Issue date: 7/23/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Alex Jones [Click to enlarge]

"The New Student Conference stirs up the Aggie Spirit," said De Dei Wright, the mother of Meredith Wright, an incoming freshman. The A&M student conferences are yearly events in which incoming freshmen from all over the country come to campus to discover all it has to offer. It also gives students a chance to bring family along to have them share the experience. The conference is for new students and transfer students from other colleges.

The new student conferences take place from May 21 to Aug. 22. A typical conference lasts two days.

"The process of organizing the student conference is generally a year round process," said Meredith Malnar, the assistant coordinator of Student Life. Over the year it takes to plan, an estimated 100 workers put in hours to make sure the conference runs smoothly. Student Life starts by hiring 15 professionals. In February, Student Life hires a range of 80 to 90 people to complete the staff.

Malnar said the main goal and reason for having the student conference is to acclimate the students with the community. Also, its goal is to help the students get used to the campus, where all their classes are, where to find good resources, the social transitions and just getting to know what's out there and what A&M has to offer.

The family members are also a major aspect of the conference. More than 10,000 freshmen and their families take part in the student conference every year.

"I liked [the student conference] because it made me feel like I was going to be a part of this University, where as the other universities kids go by themselves and the parents aren't there with them. The parents were just really involved, and I liked that," said one of the mothers.

When the families register for the conference, they are asked if their freshman will be living on campus. If they are, the families are encouraged to stay in the dorms during the conference. "It helps for good experience and to let the parents know what it would be like in the dorms," Malnar said.

After taking a tour, the soon-to-be Aggie freshman Meredith Wright said, "I will be attending here in the fall and will be studying political science and diplomacy. I got to meet and speak with my adviser and also had the opportunity to meet some of the people I will be having classes with. Also, when you meet your adviser they can help you with your schedule. So the whole experience was really nice, and it has made a huge difference."

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