As students start to look towards the end of the year, thoughts of what next semester will look like becomes a thought in many minds. Starting a new year can always be stressful and a bit of a rush, and this is especially true for the incoming freshmen about to start their college career. It is easy to get lost in the swarm which is orientation weekend.
Because of this, the best way to serve these future classmates is to help lead them through the weekend. You can do this by joining O-Staff. As an O-Staff Leader, you’ll help plan and lead Welcome Weekend while building relationships, creating energy and making students feel at home from day one. According to Lindsay Simmelink, they are looking for 40 amazing Raiders to help out.
“O-Staff is one of the best ways to meet new students and get to know upperclassmen you might not otherwise cross paths with.” said Simmelink “It’s meaningful, it’s memorable, and it’s a lot of fun.”
For those who don’t know the process and commitments that O-Staff brings, here are a few highlights. Before getting to the actual orientation weekend in the fall, there are a few commitments, but they are easy to do even with a jam packed schedule. O-Staff will simply attend three Sunday training sessions in order to get to know the weekend on your side, do a small amount of prep work and get to know the other students.
“O-staff is the most rewarding job on campus,” said former O-staffer, Thomas Vance “you get to welcome new students to campus and provide a great warm welcome while having a great time with people you might not have been friends with outside of O-Staff.”
“The entire process was super fun.” said one former O-Staffer “We would just hang out and get to know each other, and it was super nice to know the schedule even before we started the fall.”
Students who choose to be a part of O-Staff will arrive a week before most other students and get more time in moving into their dorm instead of coming only a day or two before classes start. During the weekend, they will have two different assignments to a group and a committee. The group will be leading freshmen with one other O-staff member and the committee plans orientation events such as the Freshmen Mixer or the Ice Cream Social.
One big change from last year is that participating in the O-show is now optional. Some members of the theatre department are looking at taking the lead for that event, and O-staffers may still participate if they wish, but are not required to if they would rather hangout with freshmen and enjoy watching the show.
Some desired skills for being a part of O-staff is being positive, encouraging, approachable and a heart to serve others and the Lord.
“The upperclassmen were super nice and very helpful throughout my orientation and the community that I found has been amazing.” said freshman Austin Lavender.
“I really enjoyed meeting the freshmen class and getting to be a guide for them as upperclassmen were for me a couple years ago.” said former O-staff member, Ella Erickson “It was also a great way to bond with others that I don’t normally hang out with. I also loved getting to be back on campus early, even though it cut my summer down, when the crazy orientation weekend came around, I was already settled into my dorm.”
Another former O-staffer, Ashley Montes, loved how everyone worked as a team. Everyone would bond and make new friendships with people you would normally pass on campus and never knew how the community can co-exist with one another.
“I loved how I was accidentally thrown into directing traffic at one point, but it helped keep an orderly system and made the move-in process smoother instead of having everyone clog entrances and exits.” Montes said.
In the end, there is a place for everyone on O-Staff. Students join for the community, to meet new students, to get here early and countless other reasons. Students can be part of O-staff and O-groups, do the O-show or even mentor incoming NEXT students during the weekend. For more information, ask a fellow student or reach out to Lindsey Simmelink with any questions.
