{"id":109234,"date":"2017-08-31T17:16:15","date_gmt":"2017-08-31T21:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/?p=109234"},"modified":"2026-01-13T12:03:20","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T17:03:20","slug":"time-stamp-follow-the-class-of-2021-on-its-opening-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/2017\/08\/31\/time-stamp-follow-the-class-of-2021-on-its-opening-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Hour by hour with the Class of 2021 on its Opening Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

Follow along as photographers Phyllis Graber Jensen and Theophil Syslo, and writers Doug Hubley and Emily McConville, share sights and stories from the Class of 2021’s arrival on Aug. 28.<\/p>\n

While this time-stamp presentation is a span of just 12 hours, Opening Day begins the experience of a lifetime for students and families.<\/p>\n

7:34 a.m.<\/h3>\n

It’s always a goal that the incoming class should encounter a lint-free Student Affairs staff, so Assistant Dean of Residence Life and Health Education Molly Newton rolls a lint remover over a jacket sleeve belonging to Director of Student Life Blake Reilly.<\/p>\n

\"web-170828_Move_In_0240\"<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

Along with student Orientation leaders, they’re awaiting arrivals to Chu and Kalperis halls, on Campus Avenue.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, about 200 yards away, first-year students are doing what they need to do first: reporting to the Central Avenue entrance of Commons for their official check-in.<\/p>\n

They’re arriving at the rate of about one per minute, estimates Jennifer Foley, an Opening Day volunteer whose day job is as associate vice president for college advancement.<\/p>\n

With a decisive handshake and \u201cWelcome to Bates,\u201d Foley greets the first-years and makes sure they know the drill once they get inside Commons.<\/p>\n

An important aspect to her job, Foley notes, is ensuring that the new students check in by themselves \u2014 and feel comfortable doing it \u2014 as their parents are directed toward their students\u2019 residences.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the first time kids are asked to do something on their own\u201d at Bates, she says.<\/p>\n

\n

7:44 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Early arrivers Barbara and Kerwin Charles, parents of Michael Charles \u201921 of Valley Stream, N.Y., get help from Michael Hogue \u201920 of Chicago and Brielle Antonelli \u201918 of Warwick, N.Y., as they move their son’s gear into Kalperis Hall.<\/p>\n

Hogue and Antonelli represent some of the variety of student leaders who pitch in on Opening Day. Hogue will lead a group of first-years on an outdoor trip to Mount Blue in two days, while Antonelli will assist new students throughout the next several days as an Orientation Week Leader, or OWL.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

7:52 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Hundreds of Bobcats help the new students move in, including college staff members (i.e., the Welcome Crew) and students like this group posing on Campus Avenue: Orientation Week Leaders (OWLs), AESOP outdoor trip leaders, and student members of the Residence Life staff.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

8:15 a.m.<\/h3>\n

As vehicles pull up to residences, student Orientation leaders descend like a NASCAR pit crew to begin the unpacking.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

8:15 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Back at Commons, students approach the four check-in tables in ones and twos. Conferences and Campus Events staff are giving the first-years their room keys, student IDs on lanyards, and stainless steel PRCs or Personal Reusable Containers \u2014 that is, sustainable beverage cups.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no food without it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Kelly Perreault of Campus Events has her spiel down pat: Don\u2019t lose the ID, she warns the students good-naturedly. They’ll need it for building access, library privileges, and board plan: \u201cThere\u2019s no food without it.\u201d She also explains the PRC program and reminds the students to hand-wash the mugs before drinking from them.<\/p>\n

Brenda Pelletier, conferences and campus events manager, estimates that about 150 students have checked in so far, including one right at the crack of 7 a.m.<\/p>\n

\n

8:23 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Wearing a Welcome Crew T-shirt, President Clayton Spencer greets Erin Bucki ’21 of Saint Paul, Minn., outside of Commons.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

Security staff, wearing bright fluorescent visibility vests, direct traffic. Various passersby\u00a0 \u2014 pedestrians walking dogs or heading to Merrill Gym, commuters in their cars, and food-laden tractor-trailers pulling into the lot between the dining hall and Alumni Gym \u2014 add texture to the scene.<\/p>\n

