Saturday, Aug. 16, students new and returning were welcomed to the Pittsburg State campus for dorm move-in day. This year, residence assistants and volunteers were joined by members of several on-campus organizations and sports teams to assist students in the move-in process.
These extra helpers were tasked with moving furniture into dorm rooms and showcasing Pitt State’s welcoming and supportive environment.
This new initiative invoked positive feedback from RAs and students alike.
“I noticed a huge difference in when we had volunteers VS when we didn’t,” Sommer Fisher, a PSU student said. “Things went much more smoothly when we had more hands to help out!”
Where in typical years, RAs would be carrying the brunt of the heavy lifting, tasks were delegated to a much larger range of people.
Sophomore nursing student Lane Williams mentioned that “The help we got on move-in day was great. Just when we started getting tired, a big group showed up to give us a much-needed break.”
The extra sets of hands not only took the weight off the RAs’ shoulders, but the parents of students as well.
Regarding the family members of incoming students, Fisher mentioned that “They were very appreciative of not having to do much of the moving themselves during assisted move-in.”
“Almost all the parents I helped were so thankful. They had uplifting comments that made me glad to help them out,” added Williams.
While the helping hands provided great assistance, another benefit of this event was the social aspect. New students were able to directly interact with organization members from the very beginning of their college experience. This provided a sense of community to the freshmen and new exposure to the various organizations and groups.
“I think this is a huge way to start the community off strong! Seeing people from different organizations welcoming you as a new student makes things less scary in coming to a new place,” Fisher said.
‘I think that seeing how hard we worked on that day will show new residents that there are a lot of people on campus who care.” Williams reminisced, “Last year as a freshman, it inspired me and gave me a brighter look on Pitt State and the upcoming school year. Hopefully, it will have the same impact on them.”
Williams hopes to see this event continue in the future, stating that “It’s much easier on the new students coming in. It’s better to have one of us young college students helping than somebody’s grandparents.”
Fisher concurred. “I absolutely believe that this should continue. Not only does it make our job as RAs easier, but it makes things easier for parents and incoming students. It also allows students to see that we have a welcoming community here on campus.”