From welcoming greetings to parting hugs, from checking out new digs to checking out camping gear, �ֲ���ý’ newest students experience Opening Day on Aug. 26, 2019.

Not every Opening Convocation at �ֲ���ý ends with a legend of the American labor movement leading a chant of “Yes we can! ¡Sí, se puede!”

But that’s what happened on Sept. 3, as �ֲ���ý began its academic year with a ceremony featuring social justice icon Dolores Huerta, the 89-year-old co-founder of the United Farm Workers, as the keynote speaker.

The Opening Convocation address by legendary labor leader Dolores Huerta energizes the group on the Coram Terrace as well as the audience on the Quad. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

�ֲ���ý had invited Huerta to receive an honorary degree in May; she accepted, but at last minute was unable to attend. Instead, the Doctor of Humane Letters degree was conferred during her visit Tuesday.

Also speaking during Opening Convocation (and competing for air time with cicadas keening in the trees) were President Clayton Spencer; Malcolm Hill, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty; Multifaith Chaplain Brittany Longsdorf; and Student Government President Ryan Lizanecz ’20 of Portland, Maine.

If “Yes we can” was the emphatic answer concluding Huerta’s talk, what was the question? She had several: Can we get our schools to teach young children anti-racism and the real history of the labor movement? Can we fight incipient fascism in the U.S.? Living in the richest country in the world, can we share the wealth more equitably?

And, crucially: Can �ֲ���ý students, including the 501 members of the Class of 2023, become the activists to make those reforms?

Shortly before the start of Opening Convocation, members of the Class of 2019 find their places on Alumni Walk for the ceremonial procession. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

Huerta likened the moral urgency of the present moment to the advent of World War II, when the fight against fascism in Germany and Italy was accepted as a universal obligation. “Well, I think that’s kind of the crisis that we have right now in our country,” Huerta said. “We have got to support an effort to get rid of racism, to get rid of bigotry, get rid of misogyny and sexism [and] homophobia.

“Because we know that the majority of the population in our country are people of good heart. They’re people of goodwill.”

Huerta and her UFW co-founder, Cesar Chavez, stepped into the mass consciousness in the 1960s with their involvement in a grape-workers’ strike in Delano, Calif., and a subsequent national boycott of non-union grapes.

Since then Huerta has not stopped advocating for immigrants, people of color, women, and the environment. (On Aug. 20, she was arrested in California during a union protest calling for better pay for home-care workers.)

Urgent and blunt, Huerta’s address offered a number of prescriptions for the social ills that are cramping the national psyche. Education about racial equality needs to begin at the kindergarten or pre-K levels, she said. And it needs to begin with a simple truth: There is one human race and it began in Africa, she said, to applause.

From left, Noelle Chaddock, vice president for equity and inclusion; Michael Hussey, vice president for institutional affairs; Professor of Psychology Georgia Nigro; Assistant Professor of Biology Lori Banks; and Professor of Biology Donald Dearborn join Dolores Huerta’s address-ending “Yes, we can” chant. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

“We are all Africans of different shades and colors,” she pointed out. “So we can say to all of those white nationalists, people in the KKK, the neo-Nazis — get over it, you’re Africans. Okay?”

“We didn’t cross the border. The border crossed us.”

The United States “was a brown country to begin with,” she pointed out. “I was born in the state of New Mexico. My great-grandparents were born there. My great-great-grandfather was in the Civil War, on the Union side.

“And so when they say to us, ‘Go back where you came from’ — hey, we are where we came from. We didn’t cross the border. The border crossed us.”

When it comes to injustice, she reminded the audience, “we can end it. And the one thing we have to remember is that we have the power to do it. And the power is in each and every single one of us, each and every single one of us.

“If we do not engage, if we do not participate, if we do not go out there and become the missionaries of truth, then nothing will change. So I’m going to ask all of these students here to, please, get engaged.”