\n

8:42 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Moving over to Chu and Kalperis halls, President Spencer greets the family of Layla Dozier \u201921 of the Bronx, with a friendly admonishment about father Andre Dozier’s Yankee gear. At left is Layla’s brother, Andre Jr., and her mother, Doris.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

The next family to arrive at Chu and Kalperis is that of Solaine Carter \u201921 of Tucson, Ariz.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou guys are amazing,\u201d says mom Beth Mitchneck, as students in garnet shirts quickly empty the minivan, then cart boxes, bags, and a framed photo of Solaine\u2019s dog to the second floor of Kalperis.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a surprisingly efficient end to a long drive. The family left Tucson on Aug. 15 and wound their way across the country, visiting friends, meeting Solaine\u2019s roommate in Nashville, and dropping Solaine\u2019s older sister off at graduate school.<\/p>\n

Solaine, fresh from her check-in at Commons, arrives at the dorm. The college prepared her well for Opening Day, she says. \u201cI\u2019ll be like, ‘Mom! I don\u2019t know what I\u2019m supposed to do for X!’ And then, two seconds later, I get an email about X.\u201d<\/p>\n

She\u2019s looking forward to the opportunities Orientation affords her. \u201cI\u2019m really excited to meet new people, learn about myself,\u201d she says, then heads inside to see her room.<\/p>\n

\n

8:46 a.m.<\/h3>\n

At Kalperis Hall, President Spencer joins the effort to help first-years move in.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

8:47 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Settling in, Jaimin Keliihoomalu ’21 of Kapolei, Hawaii, relaxes with his guitar in his room in the 280 College Street residence.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

8:50 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Jake Bart \u201921 of New York City felt the early morning chill, but describes his introduction to Bates overall as \u201cnice.\u201d His mood is \u201cmostly excitement but a little nervous,\u201d largely about beginning his first prolonged stay away from home. In that vein, he notes, \u201cMom\u2019s a little emotional, but Dad\u2019s doing pretty well.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s too early to think about a major. \u201cI\u2019ll try a lot of things and see where that leads me,\u201d Jake says. And why Bates? \u201cMostly the vibe. Everyone\u2019s very nice. I saw myself here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

8:55 a.m.<\/h3>\n

At 280 College Street, Jim Guzelian, the college’s environmental health and safety specialist, helps Hannah Lucas ’21 of New York City place risers under her bed as her mother, Elizabeth Lucas, looks on.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

9 a.m.<\/h3>\n

At Kalperis, Sommer Glasgow \u201921 of Salt Lake City unloads her family\u2019s car with the help of student leaders, hauls everything upstairs, and starts to unpack, placing a Keurig in a prominent place.<\/p>\n

A few minutes later, two Junior Advisors introduce themselves. James MacDonald \u201920 of Quincy, Mass., and Kelly McDonald ’19 of Whately, Mass.,<\/span> (not siblings, they\u2019re quick to say) welcome her to the dorm and to Bates.<\/p>\n

As JAs who live amidst a group of new students known as a First-Year Center, their job throughout the year is to mentor the new students, create activities for them, and uphold community standards.<\/p>\n

But their biggest goal today, MacDonald and McDonald say, is to make the students feel welcome. They\u2019re greeting \u2014 and reassuring \u2014 families, answering questions, and helping first-years get settled.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope they get comfortable with campus so they\u2019re not intimidated or hesitant to know where they\u2019re going and try new things,\u201d MacDonald says.<\/p>\n

\n

9:17 a.m.<\/h3>\n

In Kalperis Hall, Carter Ros \u201921 of Hailey, Idaho, takes direction from his mother, Margo, in setting up his room. He’s an aspiring Nordic skier.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

At Wentworth Adams Hall, the balloons are swaying, \u201cAdams Hall\u201d posters displaying, music playing \u2014 the Bee Gees\u2019 \u201cStaying Alive.\u201d It\u2019s all the handiwork of the student residence life staff, who are here in enthusiastic evidence.<\/p>\n

Nevo Polonsky, coordinator of campus life and residential programming for Student Affairs, explains that Junior Advisors are typically in touch with the first-years in their charge during the summer, so for the newbies, \u201cit\u2019s much more exciting to put a face with a name.\u201d<\/p>\n

He has seen a quick integration of new students into the fold, he adds, because there\u2019s such a diversity of interests among both the new and established students. Because common interests are easy to find, \u201ca lot of incoming students have already gotten connected to someone,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n

