New and returning Davis & Elkins College students received a spirited Senator welcome and a helping hand last weekend as they moved into residence halls and prepared for the first week of classes.
New students arrived August 20, and had the opportunity to visit with merchants and other guests from the Elkins area during the annual Welcome Fair in The McDonnell Center. D&E President Chris Wood, student-athletes and members of the campus community joined efforts to help students carry refrigerators, computers and other necessities into their new home away from home. Afterward, they and their families enjoyed a picnic lunch with College faculty and staff.
The morning’s activities led up to the time-honored Matriculation Convocation. Dressed in shirts bearing the Orientation Weekend theme, “The Journey is the Destination,” new students processed from Booth Library to Myles Center for the Arts Harper-McNeeley Auditorium. Led by the West Virginia Highlanders of Davis & Elkins College, faculty, staff and members of the Board of Trustees, the procession is much like the walk students will take for commencement.
In his address to the new class, Wood told students that their journey at Davis & Elkins will bring new experiences and challenges, and produce lifelong friendships and personal growth. He emphasized that goals and achievements are not always the most valued treasures discovered along the journey.
“Never forget on the journey that you find meaning and you find purpose, and sometimes you find destiny for your life,” Wood told the group. “That is my hope for you and my prayer for you in this time you have chosen to join us. Together, we are the Davis & Elkins community.”
On Sunday, while upper classmen were checking into their residence halls, new students were busy getting acquainted and learning team building skills as they participated in the “Write Your Story” program. The full day of interactive learning experiences included presentations of thought provoking scenarios. The initiative, designed to encourage students in thought and reflection about their purposes in life, is made possible in part by a grant from the Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE) and the Council of Independent Colleges, with funding from the Lilly Endowment Inc.
The weekend concluded with the annual Last Night of Summer Carnival in the open-air Augusta Dance Pavilion. Students gathered for carnival games, music, food, fun and fireworks.
Related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Davis & Elkins College is located in Elkins, 2 hours east of Charleston, 3 hours south of Pittsburgh and 4 hours west of Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit the College website at www.dewv.edu or call 304-637-1243.
