A New Chapter Begins

Berry welcomed approximately 575 first-year students and transfers for the beginning of the 2007-2008 academic year.

The flood of new students – representing an impressive 27 states and nine countries – began rushing through the Gate of Opportunity on Wednesday morning, Aug. 22. The first order of business was move-in, after which time the new arrivals plunged into a comprehensive and all-encompassing schedule of orientation activities known as Viking Venture.

Smiles and laughter were commonplace as students displayed their talents in the New Faces Talent Show, got to know each other at PlayFair and participated in team-building exercises on the BOLD course. They also attended MAD Theatre, a play about community living that was written and performed by Berry students; toured Oak Hill and The Martha Berry Museum; and took part in discussions about Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, this year’s first-year reading assignment. The whirlwind of activities built to a crescendo the day before classes started when students of all ages braved a waterslide on Frost Chapel hill.

Although new to Berry, the new students have much in common with those who have come before them. According to statistics shared by Dean of Students Debbie Heida at the first-year convocation, more than half of the new arrivals ranked in the top 25 percent of their high school classes, including seven valedictorians and eight salutatorians. Sixty-six percent have had at least one leadership experience, and 69 percent were involved in community service during high school. Seventy-seven percent held jobs of one type or another in high school.

Individual accomplishments are equally impressive among the new arrivals. Achievements and accolades include recognition as an Eagle Scott or as a Girl Scott Silver or Gold Award winner; an internship at the Marshall Space Flight Center; experience as a theatre stage manager, writer and student director; a silver medal in an international dance competition at the Lincoln Center; participation in mission trips to Romania, Australia, Thailand, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, Uganda and other countries; and a national FBLA community service award.

This impressive group should fit right in among a student body that, for fall 2007, is approximately 1,850 strong. Like the newcomers, Berry’s returning students are equally accomplished. To read some of their stories, go to http://news.mywebpal.com/partners/680/public/
news832809.html. To access more photos from Viking Venture, click this link: www.berry.edu/academics/freshman/vv2007.asp.