Freshmen and transfer students officially became members of the Elon community during new student convocation, held Under the Oaks Saturday, Aug. 28. Details and photos...
With family and friends looking on, more than 1,240 freshmen and transfer students took part in new student convocation Under the Oaks on Elon’s historic West campus Saturday morning. The event is the first formal function for new students at Elon and signals the official start of the university’s 115th academic year.
Chris Morse, a senior and executive president of the Student Government Association, brought words of welcome on behalf of the student body. He encouraged new students to take advantage of the opportunities that await them at Elon and to become active members of the community.
“My advice is to be an active participant in the world around you,” Morse said. “You will have a chance to be a part of something so much bigger than yourselves.” He told the new students that they should attend each class with an expectation to contribute to the discussion. “Do not ask what this course can do for you. Instead, ask what you can learn from it and what you can contribute to it.”
President Leo M. Lambert told the Class of 2008 that they should reflect on the good fortune that brought them to Elon.
“You live in the world’s wealthiest democracy and enjoy freedoms and liberties that are the envy of billions of others. Your presence here places you among the most privileged people on the earth….Today might be a good day to whisper a prayer of thanksgiving for all the blessings in your life that have brought you to this grove of oaks. It’s also a day to contemplate the question, ‘What am I going to do with the gift of an Elon education?'”
Lambert encouraged the students to embrace the liberal arts as the foundation of their intellectual pursuits at Elon.
“Do not underestimate the practicality of the liberal arts,” Lambert said. “You will become a better writer. You will learn to solve problems as a team member. You will be able to present ideas persuasively. These are the skills that have value in the marketplace and will prepare you for graduate and professional degrees in virtually any field.” (To read the entire text of President Lambert’s remarks, click here.)
Maurice Levesque, associate professor of psychology, discussed the responsibilities of citizenship in an academic community and the importance of Elon’s honor code.
“The honor code calls each of us to be honest, to respect the dignity of others as unique individuals of worth, to respect intellectual and material property, to take responsibility for our choices and to accept responsibility for the well-being of others, including helping them to abide by these values. Simply put, we expect that you will behave with integrity,” Levesque said. (To read the entire text of Professor Levesque’s remarks, click here.)
After Assistant Professor of Music Hallie Coppedge led the class in the singing of the Elon Alma Mater and fight song, Elon’s newest students marched past faculty members lining the sidewalks. In keeping with Elon tradition, each student received an acorn, symbolizing the promise and potential of their education here. Tradition dictates that graduating students also receive an oak seedling at commencement, to plant and nurture after they leave Elon.
“On your commencement day, you will again pass through the assembled faculty line, having accomplished so much,” Lambert said. “On that day, a day that will come much more quickly than you expect, you will exchange your acorn for an oak seedling and go out into the world with the assurance that your Elon education has prepared you for life’s journey. So, we have a date, all of us, to meet under the oaks in four years at commencement.
“May God bless and guide and inspire you on the wonderful journey ahead. Long live Elon!”