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| Revised Orientation Puts "You" Back Into UC
Date: June 30, 2000 By: Dawn Fuller Phone: (513) 556-1823 Photo by: Archive: General news Cincinnati -- A new orientation program will provide an intimate experience on a large college campus as 3,000 students and their parents arrive at the University of Cincinnati. The summer orientation season begins Thursday, July 6 with check-in at 7 a.m. in the old lobby of Tangeman University Center (TUC) for the first of many two-day orientation sessions. The theme for Orientation 2000 is "Preparing for the Journey." Organizers at the UC Office of Educational Services have spent several months preparing this program to help students make a smoother transition from home to college. Students entering their first year of college are not only learning in the classroom, but also are learning how to become responsible adults, away from the constant parental supervision they had in high school. It can be both an exciting and anxious time for students and for parents who are trying to let go and allow their children to make their own decisions. So, the orientation features separate sessions for both students and parents. Interactive programs on the nuts and bolts of college survival will have advice on how students can achieve academic success as well as practical advice such as how to get a parking pass. A "Year in the Life" program will feature dramatizations addressing separation from high school, alcohol use, and involvement in student activities on campus. "They've heard about some of these issues in high school, but it's a lot different when they get to college," says Educational Services Director Russell Curley. "We're hoping that as students encounter these situations, they'll look back on what they learned in orientation and make some positive decisions." On the second day of orientation, a scavenger hunt will help students learn how to navigate the UC campus as they track down items at the bookstore, student health services and the student records office. By the time students finish orientation and registration, they will head home with their class schedule that includes class hours and know the names of their professors. For a more intimate experience, students will be divided into groups of 12 to 16 students who are entering different colleges. "Our hope is that after this series of small interactions, the students will get to know a dozen people fairly well when they come back in the fall," explains Curley. A staff of 29 student orientation leaders and three student coordinators spent two-and-a-half weeks training for the big student welcome. Orientation programs will continue through Aug. 4.
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