Views of UC During Orientation Date: July 10, 2000 By: Dawn Fuller Phone: (513) 556-1823 Photo by: Dottie Stover Archive: General News Hundreds of freshmen began getting acquainted with the campus and with fellow students as the University of Cincinnati's summer orientation program got underway July 6. By the time the program comes to an end, 3,000 students and their parents will have attended two days of informative sessions to pave the way for a smoother transition from home to college. One of the students attending the very first day of orientation was James Williams. "He graduated in the top 10 percent of his class at Western Hills High School," his grandparent and adoptive mother, Flo Williams, proudly declared. "This (campus) makes Western Hills look small!" James Williams exclaimed. He added he chose UC because it was close to home, and he will be commuting to school. One of the first stops for the Williams was the Office of Disability Services. "He has been using a wheelchair since he was paralyzed from surgery four years ago," said Mrs. Williams. At this point, James is an undeclared major, but he said he enjoys math and music. "He started playing the flute in the fourth grade," continued his grandmother. "Now he plays the saxophone. I surprised him with a brand new saxophone for his high school graduation gift." Flo Williams added that James' transition to college will also be more comfortable because he knows there's a familiar face close by. Bob Michaels, who was a mentor to James at Western Hills, will be attending UC's medical school in the fall. "The theme of this orientation is Preparing for the Journey," said Russell Curley, director of Educational Services, as he addressed the crowd of 300, including James and his grandmother, on the first day or orientation. "One way to look at your college experience is to consider it a journey. People go on journeys looking for treasure, discovery and adventure, and often those journeys can take turns they did not prepare for. The purpose of this orientation is to prepare you and make you aware of your own personal journey at the University of Cincinnati." "We like to think of UC as a community almost like a family," continued Stanley Henderson, associate vice president for enrollment management. "Students have chosen to come here at a time of rebirth...something that will not happen again until your children or grandchildren come here. We are reinventing ourselves," said Henderson, referring to UC's master plan and the construction taking place across campus. "We take great pride in the fact that the Princeton Architectural Press ranked UC among the 20 most outstanding architectural campuses in the world." "We changed the way we do teaching with the onslaught of technology in the country. We wanted to make sure facilities were available for students to take advantage of that technology." "We have also begun to look at the quality of student life. An institution that does not attend to out-of-classroom activities is not attending to the full student. The master plan concentrates on the quality of student life and will allow you to connect on campus in ways that those before you never had." "This orientation program is designed to give you the best possible start at the university," Henderson concluded. "We extend a covenant...a commitment...a promise. We will make it possible for you to achieve your goals. Take advantage of everything that is here for you. On the second day of orientation, James Williams said he got on campus just after 7 a.m. "We're making a flag to show what 'Just Community' means," said Williams, referring to the university-wide initiative to establish a set of core values to support the diverse interests and cultures on campus. The group was coloring a flag to display the motto, "Working Hand in Hand Towards a Just Community." Groups of 10-12 students spent part of their morning in the break-out rooms of Tangeman University Center (TUC) to design flags that reflected their impression of what Just Community means to them. The flags will be tied together into one large backdrop to be used at the student convocation in the fall. Kerry Hicks, a graduate of Notre Dame Academy, was another member of the group. "I chose UC because I like the city and because I've always been interested in fashion. I also plan to get involved in dancing. My best friend is going to UC with me." "What's the little white spots? You're not very good at coloring, are you?" In another room, Kevin Armstrong heckled his former classmate from Winton Woods High School, Nick Barker. Armstrong has not yet declared his major. Barker plans to explore business administration. The teens were designing a flag that demonstrated the motto, "People Helping People." Elizabeth Bachmeyer of Anderson Township also was a member of that team. A graduate of Ursuline Academy, she said she plans to major in physical therapy. "UC's a good school and my sister (Stephanie) also goes here, and we're close. She's two years older than I am and is studying to be a nurse practitioner." The groups of new students were guided by a staff of 29 orientation leaders and three student coordinators. The staff of UC students spent two-and-a-half weeks in training for the onslaught of new freshmen. "My fraternity brother was talking about it, and I thought it would be a good opportunity to meet a lot of new people," said orientation leader Ryan Brady, a political science major and member of Delta Tau Delta. Back in the breakout rooms, group six was designing a flag that reflected the motto, "People are the Basis of a Just Community," and the people in this group traveled a distance to come to UC. "I was impressed with UC when I came here on a recruiting trip," said Ashley Grooms of Fresno, California. Grooms is a business major who will be joining the women's volleyball team. "When I visited here, I liked the people and the campus and the coaches." "I chose UC because I'm from a small town and because this is a big city, I thought this would be a different experience," said Hoyoung Jang, a graduate of Maumee Valley High School in Toledo, Ohio. Jang is an undeclared major who was involved in several activities in high school, including golf, track and the high school yearbook committee. "I liked the atmosphere. It's a big campus, and I liked it when I visited," said Sarah Kelderhouse, a graduate of Perkins High School in Sandusky, Ohio. Students had one hour to work on their flags before they broke into pairs for the big scavenger hunt across campus. During the one-hour search, students needed to find as many items on their list as they could find, in order to rack up points that will work to their benefit during Welcome Week. The list detailed 140 different stops over an hour- long period. It included identifying the statue outside the College of Law or finding the room number for Duplicating Services in TUC. Shayla Ledbetter, a graduate of Linville High School and Valeri Lallathin, an Oak Hills graduate, studied the directory in TUC. They found their way to the Office of Student Organizations and Activities, where they asked secretary Dolores Hutcherson how to get to the game room in TUC. The second stop on their list was making a note of the game room's hours of operation. Other stops on the scavenger hunt included admissions, the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP), Teachers College and the UC Bookstore, all to get students acquainted with campus, make friends, and have a good time. Welcome Week, which kicks off the weekend of Sept. 16, will bring more competitions. "The team with the most points will get a $100 gift certificate to the bookstore," said Lallathin.