Vans are parked on the street with their doors open, parents are wandering through the dorms and summer is coming to a close—it’s move-in day at Otterbein.
Jefferson Blackburn-Smith, Otterbein’s vice president for enrollment management, estimates that this new class is bigger than last fall’s class of 559 freshmen. The official count won’t be until the 15th day of the semester, and those numbers will be released the week of September 16th.
That many students means many boxes need to be taken to dorm rooms. And there are plenty of older students ready to help out.
Chobee Sheets, sophomore biochemistry and molecular biology major and resident assistant of Mayne Hall, said that she and other RAs have been and will continue to help freshmen with their first semester. “The freshmen have a confined space to work with so we’ve been helping them to make the best with the space they have.”
Volunteers from past years, Greek life and homecoming court are also spread throughout campus to help out the incoming class today.
Some students like Teri Seabroon, an education major, didn’t have to worry much about moving in, though. Through a program called Shades of Success— a transition program for incoming students of color —she and friends were able to move in over the weekend. She said that because of the early arrival, she was able to get a head start with making friends and learning how things worked.
The parents of the freshmen are having a good experience with the move-in day, too. Ronda Lands, mother of incoming freshmen and computer science major Chad Lands, said “Things look to be well maintained on campus and the whole move-in experience is pretty organized. We’re off to the car now to start unpacking.”
Move-in day for returning students is August 25 and the start of the semester is the 26th.
