Last week, the Office of New Student Programs welcomed eight incoming first year students to campus for Live the Maroon Life, the newest of the First Year Summer Experience (FSE) programs.
The brand new, six-day program was designed to orient participants with Elon’s values and traditions. Led by a student coordinator, the incoming students became familiar with the Elon community as well as the greater Piedmont Triad.
The program kicked off with a dinner with Elon President Leo M. Lambert, Vice Presidents Smith Jackson and Greg Zaiser, and President Emeritus J. Earl Danieley. Students became acquainted with one another on Elon’s Challenge Course, as well as through various icebreakers and personal reflection activities.
Throughout the week, several staff members spoke with the participants about health and wellness, community service, sustainability, diversity and social justice, the Honor Code, academic affairs and cultural identity.
Off campus activities included harvesting potatoes at Peacehaven Community Farm in Whitsett, N.C.; touring the International Civil Rights Museum in Greensboro, N. C.; and hiking at Hanging Rock State Park in Danbury, N. C.
Student coordinator Carley Gaynes assisted Katie Hight, Director of New Student Programs in developing and facilitating the FSE in its inaugural year.
“The participants will all certainly enter their first year with a strong sense of their surroundings,” Gaynes said. “In the future, I hope that Live the Maroon Life continues to grow and that more students will get to experience the wonderful things that Elon has to offer, before they even arrive for orientation.”
First Year Summer Experiences utilize experiential learning to increase incoming students’ confidence and preparedness for beginning their college careers at Elon. Live the Maroon Life joins Adventures in Leadership, Discovery, Pre-Serve and Quest as the fifth unique FSE.
For more information about the Live the Maroon Life FSE, contact Katie Hight at khight@elon.edu or 336-278-7320.