New Students Tour Hudson Valley at Orientation
Approximately 1,019 students and 817 guests attended Orientation, which was on Aug. 16 from 8:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.
DJ Vinny Liota of Cool Cat Entertainment mixed live music in the pavilion as guests were treated to macaroni salad, hot dogs, hamburgers, flame roasted chicken and an assortment of cookies provided by Chartwells. The $20,000 budget for Orientation was approved by the Student Senate in early June.
There were also prize drawings, with prizes including a $1,000 tuition voucher, Viking’s Cove Bookstore gift certificates, a Lenovo tablet and an official college gift basket. Students who filled out and returned the Orientation questionnaire also received a Hudson Valley 4 GB flash drive.
In the Siek Student Center, clubs and school services advertised themselves, and several informational sessions were offered, including Financial Aid: Dollars and Sense, From High School Grad to College Scholar: Academic Advisement for the Liberal Arts Student, Veterans’ Services, Getting Ready for Your Future: Career and Transfer Opportunities, Student Life and Student Support Services.
“The second year teaches you what Hudson Valley really has to offer [for clubs and activities],” said Bintou Cisse, Broadcast Communications major, “for some students it takes a semester or two.”
A CDTA bus was parked in front of the Siek Campus Center as an advertisement for the unlimited ridership program, which allows all current Hudson Valley students to ride CDTA buses for free with a valid student ID. The program starts again on Aug. 25.
The ID carding station was moved from the computer lab, where it was stationed last year, to the second floor of Siek to “reduce heavy traffic significantly,” according to Dennis Kennedy, Director of Communications and Marketing.
“It’s less congested than last year. We noticed that moving the machine would improve the flow of Orientation and so far, I think it’s been working,” said Kennedy.
“This is definitely an improvement from last year,” said Jaime Miller, EOP counselor. “It’s a lot easier for students to actually see what’s going on with some of the programs, clubs and activities on campus.”
ID carding will be available from Aug. 25-29 from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sep. 1-5 and 8-12 from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Campus Tours were given by Hudson Valley faculty and Student Senate members from 10:15 a.m to noon.
“[Hudson Valley] is a commuter school,” said Toni DelGiacco, Engineering major, “It’s easy and affordable. If there’s something you’re interested in, now is the time to really think about it before you get out [into the workforce].”