The Real Fun Begins

Whoo hoo!!! My first program has come and gone!

Last night the Freshman College and I hosted an "Italian Ice Kick-Off" for the students and staff members in the program. It was a way of us saying, "Welcome to Freshman College! We hope you enjoyed your first day of classes. Here's a special treat to officially welcome you....and also to calm the nerves a little." You see, Freshman College is not so similar to other summer programs of its type. Most either focus on the academic preparation side of college transition, while others focus on the social/developmental piece. Well, Freshman College combines these two aspects for one holistic experience that I'm proud to be a part of. More or less, it's like my class conversations about Student and Academic Affairs working together for the development and success of our college students. Pretty cool seeing it unfold before me!

Tomorrow (Happy 4th of July!), I have the pleasure of experiencing fireworks at Athens's own Bishop Park with the students who decided to stay with us during the 4th of July weekend. I, myself, haven't seen a real fireworks show in person in a long while, so this will be an awesome treat for me. This program is really a chance for students to experience one of many off-campus locales that they may want to enjoy as a UGA student. It's similar to giving them a grand tour of Athens, GA and the local restaurants, shops, movie theaters, malls, etc. but also experiencing the locales first hand instead of reading about a few historical facts about them, which I know is good, too! (^_^)

The real fun begins on Tuesday the 6th when we have out first GRADED social program, the "3 on 3 Volleyball Tourney and BBQ". Yes, I said "graded", as in you attend this program for course credit. (I believe I explained that part of Freshman College before.) Students sign up to attend "Beyond the Classroom" programs about academics, culture, and socializing with others that count towards 10% of their final grade while in Freshman College this summer session. Incentives. Gotta love it.

I know I've been promising to post pics of experience lately, but I think I'm going to use an online photo album and post the link to it on another blog update. I have A LOT of pics to sort through and organize before they go public. Maybe I should be doing that now. LOL!

TTFN! Ta-ta for now! (^_^)

~Steven