Huerta ended her talk — and launched “Sí, se puede” — with a demand for economic justice. “There is no reason why the richest country in the world should not have universal health care,” she said.

“Why we should not have free education for every single student like they have in Cuba, like they have in Europe. There’s no reason why we should have homeless people on the streets of the United States of America.”

She said, “We have the resources, but they’ve got to be shared equally. Can we make this happen?”

President Clayton Spencer begins the Convocation ceremony by welcoming the Class of 2023. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

In her welcome, President Spencer told the new class that theirs was an active, not passive role in the �ֲ���ý education. She quoted convocation advice from writer and feminist Adrienne Rich: “You cannot afford to think of being here to receive an education; you will do much better if you think about yourselves as being here to claim one.”

This involves the strength to say “yes” even when “no” might be easier. Helpfully, the �ֲ���ý style of education, Spencer continued, “is set up precisely to provide you with solidarity as you move through the joys and challenges of the next four years. And solidarity is a powerful source of courage.”

Lizanecz, too, urged the new students to take a pro-active approach, academically and socially — especially in terms of rocking one’s own identity. “Embrace what sets you apart from the rest of your classmates,” he advised. “The transformative power of our differences will enrich your time both at �ֲ���ý and throughout your life.

“You will find that people appreciate authenticity, uniqueness, honesty and kindness in all aspects of your college years and throughout your life. … Great communities get their strength through diversity, in equality, and mutually respecting all its members.”

“Embrace what sets you apart from the rest of your classmates,” Student Government President Ryan Lizanecz ’20 tells the new students. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

With a memorial tree planting ceremony and then lunch al fresco to follow, Multifaith Chaplain Brittany Longsdorf offered a parting benediction to close the Opening Convocation:

“You are on the cusp of a pilgrimage of the heart,
Where you will meet yourself,
Over and over again
In the challenging classroom,
Under the canopy of rustling trees on the quad,
and among the chattering hallways of this hallowed place.”

Bobcat Nation turned out in force to welcome the 501-member Class of 2023 on Monday.

Student leaders, 184 of them, were everywhere.

�ֲ���ý staff offered various sessions and programs for parents (plus a barbecue for everyone) while other staff took time from their day jobs to help greet families as they arrived at Commons in the morning.

Top it off with President Clayton Spencer pitching in, lugging gear to the fourth floor of Parker in the morning, and welcoming families in the late afternoon.

Follow along as �ֲ���ý Communications photographer Phyllis Graber Jensen, teaming with writers Doug Hubley and Emily McConville, captured the day in words and images.

7:17 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Soon after Opening Day’s 7 a.m. start, vehicles are parked end-to-end outside residence halls and houses all over campus, where they’re swiftly unloaded by dozens of student Orientation leaders.

Here, Peter Gadaleta hands off pillows to Maya Seshan ’20 of Wilton, Conn., as his daughter Brianna Gadaleta ’23 of Chappaqua, N.Y., moves into Page Hall.

7:52 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Otis Caron ’23 gets a hug from his mother, Tammy Roy Caron, as he prepares to head to �ֲ���ý, a move of just a few blocks.

A Lewiston native, Otis is one of 48 first-year students from Maine and four from the Lewiston-Auburn area.

Bright and early (for him), Caron lays his things on the living room sofa — a suitcase, assorted bags, a hamper that doubles as luggage. He’ll make a couple trips in the family car to get moved into Parker Hall.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Among Otis’ items is a blown-up picture of himself and his friend and fellow first-year, Hunter Landry ’23, wearing their Lewiston High School graduation clothes in front of St. Dominic Academy, where they went to elementary school.

In the photo, they’re holding �ֲ���ý admission letters that Tammy, a senior visual designer at �ֲ���ý, redesigned for the class. Otis’ dad, the late David Caron, passed away in 2009.

Otis is no stranger to the �ֲ���ý community. In addition to his mother’s long relationship with the college, he worked for Dining Services’ catering operation in high school and took Russian courses with Associate Professor of Russian Dennis Browne.

