Welcome Week 2018

The campus of Governors State University is awakening from a sleepy summer as faculty, staff, and students return for the 2018-19 academic year. From May to August, classes crept to a slower pace that now gives way to the excitement of the first week of classes, and Welcome Week.

The week-long celebration marks the beginning of fall semester with fun activities—a pool party, a volleyball game, and a scavenger hunt. On Monday, an MTV-style rap comedy showcase went down in Sherman Hall, and there’s more to come all week.

Today, the Student Activities Council is throwing a pool party and cookout, and 103.5 KISS FM is hosting a block party with free food and carnival activities on Thursday.

Konya Sledge, Assistant Director, Student Involvement and Campus Programming points to the science that belies the excitement.

“This is an opportunity to explore the university, to meet new friends, faculty and staff – to get to know what GSU is all about,” said Sledge. “It’s important because students should know the more involved they are, the more likely they will be to graduate from college because they meet faculty and staff and start to network.”

Welcome Week offers practicality, too. The Secretary of State will be on hand this week to register voters and issue vehicle stickers, and Career Services will be available to help students look for jobs.

To assist with the activities, Student Life has enlisted other organizations, including the Student Healthcare Management Association and Office of International Students to help peak interest and engagement that extends from the first week of the academic year until the last, said Robert E. Clay, Interim Director, Student Life and Intercultural Student Affairs.

“Our goal is to serve as a catalyst to keep the flow and excitement going all year. We start with Welcome Week, then there’s Homecoming and end of semester celebrations. We start in January with Welcome Week again, then MLK, Leadership conferences, cultural heritage months, then Spring Fest. So we’re trying to keep the momentum going.”

Click here for a full list of this week's events.