‘Favorite time of year:’ Staff, faculty eager to welcome students
With fall semester around the corner, East Carolina University students will start moving their things to residence halls this week during optional drop-off.
Between Thursday and Saturday, almost 1,700 students who signed up will unload their belongings, set up their rooms and return to their hometowns until the weekend before classes start. Others will move in Aug. 16-20. About 5,200 students are expected to live on campus this fall, said Aaron Lucier, director of ECU housing operations.
TIPS AND IMPORTANT LINKS
- Pack your patience.
- Bring water and wear comfortable shoes and clothes.
- Review Campus Living’s list of what to bring and what to leave at home. New this year: No air fryers. Command strips should be used only on concrete walls. Use thumbtacks to hang things on other walls.
- Ask questions. Greeters will be stationed at residence halls.
- Check out Campus Living YouTube videos (a new one will debut about how to adjust bed height) and Facebook live events.
- After you’re settled, several events are planned beginning Aug. 19. Find them at the Pirate Experience website.
“It’s my favorite time of the year,” said Dr. Virginia Hardy, vice chancellor of student affairs at ECU. “I’m beginning to see the loaded-down student cars and trucks making their way back to Greenville. School and residence hall supplies are out in every store, and the purple and gold flags are going up around campus. The semester is about to begin, and I am excited to welcome our students (back) to Pirate Nation!”
Classes begin Aug. 22.
“The campus is alive and vibrant when students are here, and we got a reminder of that in June and July with our first in-person orientation in two years,” Hardy said. “This fall, we are also excited to return to a more typical semester on campus that will kick off with The Pirate Experience, featuring a lineup of long-standing and new welcome traditions to get our students engaged and excited.”
Opening weekend events include:
- Aug. 19 – Raid the Rec at 7 p.m. in the Eakin Student Recreation Center
- Aug. 20 – Pirate Palooza at 6 p.m. in the Main Campus Student Center
- Aug. 21 – New student convocation at 4 p.m. in Minges Coliseum followed by the first-year photo on the field in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium
- Aug. 22 – Greek Fest at 1 p.m. on the Main Campus Student Center lawn. This new event will have representatives from all ECU fraternity and sororities in its four councils.
More information on those events and others — such as alternative break experiences — can be found at the Pirate Experience website.
“We are providing our students meaningful opportunities to build community, connect with new and old friends and engage through events and activities outside of the classroom,” Hardy said.
Because of COVID-19, ECU officials continue to closely monitor the health and wellness of students, faculty and staff, but are excited for a return to traditional activities and opportunities for students, Hardy said.
“The services, resources and support will be there to help our students succeed during the fall semester and build valuable relationships along the way,” Hardy said. “We want our students to connect and engage with each other and their faculty and staff, and to stay motivated throughout the semester so that they can finish strong. Let’s get ready to have an awesome academic year!”
High school friends and ECU roommates Aaron Hunter and Zachary Navarro, in back, drop off items at Greene Residence Hall in 2021. (Photo by Cliff Hollis)
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