Bryn Mawr Students Take the Lead in Welcoming the Class of 2028

"The thing that attracted me to Bryn Mawr is how authentic everyone seemed," said Lily Zelman '28 of Chapel Hill, N.C., as she took a break from moving into Pembroke East. "So I'm definitely looking forward to meeting people different than me, similar to me, all of that."

Zelman, who got a hand moving in from Bryn Mawr President Wendy Cadge, chose Bryn Mawr because of the Archaeology program.

"So I'm hoping that will be my niche but I'm also open to everything," she said.

The move into the residence halls kicks off Bryn Mawr's new student orientation, known as "Customs Week," in which Associate Dean of the First Year Experience Mary Beth Horvath, dozens of students from the Dorm Leadership Team (DLT), and faculty and staff from throughout the College provide programming to welcome Bryn Mawr's newest community members and set them up for success.

Ella Morrissey '27 and Nomah Elliot '27 are the Customs People (students with the specific role of helping first-year students) at Erdman Hall and busily helped students get checked into the dorm on Wednesday morning.

"I felt like coming to Bryn Mawr really just kind of felt like coming home and I wanted to be able to help other incoming students have that same kind of positive experience," said Morrissey.

"Last year, when I was a first year, my custom person and my whole DLT team, made my first year experience amazing. I think that I wouldn't have had the same kind of introduction to the school without them," added Elliot.

Among the many housing options at Bryn Mawr is the Enid Cook '31 Center, home to Bryn Mawr's Black Cultural Center as well as a dorm.

DLT members welcoming students there included Elvira Bedolla Garcia '27, Ayantae Cunningham '25, Abriella Staggs '25, and Eliana Simmons '27.

"My first year was very daunting, as it is, for a lot of first years, and so I really valued having someone to lead me and to be able to answer my questions, whether it's, 'How do I connect to Wi-Fi?' or 'How do I get used to being in an environment that's so different to what I'm used to?' and they were there, especially in the ECC. This is an amazing home, an amazing community that's really been my foundation for Bryn Mawr, and without it, I'm not sure where I would be today," said Eliana, who serves as a Community Diversity Assistant.

"I think what's important about DLT is walking the first years through what college looks like, especially in that first semester," added Staggs. "I know that a lot of them come in kind of unsure of what they want to do, where to go, where to be, how to find their people. And having DLT as a first resource to go to has been really helpful and shown to be really successful. We really want to make it a great community for them. Especially making a safe space that they can go to whenever they have situations or problems."

Once students were moved into their residence halls and had lunch, there were a number of events to learn more about campus resources and late in the afternoon the entire class and their families gathered on Senior Row to hear from President Cadge, Dean of Admissions Cheryl Horsey, Provost Tim Harte, and Dean of the Undergraduate College Karlene Burrell-McRae.

After taking a moment to recognize the support given to students by the friends and family gathered, Cadge addressed the Class of 2028.

“Members of the class of 2028, we are both beginning our Bryn Mawr experiences this fall," said Cadge. “When I started my own academic journey many moons ago I took a course in religious studies which set me on a path to becoming a sociologist of religion a field that I didn’t even know existed.

“Lets commit to staying open, to asking the questions that help us really know one another and to trying one new thing a week – a talk or lecture or new piece of equipment at the gym, sign up for the interesting 360 course , venture to English House and take a creative writing class or attend a reading, explore the labs of the Park Science Building.

“Your class will always be special to me because we are joining and learning this community together with our light blue lanterns. Welcome to Bryn Mawr!”