Interested in languages and international affairs, he’s eager to start his intermediate Russian courses and his First-Year Seminar, “Japan on Screen.”

Still, on the cusp of moving in, “it’s a whirlwind of emotions,” Otis says. “I’m mostly very excited.”

8:11 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Commons is the first stop for arriving first-years. They’re dropped off on the building’s Central Avenue side and, after, picking up ID cards and handling other check-in duties, they emerge on the other side of the dining hall.

There, three Orientation Week Leaders — from left, Avery MacMullen, Gemma Rubi, and Shae Gwydir, all ’20 — greet them with cheers, dancing, and then, if needed, directions to their dorm.

“OWLs, fly!” a leader proclaims upon seeing a first-year come through the door.

8:17 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

After checking in for his �ֲ���ý ID and dorm room key, Tori Kusukawa ’23 of Salt Lake City, Utah, chats with Brenda Pelletier, conference and campus events manager, in the lobby of Commons.

8:29 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

�ֲ���ý staff join the Opening Day team. Here, Alicia Rea, associate director of annual giving in the Office of College Advancement, helps out a family as they arrive on Central Avenue outside Commons.

8:34 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Adelaide Armah ’23 of Accra, Ghana, receives directions from President Clayton Spencer, who welcomed incoming members of the Class of 2023 as they arrived to sign in at Commons on Central Avenue.

8:38 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Outside Commons, Jared O’Hare ’23 of Hamden, Conn., at right, runs into Kenny Aruwajoye ‘22 of Owo, Nigeria. The two are alumni of Avon (Conn.) Old Farms School.

O’Hara’s parents Judy and Kevin, meanwhile, are still marveling at how fast student Orientation leaders worked when the family pulled up to the dorm. “Within two minutes, everything was up in the room,” Kevin says.

Jake is looking forward to taking two philosophy courses, in contrast to the scarcity of electives at the high school level. “I never had the opportunity to branch out,” he says. “The new academic freedom is nice.”

8:46 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

After greeting students outside Commons, President Spencer heads across campus to help student leaders lug belongings into Parker Hall (in this case, to the fourth floor).

8:50 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Amanda Waugh hoists a mirror as she helps son Jack Cantor ’23 of Chevy Chase, Md., move into his Parker Hall residence.

9:33 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Roommates Jackson Chung ’23 of Nyack, N.Y., and Nathan Berry ’23 of Augusta, Maine, hug the wall as a fellow first-year hauls his belongings up the Parker staircase. The new roommates were on their way down to move Berry’s belongings into the room, where Chung had already settled.

It’s about as close to an assembly line as you can get in a college dorm.

When a new �ֲ���ý family’s car pulls in front of Parker Hall, a swarm of OWLs descends, grabbing boxes and suitcases and minifridges and hauling them up flights of stairs, pausing just long enough to get the first-year’s room number.

Cars stay on Alumni Walk for just the time needed to unload; if one lingers longer, a security employee politely asks a parent or relative to move it.

9:05 a.m.

“This is a really big dorm!” exclaims Gabi Meisel ’23 of Chevy Chase, Md., as she sees her room on the fourth floor of Parker Hall. Indeed, in most rooms there’s plenty of room for beds and desks without the need for lofting or bunking.

Gabi gets to the room first; her parents, Deb and David Meisel, are not far behind. Gabi pulls out one unusual item she’s brought from home: a big photo collage shaped like the letter G, a present from her aunt.

Like the O’Haras, Gabi’s parents are still amazed by the efficiency and friendliness of the student and staff volunteers, and they’re impressed with the community their daughter has already found in the swim team, which she’s soon to join.

And Gabi herself? After all the campus visits and applications and scouting and decisions, she’s relieved to finally be here. “This is where I need to be,” she says.

9:43 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Over at Chu Hall, the stream of cars has slowed to a trickle, giving the student Orientation leaders some time to breathe…or do some eye-high kicks for a photographer.