\n

9:34 a.m.<\/h3>\n

By mid-morning on Alumni Walk, it’s a hub of activity as students move in at Parker Hall, the second-oldest Bates building, built in 1857.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

Ruth Veleta and her husband are delivering Tom Hennessey \u201921 of Middletown, Conn., to his digs in Parker Hall. It\u2019s not her first kid-to-college rodeo \u2014 her step-daughters are college graduates \u2014 but it\u2019s still kind of a wrench. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to stay future-oriented and hold the tears till the end of the day,\u201d she laughs.<\/p>\n

\n

9:36 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Abra Kaplan ’21 of Oak Park, Ill., stretches to pin a Bates College banner on the wall of her Rand Hall room with the help of her father, Gary Kaplan.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

9:37 a.m. <\/b><\/h3>\n

Moms and daughters meet and greet in Kalperis Hall. From left, Elizabeth Fairman \u201921 of Lathurp Village, Mich., her mother, Sarah Fairman, roommate Joselyn Jaramillo \u201921 of Newark, N.J., and her mother, Nelly Jaramillo.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

Jaramillo has been on campus for the past week as a Bobcat First!<\/a> participant. The night before, she invited Fairman to check out their room on the second floor of Kalperis.<\/p>\n

Fairman first heard about Bates from her college counselor, whose son is an alumnus. When she took a tour and stayed overnight, she was struck by the campus\u2019 beauty and sense of community.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were so nice and so welcoming, and I loved the emphasis on the outdoors as well,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

The move-in, and everything up to it, leaves Fairman\u2019s mother pleased. She knows Bates will help Elizabeth figure out what she wants to do, while being in the outdoors and making friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one thing that we discovered in our searches is that we were looking for her to find her people,\u201d says Sarah Fairman. \u201cWe think she found it here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

10:06 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Nancy Crate, mother of Will Crate \u201921 of South Hamilton, Mass., pays for a wrap and bandana for Tucker, the family’s Jack Russell terrier, who jumps for joy.<\/p>\n

Staffing the cash register are College Store director Gail St. Pierre, and her daughter, Abrielle, 11.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

10:14 a.m.<\/h3>\n

The Resource Fair in Perry Atrium is an exposition of more than a dozen Bates offices and services ranging from the Bates Career Development Center to the Sustainability Office.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

We overhear Multifaith Chaplain Brittany Longsdorf and the mother of a new student discussing the eight banners representing world faith traditions in the Peter J. Gomes Chapel.<\/p>\n

One of the banners, a tree, represents the Sikh religion, Longsdorf explains, and the planet Earth stands for humanist or pagan traditions. \u201cSo there are quite a few pagans, then?\u201d the woman asks. \u201cThere\u2019s not an official group, but there\u2019s significant interest,\u201d Longsdorf replies.<\/p>\n

\n

10:17 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Eliza Fischer \u201921 of Chicago gets settled in Kalperis Hall.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

Out of sheer excitement, she woke up at 6:30 this morning. Part of a sizable Bates contingent staying at the Hampton Inn in downtown Lewiston, Fischer and her family all felt torqued up by the momentous day ahead, but were able to settle down some over coffee and bagels at Forage, a wood-fired bakery and market on Lisbon Street.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fischer, whose academic interests include international politics or environmental studies, visited a lot of schools, but was sold by \u201chow nice and amazing the people are at Bates.\u201d She\u2019s nervous to be away from home for the first time, but more excited.<\/p>\n

\n

10:30 a.m.<\/h3>\n

Prarthana Mocherla ’21 of Old Tappan, N.J., and her parents, Sunita Abraham and Pavan Mocherla, talk with Paul Menice, interim director of security and campus safety, at the Resource Fair in Perry Atrium.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cMy husband and I were just talking about how well things are going,\u201d says Abraham, who’s taking a break while Prarthana scopes out the fair.<\/p>\n

Earlier, she recalls, \u201ca group of wonderfully enthusiastic people grabbed her stuff and whisked it up to the fourth floor\u201d of her daughter’s dorm.<\/p>\n

