| Daily News | News Releases | Special Bulletins | Feature Archives |
| The View from Trent | Trent Magazine | Focus Trent | Build 2000 |
Introductory
Seminar Week: A Great Start for First-year Students
Introductory seminar
week, which ran from September 2 – 8, was a great success and has
provided a positive base of experience for first-year students as they
begin the 2002/03 academic year.
A mix of events, activities, and seminars, Introductory Seminar Week is
unique to Trent University. First-year students have a unique opportunity
to sample classes before making their course selections and often report
that the introductory seminars were integral to their final course decisions
- and have even inspired them to change their major.
"It has been a fabulous week," Co-ordinator of Student Programs
Jeanne Lynch said enthusiastically on Friday, September 6.
Intro-week staff echoed Jeanne's sentiments. At week's end Traill College co-chair Bryan Henderson commented that the week had been "awesome" and "amazing." He also felt that "the whole process is great. All of the first-year kids are having such a great time. They all have smiles on their faces and are getting involved. It really makes a difference. In my first year, intro-week really made my year and I think it's great to support your college and residence."
Otonabee
College co-chair Andrea Carter was enthusiastic, also: "The first
years are really cool and the week went really well, and it's all because
of Jeanne," she said with a smile as she wrapped her arm around Jeanne's
shoulders.
Meri Kim Oliver, Senior Director of Student Affairs and Community Partnerships,
agreed: "Everything has gone very well. We’ve had positive feedback
and there have been no incidents. The first major pubs held this week
went well and the large number of underage students hasn’t affected
or hampered involvement," she said.
The
Office of Student Affairs was pleased to see first-year students settle
into residences for introductory seminar week, and was able to deal effectively
with the housing crunch that occurred as a result of the increase in student
numbers this year. Extra residence space was created by re-working existing
residences and a wing was also opened for Trent students at Master’s
College & Seminary (formerly Eastern Pentecostal Bible College).
"We
also offered crash space this year, for the first time, for students who
showed up and had no place to stay. Five women and three men used this
space, which consisted of space in a lounge that could be locked and was
very secure. The women were in one lounge and men in another. This meant
the students could look for accommodation downtown without paying for
a hotel room," explains Ms. Oliver, who is happy with the overall
housing picture and how students are settling in.
Student highlights for the week included numerous college events, the
Great Race on Thursday, September 5, and a carnival at Traill College
on Friday, September 6. Energy was high at these events and reflective
of the positive atmosphere which pervaded the week.
Photo 1: Enthusiastic first-year Lady Eaton College students at the Great Race on Thursday, September 5. Left to right: Ashley Ylitalo, Connor Marsh, Brayden Hamilton-Smith, Noal Davies and Andrew Fhito.
Photo 2: Amiga Katrina Prodan gets 'pied' by one of her amigees at a carnival held at Traill College on Friday, September 6. Other events at the carnival included a dunk tank, basketball toss and live music.
Back to Daily News Archive
