Changes being made to summer orientation

Summer orientation for first-year students at Buena Vista University (BVU) is presently undergoing changes. A university committee is currently looking at orientation as an opportunity to provide incoming students with more time to connect with faculty and current students. The fall 2009 orientation was extended to three days to give students additional time to prepare for the academic year.

According to Mark Shea, Director of Retention Services, the role of students in the orientation planning process is being expanded. The President’s Council approved the hiring of three Orientation Team Executive Board members to facilitate the planning of orientation and registration throughout summer and into fall 2010. The board feels that orientation should provide a fun and interactive way to become familiar and orientated with the college.

Shea feels that the first-year students need to understand the transition from high school to college and how to handle the increased rigor and expectations of college. Dr. Mary Gill, Associate Dean of Faculty, feels the gap between high school experiences and the expectations of four-year programs like BVU seems to have increased. Students are entering with unrealistic expectations of the time and energy that will need to be focused on academics.

“Many students seem less ready to adapt to the intensity of the academic experience,” Dr. Gill said.

The orientation experience should be the first step in emphasizing academic success and for students to begin seeing themselves as graduates of BVU. According to Gill, fall 2010’s orientation program is planning to engage students in intellectual activities to help connect students to their learning community.

“Orientation has to be a healthy mixture of getting mentally and emotionally prepared for the academic journey,” Dr. Gill said.

The orientation time should allow students to become familiar with the opportunities and services that are available at BVU. Looking ahead to 2011, the Orientation team hopes to incorporate the globalization theme in orientation activities. Members of the orientation board want to help students have an effective transition to the academic and social life of campus with fewer students experiencing academic distress.

Shea hopes the BVU community gets involved in the program to give incoming students a taste of the spirit of BVU.

“We hope this will allow students to get off to a great start toward a successful and rewarding road to graduation at BVU,” Shea said.