J’Von Ortiz-Cedeno ’22, at left in the photograph, is a junior advisor from Portland, Texas. Ortiz-Cedeno and other JAs serve as peer advisors in residence halls for groups of first-year students.

He says Opening Day is about the “little things” — carrying boxes, making rounds to introduce himself to each first-year as they move in, sharing songs that he solicited from his new residents over the summer.

“I’m making it feel like a place where they can spend four years and be happy,” he says.

Then: “We got a car!” shouts another student leader, and Ortiz-Cedeno is off.

10:02 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Mason Bunker ’23 of New York City enjoys a hug from his father Dan Bunker.

10:15 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Parents Mayu and Kimi Nakamura (right) help their daughter Ayano ’23 (left) of Bethesda, Md., settle into her Chu Hall room.

Behind them is roommate Lia Silberberg ’23 of Jackson, Wyo., who had arrived earlier with her brother, Adam, who is a senior at Bowdoin.

For Silberberg, setting up her room was the last leg of a long journey for the siblings — from Wyoming to New York, then a drive up the coast to Bowdoin, where Adam is a senior, then, finally, to �ֲ���ý. Finishing the setup, they gratefully accepted a �ֲ���ý custodian’s offer to take away broken-down boxes for recycling.

Silberberg, who is interested in law, is looking forward to taking a biomedical ethics course and, maybe, joining club ice hockey.

As she settled in, Nakamura is asked if she brought anything special from home. In response, she pulls out Rirakuma, a stuffed bear designed in the style of Japanese animation.

Nakamura also has a brother close by — a lot closer, in fact.

Taihei Nakamura, a university student in Japan, is on campus for the year as a Hirasawa Scholar, participating in �ֲ���ý’ historic program named after Kazushige Hirasawa ’36 that brings Japanese university students to campus for one year.

Taihei, though, is in next-door Kalperis Hall. “We requested different dorms,” Ayano says.

10:31 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Asked if he brought any favorite thing to �ֲ���ý, Chas Van Damme ’23 (left) of Harpswell, Maine, pointed to his older brother Henry, right, who helped him move in. The two compete for height bragging rights as Chas arrives in his Kalperis Hall room.

10:43 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

At this moment in this room, the count is six: Joanna Atwater ’23 of Short Hills, N.J., shown with her mom, Bernadette; plus Joanna’s dad, James, and her roommate, Molly Connors ’23 of Westwood, Mass., and Molly’s two younger siblings.

Despite the crowd, there’s generally enough room to move around.

Both Atwater (tennis) and Connors (rowing) are gearing up for the start of their athletics programs and have brought their favorite snacks from home. Connors has supplemented the usual dorm decorations with a succulent, a fern, and a bamboo plant.

Like most, Atwater has been impressed with the efficiency of student Orientation leaders. The move-in is “not as hectic as I thought it would be,” she says.

That leaves more time to focus on tennis and her first classes, which include a biology course on emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases.

11:19 a.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Carolyne Chepkemboi ’23 of Nairobi, Kenya, speaks with Laura Conforte of Information and Library Services at the Resources Fair in Pettengill’s Perry Atrium. She’s looking forward to reading more world and U.S. history.

Representing the Harward Center for Community Partnerships is recent graduate Ella Ross ’19, an AmeriCorps volunteer; she says she’s “having major déjà vu.”

Four years after her own Opening Day, Ross remembers the whirlwind of moving in and the dread of saying goodbye to her family at the end of it. The nervousness dissipated in time, and Ross became heavily involved in the Harward Center and the Lewiston-Auburn community, earning an induction into the College Key upon graduation.

With Ross at the Harward Center table is Muskan Verma ’21 of Shimla, India, who as a Bonner leader volunteers frequently through the Harward Center.

Two years ago, Verma’s move-in experience was quite different — she was so jet-lagged that she didn’t feel as deeply the mix of nervousness and excitement that churns through many first-years’ heads.