Prarthana is an only child: \u201cI have been weepy and teary for the last four or five days,\u201d says Abraham. \u201cI think she\u2019s just waiting until 5 o\u2019clock, when we leave.\u201d Joining the conversation, Prarthana says, \u201cI\u2019m fine. I think it\u2019ll hit after they leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another parent encountered at the Resource Fair, John Shaw says that “it’s hard to believe how quickly they grow up,\u201d referring to his son, Keaton Shaw \u201921 of Middleton, Wisc.<\/p>\n

The elder Shaw explains how, back in the day, he and his wife were part of a cohort of young couples who all moved into their neighborhood in Middleton around the same time. Now those couples are becoming empty nesters, and the next round of young families is coming in. When your kids are little, Shaw says, \u201ccherish it. It goes too fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

10:30 a.m.<\/h3>\n

During a lull in the pulling up of cars and the getting out of boxes and the jostling for coveted elevators, the group of orientation leaders at Chu Hall starts an impromptu dance party to \u201cEye of the Tiger.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grace Jurkovich \u201918 of St. Paul, Minn., an OWL, has a high opinion of her task: \u201cWe have the best job on campus right now, which is really to facilitate the fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today, the fun includes dinner in Commons and a hike up Mount David. Later this week, Jurkovich will lead a restaurant tour of Lewiston.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the first-years on campus are equalized on the same nervous level.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Amelia Wilhelm \u201918 of Charlotte, N.C., a residence coordinator in Hopkins House who was Jurkovich\u2019s first-year roommate, says their goal is to get new students out of their dorms and into the wider Bates community.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the first-years on campus are equalized on the same nervous level, so providing the programs to put all those people together and get them interacting in whatever way they want to be interacting \u2014 I think it\u2019s a great system,\u201d Wilhelm says.<\/p>\n

Both Jurkovich and Wilhelm are impressed by today\u2019s weather, the first-years\u2019 room-decorating skills, and the welcome messages on the Chu Hall blackboards.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a weird adult thing to say, but I\u2019m so excited to move my children into college, because what will dorms look like in, like, 20 years?\u201d Wilhelm says.<\/p>\n

\n

10:57 a.m.<\/h4>\n

At the campus-facing entrance to Commons, one sees large green inflatable sofas and hears Cyndi Lauper singing \u201cGirls Just Want to Have Fun.\u201d And one must simply ask why.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

It\u2019s the OWL Hub: A one-stop offering from the Orientation Week Leaders, a student team that has put together amusements and recreational activities to help first-years ease stress and fill vacant moments during Orientation. (OWLs T-shirt slogan: \u201cOWL be there for you.\u201d)<\/p>\n

The Hub is the brainchild of OWL Allison Berman \u201918 of Philadelphia. Last year, she says, \u201ca lot of students wanted a place to hang out, ask questions, find things to do.\u201d Hence the Hub, with its snacks, cornhole boards and other games, the sofas (which proved very popular, especially with certain tapped-out dads), and, of course, Cyndi. It\u2019s not just girls who want to have fun.<\/p>\n

\n

12:45 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Appetites whetted by move-in work, hungry queues form for the Family and New Student Barbecue.<\/p>\n

On the menu: fresh fruit salad, brussels sprout panzanella salad, and cole slaw; for sandwiches, pulled chicken, pulled pork, and chipotle barbecued tofu with grilled vegetables; for sides, maple brown sugar baked beans, roasted corn, and cheesy corn bread; and for dessert, whoopie pies in blueberry and vanilla.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

12:46 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Zhao Li \u201921 of Guangzhou, China, and Rio Fujii \u201921 of Tokyo have staked out a spot under a tree. Each flew 15-plus hours from their countries to Boston, then took buses to Portland, where Associate Dean of Students for International Student Programs James Reese picked them up. They met in Commons this morning, bonding over an interest in politics.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

Li, who knew she wanted to attend a liberal arts college, heard of Bates through a college counselor, and applied early decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cI find that it is academically strong and I value that in this school,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Accustomed to the high-rises of her home city, Li liked the shortness of Bates\u2019 buildings. Fujii, here for one year on the Hirasawa exchange program, was struck by the openness of the campus \u2014 her home university in Japan is closed to anyone without an ID.<\/p>\n

Fujii said she was excited for the rest of the student body to arrive.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love campus,\u201d she said. \u201cI love people, so everything is good, but the thing is, I’ve only met international students, so I really hope that spending one year here, I\u2019ll find local people, American students to get along with.\u201d<\/p>\n

