This is a class for incoming students that takes place every day during orientation and for 5 weeks during the semester. Many colleges have a similar class for freshman just by different names. In connections students learn about campus resources and how to transition into college life. Each orientation leader was paired up with a faculty member who teaches the class. Our job is to assist the professor, share our advice and experience and be a source of help and assurance for the new students in our class. In my Connections class, I am paired up with Jennie Petterson (one of the main teachers for the equestrian department) and have 16 students. Ms. Jennie is super cool and is awesome to work with! Although they probably shouldn’t have paired up two horse people since there is a lot of horse-talk in class, we try to keep it to a minimum 😊 It has been really neat to share my college experiences and advice with the class, and it’s cool to be able to help new students! I have also met some awesome freshmen and am making new friends in my class! Remember those pictures we took during training? I found out that my face has been posted on all the doors of the freshmen who are in my Connections class. *Cringe*

Yes. This face will silently judge you as you walk down the freshman dorm hall.

                Overall, being an Orientation Leader has been a super beneficial and fun experience! As a sophomore, it has also helped remind me of all the resources available on campus, form friendships with the other orientation leaders and faculty, and meet new freshmen who I will know for the next 3 years! It was also neat to see the other side of orientation. As the memories are still fresh from when I went through orientation myself last year, it was interesting to see all the work and preparation that goes into putting on orientation. I would definitely recommend applying for an Orientation Leader job and I plan on doing it again next year!

~Jennah