This year, after being on campus all summer as an Admission intern, it’s like she’s seeing Opening Day for the first time. There’s no jet lag, and all the feels.

“I’ve got tears in my eyes,” she says. “I’m feeling all the things I should have felt in my first year, now.”

12:34 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

After spending the morning moving in, many students and families migrate to the Library Quad, where they can grab classic barbecue fare or, if they want, a nice tofu salad.

Claire Lim ’23, seated under a tree with parents Adrienne and Dominic, is enjoying the relatively cool weather — she’s from tropical Singapore, and she specifically looked for a college in a cold climate. She’s interested in studying economics, and she’s excited about her First-Year Seminar on inequality, community, and social change.

Adrienne Lim says she thought it might be tough to say goodbye to Claire. But “seeing the close-knit community, it’s not going to be too painful to leave her today.”

1:07 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Kian Moaledj ’20 of Doha, Qatar, and his mother, Maryam Moaledj, speak with James Reese, associate dean for international student programs, during the International Circle Students and Parents Group Greeting in the Fireplace Lounge of Commons.

In his welcome, Reese explains that the definition of “international student” is broader than statistics might suggest.

Around 150 �ֲ���ý students are considered international students, meaning they are in the U.S. on a student visa.

But, he adds, more than twice that number are dual citizens or have some other fundamental connection with another country.

And all, Reese says, can benefit from the college’s international student programs. “If you’re wondering if you’re in or out, nobody’s out. Everyone’s in.”

1:43 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Topher Castaneda ’20 of Los Angeles, who is a residence coordinator at Turner House this year, dives into a Bobcatnap in front of Commons.

2:45 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Grace Warder ’20, an environmental studies major from New York City, hands a key piece of overnight gear — a fork— to a first-year during equipment checkout for the mid-week Orientation program known as AESOP.

AESOP is a four-day, three-night overnight Orientation program offering everything from hiking and surfing to community service, farm visits, and arts exploration in Maine and New Hampshire. Warder is one three AESOP coordinators.

This year’s AESOP program offers 57 outdoor trips, each led by two upperclass leaders.

“I loved AESOP,” says Ellie Beckerman ’22, an environmental studies major from Washington, D.C., who is leading a backpacking trip to Franconia Notch. Last year, her own first-year AESOP destination was Mahoosuc Notch.

“Spending four days with a small group, including upperclassmen, means that when you’re done, you can remain a group for a bit until you start to find your niche at �ֲ���ý. It’s really hard coming in as a first-year and not quite knowing where you fit in, and AESOP gives you a group and a space very early on at �ֲ���ý.”

2:46 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Lilah Lesniak ’22 of Philadelphia and Will Sylvia ’20 of Newtonville, Mass., juggle sleep bags during the equipment handout for AESOP outside Chase Hall.�� Will is the son of Jim Sylvia ’84 and Lori Rogers Sylvia ’83.

2:57 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Emily DiBartolo ’23 of Florence, Mass., strikes a pose for parents John and Patty on the steps of Coram, a prime location for countless family photographs all afternoon.

So, what happens if Emily — or any other �ֲ���ý first-year — calls home in a few weeks, worried that they may never be able to pursue a certain career because of a bad grade or two?

What advice might be relevant for that student?

“I hear this a lot from students — I’ll have students literally sitting in my office crying, saying, ‘Well, I thought I wanted to be a psychologist, but look what I did in Psych 101,’” Rebecca Fraser-Thill, director of faculty outreach for Purposeful Work and a visiting instructor in psychology, told parents in the workshop “Your Evolving Relationship: Parenting a College Student.”

“But when you’re applying for jobs, transcripts really aren’t a huge part of that process, honestly. Certainly, being a diligent, conscientious worker plays a big role in what kind of references you get from faculty members.

