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The William Paterson University Class of 2029, more than 1,000 students strong, was greeted by a cheering gauntlet of faculty and staff as Welcome Day kicked off on campus on Tuesday, August 26.
The newest Pioneers processed through Pioneer Soccer Park, where they were greeted by hundreds of faculty and staff who assembled to welcome them to the University. The students then continued into the Sports and Recreation Center for New Student Convocation, where they were officially welcomed to the campus community by University President Richard J. Helldobler.
“I hope this is the beginning of an exciting, curiosity-filled, intellectually stimulating, and fun journey as a member of our Pioneer community,” said President Helldobler. “We want you to use your time with us here on campus to get a high-quality education that will prepare you for a successful career and a rewarding life. Equally important, we want you all to have the kind of experiences that demonstrate the value in balancing your work lives—including your coursework and any outside jobs you may have—with having some fun. We also want you to experience the personal rewards that come from meaningful activities, like volunteerism and activism, through which you will also help make our world a better place. And you can start with our little corner of it, by helping make William Paterson a better place for you and your classmates, as well as for those Pioneers who will follow you and sit where you now sit, next year and for years to come.”
President Helldobler encouraged the University’s newest Pioneers to give themselves time to be college students. “Give yourself permission to learn, to play, to achieve, to experience, create balance, to get to know yourself, to fail, to excel, to affirm or challenge values and long held beliefs—your own and others—to understand truth, science, and numbers, and to breathe,” he said. “In other words, give yourself time to be a college student. And when you get that transformational degree, when you go out into the world, we know that you will be transformational Pioneers!”
Alumna Audrey McDowell ’91, a member of the University’s Board of Trustees, also spoke to the students. She reminisced about her time on campus and told the students that while she had a passion for learning, she too needed time to figure out how to apply her talents and interests. “But what mattered most is that—in addition to a desire to learn—I had an openness to meeting new people and exploring new interests. Fortunately, I quickly learned that William Paterson was a place that nurtures and rewards that kind of openness. And fortunately for you, William Paterson is an even more welcoming, nurturing, inclusive, and supportive place these days.”
Other speakers welcoming the students to campus were Joshua Powers, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs; Balmurli Natrajan, professor of anthropology and chair of the Faculty Senate; Xavier Clavijo, a student representative to the Board of Trustees, and Sehej Osan, president of the Student Government Association.
Black and orange streamers filled the venue as the ceremony concluded with a Will. Power. Chant and the University’s spirit song. The students then headed to the WP Spirit Rock on Speert Green, where they gathered for their first campus photo as the Class of 2029.
The students also attended their first Will. Power.101 classes, which introduce them to campus life, and enjoyed a barbecue lunch and activities on the Pioneer Practice Field.
