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Orientation rolls out the welcome mat
Orientation leader Maggie Ciambrone leads a group of students at this week’s orientation session. Photo: STEVE MORSE
For Meghann Nielsen, choosing a college literally came down to a flip of a coin. Heads was UB, tails Stony Brook. The coin landed on heads.
Still unsure if UB was the right choice, Nielsen decided that her orientation session would be the make-or-break moment in determining whether she would stay here. Orientation proved to Nielsen beyond all doubt that UB was a great fit.
It’s because of that experience that Nielsen, a senior psychology major from Dunkirk, N.Y., decided to become an orientation team leader and share with incoming freshmen the many things that contribute to UB’s dynamic learning and social environment.
“I love being able to share my story about how this wasn’t my first choice and I didn’t want to come here initially, but now that I’m here, I can’t imagine being anywhere else,” Nielsen said last Friday during day two of a freshman orientation session.
Throughout the summer, UB’s Office of New Student Programs is conducting eight conference-style orientations with nearly 400 students attending each two-day session. Separate orientations are held for transfer students and international students. In addition, each first-year and transfer student orientation includes a corresponding parent and family orientation.
“Orientation lays the foundation to a strong start at UB by highlighting services and resources available to help students succeed. By understanding the academic and social expectations, students can become actively engaged during their time here,” said Melanie Cruz, assistant director of new student programs, who oversees a crew of 28 undergraduate and two graduate orientation leaders. These orientation leaders, or “OLs,” are a tight-knit, enthusiastic group of students in charge of rolling out the welcome mat.
Both days of orientation sessions are packed full of fun and informational activities. Several “ice-breaker” sessions lighten the mood and encourage students to interact with each other. “I love being able to watch them grow in just the 36 hours we spend with them,” Nielsen said.
Fellow team leader Kaytlin Mack, a psychology major from Olean, N.Y., tells new students that UB gives them a clean slate, an opportunity to reinvent themselves. “You get to decide what type of person you want to become. Putting that into perspective for them helps them take advantage of everything we have here,” she said.
There’s also a personal level of growth that comes with being an orientation team leader, Mack noted. “I learned more about myself from being an orientation leader in one summer than I did my entire life. I learned about group dynamic, I learned about the true qualities of a leader and I grew as a student from UB toward being a professional and this job really helped me.”
“I love it,” added Islam Dashoush, a senior legal studies major from Brooklyn, who received especially high marks from orientation participants. “To see the smiles on the students’ faces is amazing. It makes you feel good (that) you caused that.”
One of the biggest challenges to orientation is helping the incoming students feel comfortable in a new place. To achieve that, orientation leaders are not shy about embarrassing themselves for the good of the group. Midway through lunch on day two of orientation last week, orientation leaders sprung out of their seats for a flash mob dance routine to One Direction’s “You Don’t Know You’re Beautiful.”
Incoming freshman Ecco Matlak was nervous for her first day of orientation, having driven eight hours from Long Island. “It was so nerve-wracking. I didn’t know one person here because I live so far away,” she said. “But the games and the ice breakers made it really easy. I made a whole group of friends, like six people, that I didn’t even know yesterday. I feel a lot more comfortable.”
A Daniel Acker Scholar, Matlak will major in architecture. She turned down a four-year scholarship offer and paid internship at a school close to home in order to come to UB for its study-abroad programs. “That really sold me on the school,” she said. “I gave up a lot to come here to learn a lot of different languages.”
Incoming freshmen Amani Coleman of Amherst and Christina Flore of Long Island both found their orientation session to be helpful and informative. “The orientation leaders are extremely energetic and enthusiastic,” said Coleman. Added Flore: “All the speakers were good representatives of the school. They were very driven and seem like good role models.”
Like many of their peers, Coleman and Flore are looking forward to beginning their college education and taking advantage of all that UB offers. “There’s so much to do here,” Coleman said. “I feel like the only way you can be bored is if you decide you want to be.”
Yesterday, UB hosted orientation sessions for transfer students. Emma Mcaneny, a transfer from New York’s Catskills region, says she chose UB because of its School of Architecture and Planning—SUNY’s only accredited architecture school. For Aleksandra Lebedeva, a native of Russia living in New York City, UB offers a taste of life at a diverse American university.
Andrianna Demers, the mother of incoming transfer student Alexandra Demers, was impressed with the convenience of the North Campus. “Kids can choose to leave campus or not if they need toothpaste, lipstick or a quart of milk—it’s all here,” she said.
Coming from Chester in Orange County, N.Y., the Demers family said the orientation staff had been “efficient and very helpful,” especially at the resource fair designed to help students explore UB’s academic majors.
Andrianna Demers also appreciated the separate orientation program for parents and the maps for navigating around campus. “This has been a great experience. My son’s in high school right now and can’t wait to apply to UB!”
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