“But I will say I’ve given some glowing references to students who weren’t my A students by any means, because they were creative thinkers, they’re bringing a lot of enthusiasm into the classroom, and we’re speaking on a regular basis and thinking in new and novel ways.” ��

3:13 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Linden Jones ’22 of Leicester, N.C., leads a campus tour along one of the walkways on the Historic Quad.

3:50 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

“Each and every one of you is an innovator and an inventor with an entrepreneurial drive on your path to �ֲ���ý,” Dean of Admission and Financial Aid Leigh Weisenburger tells the first-years during her Opening Day welcome.

“All of you are coming to �ֲ���ý with this palpable intellectual curiosity, generosity of spirit, and an authentic and compassionate welcoming way about you. Again, we are so, so proud of you. … We look forward to knowing each and every one of you and watching you flourish over the coming years.”

4:02 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

A parent listens to President Clayton’s two-part Opening Day welcome.

Part one is for parents, in which Spencer acknowledge the high emotions of the day. “So, kids, be nice to your parents today. It’s hard to let you go,” she says.

Part two is for the students. Here, Spencer asks the first-years “to risk letting go,” to “stop holding fast to the things that got you here — the narrative that you’ll major in pre-med or econ even if you’ve never taken a course in pre-med or econ; the identities that have defined you throughout high school.”

Why? “A residential liberal arts education, more than almost any kind of experience you will have, gives you the opportunity to explore, to try new things, to take risks. But it’s up to you to seize this opportunity.”

4:19 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Oliver Kaplan ’23 of Los Angeles poses with parents Lauren Tom and Curt Kaplan in front of Coram.

4:35 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Following President Spencer’s welcome, it’s close to farewells. Lena Soares ‘23 of Memphis, Tenn., shares a moment on the Library Terrace with her mother, Kathy Steuer.

4:36 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Nearby, Maeve Mikulski ’23 of Western Springs, Ill., shares a moment with her parents Mike and Jayne Mikulski on the Library Terrace. Maeve is Lena Soares’ roommate.

4:38 p.m.

Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College

Opening Day is an multigenerational emotion-filled day. Najá Crockett ’23 of Washington, D.C., welcomes a hug from mother Florence Kreisman and grandmother Elena Kreisman.

Selected from the largest applicant pool in �ֲ���ý history, the 501 members of the Class of 2023 arrive at �ֲ���ý on Monday, Aug. 26.

As they settle into various campus abodes on Opening Day and kick off their nine-day Orientation, the new students are embarking on a �ֲ���ý journey that, in a conventional sense, has a specific terminus: Commencement four years hence, on May 28, 2023.

In another sense, a �ֲ���ý journey is timeless, a mindset that lasts “for as long as they wish,” says Professor of Sociology Emily Kane.

In her Pettengill Hall office, Professor of Sociology Emily Kane wraps up a meeting with Hermione Zhou ’21 last January. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

While regular classes don’t begin until Sept. 4, Orientation offers a taste of �ֲ���ý academics right off the bat. So on Tuesday morning, the day after they arrive, the new students will attend their very first class, specifically their First-Year Seminar.

This fall, Kane is teaching one of the seminars, “Inequality, Community, and Social Change.” A few days ago, as Kane was preparing for Tuesday’s first class gathering, she was also exchanging emails with a former student, now in graduate school, who took her First-Year Seminar six years ago.

+Class of 2023 by the Numbers

“She was writing to say she’d come across a recent book chapter I wrote,” Kane explains, “and was finding it useful in her own graduate work on family policy.”

That moment — communicating about academics with an alumna while simultaneously preparing for new students — left Kane dazzled “by all those connecting threads. That’s what I hope to convey on the first day of class: the excitement and possibility and world of new connections that �ֲ���ý offers.”

Jamari Amrham ’22 of Richmond, Calif., has his eyes on his mom, Cherie Hill, as she took a selfie during Opening Day in 2018. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

All across campus, �ֲ���ý has its arms open to the new students, ready to help them make the best of these transformational four years.

