Image from S&T Twitter page
Missouri University of Science and Technology hosted their Orientation Week for new students on Monday, August 16th through Saturday, August 21st. Orientation Week, commonly referred to as O-Week, is designed to provide new students with a smooth transition to our campus life and community. Jam-packed with activities and events, O-Week provides various combinations of interactive programs and academic workshops. These are tailored to each new student to provide the opportunities to get involved and meet new friends, establish mentor groups, and highlight our campus culture. The week wraps up with a student design project done by each O-Week group, all led by current S&T students dedicating their week to their new student groups.
Students started out their week by moving into their residence halls, following the current move-in COVID-19 guidelines the university put into place. The COVID policy provided 4 options for students moving in. They must’ve provided either; proof of full vaccination, proof of recovery from COVID-19 in the past 90 days, proof of a negative test result, or get tested on site. Missouri S&T kept these new students busy from 8 A.M. till 10:30 P.M. Monday through Saturday. Their week started out with a welcome dinner and an introduction to their design project, “Project X”, with their pre-assigned O-Week groups. Mornings and afternoons generally consisted of workshops and team activities, while evenings were full of activities put on by various organizations. Some of these activities included a murder mystery, Panhellenic Council socials (our umbrella organization for women’s sororities on campus), Glow Bash, Root Beer Keg, Vegas Night, and many others. Most of Saturday consisted of the Project X car races, with awards announced later in the evening. According to Mackenzie Mills, a PRO (Preview, Registration, and Orientation) leader, “It was so fun for us when we got to see the O-Week teams win prizes on awards night, bonding over all the programming we spent so much time creating, and getting excited for their time as S&T.”
These events were planned intricately beforehand. Current S&T students volunteered their time before O-Week even began to prepare for the new students coming in. Current students worked as O-Week mentors leading an O-Week group and as PRO leaders. “We spend all year preparing for opening week, and seeing it all come together is really amazing. It’s wholesome seeing the incoming students having a good time and making friends.” said Sara Morgenthaler, another PRO leader. These leaders on campus are a huge part of executing O-Week successfully!
Students attended their first day of classes on Monday, August 23 on campus, with a significant amount of classes being taught in-person again. While some online components are still being used in various classes, this feels like a step in the right direction towards a feeling of normalcy. Missouri S&T adamantly highlights their coronavirus policies they’ve put in place for the safety of students, faculty, and staff. According to the University Coronavirus homepage, “Effective Monday, Aug. 2, all faculty, staff, students and visitors will be required to wear a face covering in meeting spaces of university-owned or-operated buildings when social distancing is not possible. This policy applies to all, regardless of vaccination status. We continue to encourage the use of face coverings outdoors for all individuals.” These policies will be in place until they are reevaluated on September 15th. Overall, this looks to be a successful start to the Fall 2021 semester at Missouri S&T!