A ways away, Gift Kiti \u201918 of Nairobi, Kenya, understands the new students\u2019 nervousness. As a JA in Kalperis, she tries to make move-in as smooth as possible, welcoming the students to Bates and directing them to the resource fair and Wal Mart as needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope they are open to each other and make potential friends, and they make use of the opportunities being offered right now to know more about Bates,\u201d she says. \u201cBut not to be too hard on themselves \u2014 just to have fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Across the Library Quad, Will Jaekle \u201921 of Wilson, Wyo., and his parents, Laurie and Don, enjoy their lunch on a grassy slope. By the time he finished checking in at Commons, the Orientation crew already carried his things to the hall outside his room in Rand Hall.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were really fast. I saw my dad leaving, and I thought they just asked him to go find a parking spot, and I\u2019d have to carry it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

How is the family feeling at this point? \u201cGood,\u201d says Laurie. \u201cGood,\u201d says Don.<\/p>\n

\u201cNervous,\u201d says Will.<\/p>\n

\n

1:01 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Posing for an after-lunch portrait at the Class of 1910 Gate are Adrian Azari \u201921 of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., his father, Hamid, and mother, Christa.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

1:22 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Director of Athletics Jason Fein snaps a selfie with the Cote family of Wilton, Conn., after his welcoming remarks to student athletes and their families at the Clifton Daggett Gray Athletic Building. Jackson Cote ’21 (center) hopes to row for Bates.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Fein is a Bates newcomer, too, arriving from Drew University on July 1. “We’re going through the first year together,” he tells the newest Bobcats. “We’ll be there together.”<\/p>\n

Fein’s welcome focuses on an overview of the Bobcat athletic program. “We want the best possible experience for every participant, we want excellence in NESCAC and at the national level, and we want to build community.”<\/p>\n

Still, some of Fein and his leadership team’s messages transcended sports, including the importance of students taking responsibility for communicating with their professors and coaches.<\/p>\n

Students, says Tommy Verdell, assistant athletic director for compliance, should get in the habit of face-to-face communication with professors and coaches and “get out of the habit of relying on mom or dad to solve your problems. That’s not going to flow here at the college level.”<\/p>\n

“We always prefer that communication come from the students because we try, as much as possible to treat them as adults.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Later in the presentation, Fein returns to that theme. “I ask the parents, before you pick up the phone to call a coach, a dean, an AD, or assistant AD, you check in with your student to see if they have made contact. We always prefer that communication come from the students because we try, as much as possible to treat them as adults.”<\/p>\n

That’s not to say that parents should be out of the loop, says presenter Susan Harriman, assistant director of athletics.<\/p>\n

In fact, as she tells the students in the audience, now is the time to up your texting game. “Part of how family members support each other comes from communicating. So, teach your family members how to text. And then you need to send them texts. Otherwise they call us and say they haven’t heard from you in 24 hours!”<\/p>\n

That’s the takeaways says Fein as he concludes the greeting. “Text your mom and tell her what’s going on. She worries.”<\/p>\n

\n

1:26 p.m.<\/h3>\n

After a busy morning of moving in, Sarah Abbott \u201921 of Bethlehem, N.H., and her father, Ken Abbott, take a few minutes to chill in inflatable chairs outside of Commons, courtesy of the OWL Hub.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

1:41 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Miles Lamberson ’19 of Hinesburg, Vt., gives two thumbs up after fitting Noah Loughlin ’21 of Mililani, Hawaii, with a backpack during the AESOP equipment check-out at Chase Hall.\u00a0Loughlin will be participating in the Franconia trip.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil\/Sylso\"<\/a>

Theophil\/Sylso<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

2:16 p.m.<\/h3>\n

If parents wonder how their student will find work that gives them meaning in life, find the answer during a presentation on Purposeful Work by Rebecca Fraser-Thill, lecturer in psychology and director of faculty engagement and outreach for the college’s Purposeful Work program.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

In the Olin Concert Hall, Fraser-Thill explains how Purposeful Work programming guides students as they explore and then define their interests and abilities, with the ultimate goal of finding work that affords a sense of purpose.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are encouraging our students to feel purposeful in the classroom, on the athletic fields, in the community \u2014 in all of their endeavors throughout the academic year and into the summer and beyond,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