“Orientation introduces students to the �ֲ���ý people, programs, and resources that will give them the tools to succeed,” says Assistant Dean of Students Blake Reilly, who oversees Orientation.

“We want our newest students to know that there’s always someone to turn to for support — and, hopefully, it’s someone they will have already met at Orientation.”

Orientation, which also features three days of student-led outdoor trips throughout Maine and New Hampshire, concludes next Tuesday with Convocation, the official opening of the academic year.

This year’s Convocation features an address by Dolores Huerta, a labor activist and civil rights icon who co-founded the United Farm Workers of America. The subject of an eponymous documentary that is this year’s Commons Read, Huerta will receive a �ֲ���ý honorary degree at Convocation.

On Opening Day, as seen in 2018, new students get many helping hands from student members of the college’s Residence Life staff. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

The metaphorical arms welcoming the new class include those of the beloved, college-run Dining Services, fully ready to welcome the newest students on Monday evening for their very first meal in Commons.

“Whether a student has had a great day or a lousy day when they come through our doors, we have an opportunity to make their experience excellent.”

Among other items, the first dinner will feature salmon piccata; barbecue seitan with veggies; a variety of pastas and sauces, including marinara, alfredo, pesto; and squash and crab bisque made from scratch, as all soups are at �ֲ���ý — not to mention fresh tomatoes and kale from the college’s vegetable garden, the Plot, run by student EcoReps.

As prior generations of �ֲ���ý students have discovered, dining at �ֲ���ý — distinctive for its single dining hall — is about great community and great food. “We want our new students to understand that this is a fun place and a comforting place — their home away from home,” says Director of Dining Cheryl Lacey.

Community and comfort are on the menu for the Class of 2023 at Dining Services, where Kevin Michaud prepares grilled cheese sandwiches for a recent Friday lunch. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

A meal at Commons gives students a chance to press the reset button, she says.

“Whether a student has had a great day or a lousy day when they come through our doors, we have an opportunity, at each point of service, to make their experience excellent.”

Students “should always feel comfortable approaching any of us to ask questions. They should feel comfortable building connections with our chefs, which they do, year after year, and asking questions about their food.”

Pursuant to answering food questions, �ֲ���ý recently became one of the few liberal arts colleges nationally to offer ��for every dish on the Dining Services menu.

Continued national and international geographic expansion is “imperative.”

The 501 students arrive Monday thanks to the work of the Admission team, which reviewed a record-setting 8,222 applications this year.

“There’s excitement for �ֲ���ý right now — students and families really desire a �ֲ���ý liberal arts education,” Weisenburger says, pointing to strengths like Purposeful Work, highly relevant and interdisciplinary academics, a location in Lewiston and in Maine, and a “community where students are recognized and celebrated as individuals.”

The new class features historic strengths, including 28 percent U.S. students of color, the highest ever, and a continued demographic-driven expansion to the West and South.

+A Few Facts About Students in the Class of 2023

As recently as 2009, 50 percent of the incoming class was from New England. This year’s class is 39 percent, even as �ֲ���ý maintains its firm commitment to Maine students. Similar to prior years, Mainers represent 9.6 percent of the class.

Continued national and international geographic expansion is “imperative,” explains Weisenburger, as high-school-age populations in the Northeast decline.

“�ֲ���ý continues to invest in diversifying and strengthening our applicant pool,” says Weisenburger. “And that’s not the same as merely growing the pool. Our goal is to attract the most diverse and talented applicants possible, while staying true to �ֲ���ý and enrolling students who really want to be here.”

+The 2019 Admission Season by the Numbers

There’s strength in numbers, she adds. “�ֲ���ý is in a very competitive higher-education environment. From that competitive standpoint, �ֲ���ý is where we need to be.”

