How can more than 1,800 incoming freshmen understand the values of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, begin to feel a part of the campus community and get to meet some of their classmates? The answer is The SIUE Experience.
Freshmen continued today to make connections with the University and each other. Activities were scheduled throughout the day and night, and through the weekend. Some of the happenings included the Chancellor’s Welcome and Playfair, the Class of 2017 photo by the Cougar Statue and the Cougar Kick-Off in the Korte Stadium. The SIUE Experience began Thursday with Freshmen Move-In Day and continued with Freshmen First Night at the Morris University Center.
SIUE Chancellor Julie Furst-Bowe greeted freshmen at Playfair: “You’ve come to the right place. We are excited about what we have to offer, and what you have to contribute.
“This is not going to be an easy time,” said Furst-Bowe. “I remember my first semester of college. It was a balancing act. The key is to use your time wisely. Make sure your education is your priority. We want to see you walk across the stage four years from now.”
“This has been really fun,” said freshman Sarah Turner at the Playfair. The student from Petersburg was sitting on the ground in a large circle with about 100 of her fellow classmates who were all born in the month of July. “At first, I was having a hard time meeting people. But this has made it real easy.”
Freshmen piled onto the Rec Plex field to the booming tunes from such artists as Macklemore, Robin Thicke, Rihanna and Justin Bieber. Students enjoyed a series of ice-breakers and eventually were grouped together by their birthday months.
Then they were hurled a series of questions, of which they had to meet in the center or cross over the circle if answering in the affirmative. “Are you the only child in your family? Do you consider yourself to be a trustworthy person? Have you told your parents you were going one place and then went another?”
“I like it because it’s getting people involved with each other,” said Janice Cooper of Calumet Park.
Earlier in the day, freshmen gathered in various classrooms around the campus, where a Cougar Guide talked about the five SIUE values: excellence, inclusiveness, wisdom, integrity and citizenship.
Leading one class was Tiffany Maglasang, a senior with a double major in psychology and Spanish. She had students participate in an “excellence exercise” that required them to write things that both add and take away from achieving excellence. The list included:
• Staying focused
• Being prepared for class
• Wanting to succeed
These were three of several answers from the group consisting of Kelsey Lepper, Meghan Campbell, Brianna Langland and Kellie Horrell.
Caleb Baker and Rebecca Taylor wrote some of their thoughts about factors that hinder success:
• Partying
• Not going to class
• Being lazy
The Chancellor summed up her message of excellence to students by quoting Katherine Dunham, the legendary late dancer, choreographer and anthropologist who was an artist in residence at SIUE, “I always believe if you set out to be successful, you already are.” Katherine Dunham Hall on the SIUE campus houses the departments of Theater and Dance, Music and Mass Communications.
The SIUE Experience continues Saturday and Sunday with such activities as community service projects, campus exploration and residence hall meetings. It was started in 2012 to increase freshmen retention and success, said Kara Shustrin, program specialist in the SIUE Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs.
“One of the biggest things we hope to accomplish,” said Shustrin, “is to build connections among the freshmen, between them and upper classmen and between them and the campus community.”
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville provides students with a high quality, affordable education that prepares them for successful careers and lives of purpose. Built on the foundation of a broad-based liberal education, and enhanced by hands-on research and real-world experiences, the academic preparation SIUE students receive equips them to thrive in the global marketplace and make our communities better places to live. Situated on 2,660 acres of beautiful woodland atop the bluffs overlooking the natural beauty of the Mississippi River’s rich bottom land and only a short drive from downtown St. Louis, the SIUE campus is home to a diverse student body of nearly 14,000.
Photo Information:
SIUE Chancellor Julie Furst-Bowe welcomes the 1,800 incoming freshmen at Friday’s Playfair.
One freshman group at Playfair lifts one its member to cheers and applauds.
Eddie the Cougar is hoisted high by freshmen at the Playfair.