The Class of 2021 is the first cohort to find Purposeful Work programming fully in place at Bates. They’ll have a four-year experience of funded internships, courses infused with real-world applications, practioner-taught Short Term courses, and the ever-popular How to Adult series.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the perfect time to be here and perfect time to capitalize on everything we have to offer,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\n

3:15 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Tiffany Cervantes \u201921 of New Haven, Conn., and Erick Gredonia \u201921 of North Hollywood, Calif., search the aisles of the Walmart across the river in Auburn \u2014 he for shampoo (success), she for a cactus for her room (nope: the store’s plants had withered away, according to the store associate staffing the section).<\/p>\n

The dorms are, of course, hubs of Bates activity on Opening Day, but so is the Walmart. Throughout the day, cars with license plates from around the country stream in and out as families pick up what they need.<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

The Opening Day schedule includes a van shuttle to Walmart for those without their own transportation. After arriving, the students scatter into the store, and Mamta Saraogi \u201921 of Kolkata, India, locates the flatware she wants for her room.<\/p>\n

First-years are not the only Bates students doing last-minute shopping. A few aisles over, a group of student AESOP outdoor trip leaders look for clothing, props, and art supplies. They\u2019re going skating at the Rollodrome tonight, and each pair has to come in coordinated costumes. Katrina Mu\u00f1oz \u201918 and Riley Ewing \u201918, both of Bedford, N.H., are going as a firefighter and a dalmatian.<\/p>\n

Ewing, beaming, rounds a corner to find Mu\u00f1oz. \u201cOur hats make noise!\u201d he declares, holding up a pair of beeping and flashing fire hats.<\/p>\n

\n

4:26 p.m.<\/h3>\n

A parent dabs her eyes during President Spencer’s welcome on the Historic Quad in front of Coram Library.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

In her remarks, Spencer spoke as a mother, recalling the day she helped her son, Will, move in at New York University, and the tears that she shed that day.<\/p>\n

“Granting the variability of life with a teenager…I was saying goodbye to a person who had been a constant in my life and in the life of our family for 18 solid years. The feeling was inescapable that the project of raising this child was certainly not finished\u00a0\u2014 Lord knows!\u00a0\u2014 but somehow the terms of the undertaking had just changed irrevocably.”<\/p>\n

But, she added, “most of all, I think, my tears were the product of that X-ray vision that is our special burden as parents.”<\/p>\n

That special vision, she said, “causes us to look at our accomplished, poised, and loving children and see straight through to the fears and frailties that we know are there, and that we know still have the power to cause pain and sorrow and hurt to these creatures we love beyond all reason.”<\/p>\n

\n

4:44 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Starkia Benbow of Boston comforts her 13-year-old daughter Takiyah Walker during Spencer’s welcome.<\/p>\n

Walker was sad that her older sister, Tiauna Walker ’21 of Millbury, Mass., was moving away from home. “They are best friends,” says Benbow.<\/p>\n

\"web-170828_Orientation_Morning_TS-0661\"<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

4:49 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Dylan Simon \u201921 of San Francisco receives a heartfelt hug from her father, Beau Simon, as the day concludes on the Historic Quad.<\/p>\n

Her mother, Daphne Stannard, says, \u201cIt\u2019s always been a parental task to kick the bird out of the nest. It\u2019s really hard to do this, but we are really proud. We know she\u2019s going to have a great four years here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Phyllis<\/a>

Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

5:04 p.m.<\/h3>\n

Following the president’s welcome, Ben Klafter ’21 of New York, N.Y., hugs his mother, Nancy Kestenbaum, during the Farewell Reception and Family Goodbye, held on the Library Terrace.<\/p>\n

\"web-170828_Orientation_Morning_TS-0680\"<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

5:11 p.m<\/h3>\n

Jason Seeger ’21 of Belmont, Mass., embraces his mother Kim Seeger during the Farewell Reception and Family Goodbye in the Library Terrace.<\/p>\n

\"Thephil<\/a>

Thephil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

7:20 p.m.<\/h3>\n

And then it was almost over. Atop Mount David, members of the Class of 2021 gather to watch their first sunset as Bates students. But really, it’s just beginning.<\/p>\n

\"Theophil<\/a>

Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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