“�ֲ���ý continues to invest in diversifying and strengthening our applicant pool,” says Dean of Admission Leigh Weisenburger, seen in 2018 on Opening Day for the Class of 2022. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

In terms of academic strength, “the numbers speak for themselves,” she says, noting an average GPA of 3.73. “Beyond the numbers is the high level of curiosity these students have, regardless of their high school background. The way they want to learn and the questions they want to ask — that’s what really excites me.”

On Opening Day, Weisenburger will join President Clayton Spencer for an end-of-day event with all new students and parents. Weisenberger’s message? “Just take a moment to celebrate. Take a deep breath, and enjoy the moment.”

This week begins the home stretch of a historic enrollment season as the �ֲ���ý Admission Committee embarks on its review of regular-decision applications.

And it’s a long stretch: For the incoming Class of 2023, �ֲ���ý received a record-setting 8,222 applications from prospective first-year students. The total is 7 percent ahead of last year’s record 7,688 first-year applications.

The record pool shows double-digit growth in several key demographic categories, including geographic expansion, first-generation-to-college students, and U.S. students of color.

“�ֲ���ý continues to build strength on strength,” says Dean of Admission and Financial Aid Leigh Weisenburger. “We continue to pair traditional, feet-on-the-ground outreach efforts, including a strategic focus on emerging areas in the U.S. South and West, along with increasingly effective digital outreach to talented and diverse students who may not otherwise have the chance to learn about �ֲ���ý College.”

Note: Accurate as of March 1, the total number of 2019 applications is subject to change during application review.

The overall applicant pool comprises two early-decision rounds that were completed earlier in the winter, along with the current regular-decision pool, which the Admission team will evaluate and complete by mid-March.

Admission deliberations will continue into mid-March, after which �ֲ���ý will notify applicants of admission decisions by April 1. Admitted students have until May 1 to enroll. As in past years, the college seeks an incoming class of approximately 500 students.

“While the story at this stage often feels numbers-driven, we never lose sight of our goal: to create an intentional learning and living community of students aligned with �ֲ���ý’ mission and values,” adds Weisenburger.

“We seek to attract talent and diversity, to get to know applicants as individuals, and to evaluate each and every candidate in a holistic way that appreciates the very different challenges and opportunities they have experienced in preparation for college.”

The college’s 2018–19 recruitment season was highlighted by the second year of joint travel with fellow colleges of the American Talent Initiative, which seeks to expand by 50,000 the number of low- and moderate-income students attending 270 top U.S. schools. �ֲ���ý is a founding member of the initiative.

Last fall, �ֲ���ý led ATI colleges in recruiting visits to schools in several metropolitan areas, including Little Rock, Ark., and, in Texas, Houston and San Antonio, that yielded significant application increases from all three areas.

In the digital realm, �ֲ���ý continues to expand and refine its suite of web, social media, and email communications. These efforts offer a one-two approach, first offering helpful information to prospective students and second, guiding them toward key, measurable actions, such as visiting a department’s web page or scheduling a visit.

President Clayton Spencer greets newly admitted students and families during a campus reception on April 6, 2018. This spring’s campus receptions for admitted students, complemented by a range of off-campus receptions, are on April 5 and 22. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ���ý College)

In terms of financial aid, the incoming Class of 2023 will be supported by the largest financial aid budget in college history, totaling nearly $10 million in grant aid. �ֲ���ý anticipates approximately 40 percent of incoming students will receive institutional need-based grant aid, which is based on their demonstrated financial need, with the average grant approaching $45,000.

Applications by the Numbers

For the incoming Class of 2023:

Total applications: 8,222.

First-generation-to-college applications: Up 12.2 percent.

Students of color from the U.S.: Up 13.3 percent.

International students: Up 12.2 percent.

U.S. regions with highest increases: West (up 16 percent) and Southwest (10.6 percent).

U.S. states represented: 50, including D.C.

Countries rejoining the applicant pool after being absent for two or more years: Dominica, Estonia, Hungary, Kuwait, Madagascar, Maldives, Niger, Montenegro, Papau New Guinea, Slovakia, Venezuela, and Yemen.