Something exhilarating is happening on campus over the next two weeks! Our students are returning to campus for their fall sports training camps and marching band practices then everyone else for fall semester classes. It is an exciting time of year for all faculty and staff here at Grove City College because it means that the energy provided by having hundreds of students around begins to bolster our sails just before we head on the road for our fall recruiting season. Yet, August is exciting for another reason: the freshmen arrive (tomorrow)! Beginning Thursday, August 20 is Welcome Week, or affectionately known by students as OB Week. While Welcome Week is named as a week, it consists of events starting August 20 and ending on Monday, September 28. In reality, it should be called Welcome Month but most events take place in the first week or so of the freshmen being on campus.
OB is an acronym for Orientation Board which is a student organization that is specifically designed to welcome students to Grove City College. This crazy organization of roughly 100 upperclassmen students is all about fun, spiritual development, and making sure the new freshmen have a smooth transition into the family-like atmosphere created by the rest of the student body. They do this by organizing and hosting a whirlwind series of fun activities and events ranging from off-the-wall crazy to beautifully spiritual. One way or another, our incoming freshmen begin their time here knowing they are loved and cared for as they begin this new chapter in their lives.
Below is a list of highlights (and picture links from Orientation Board’s Facebook page!) for Welcome Week 2015:
Thursday, August 20: Move-In
Thursday August 20: OB Graffiti Dance (think white T-shirts, fun-colored sharpies to sign your name on the shirts of everyone you meet, and black lights)
Friday, August 21: Meeting Connection Group for Dinner (a pair of upperclassmen OB members will act as mentors throughout the year to a group of freshmen)
Friday, August 21: OB Night Under the Stars (a drive-in style movie using a projector and an enormous screen on the wall of a three-story building)
Saturday, August 22: OB Sunrise Service (a chapel service on the quad while God paints a beautiful picture on the canvas of the sky)
Saturday, August 22: OB Olympics (a series of crazy games designed to act as ice-breakers using mentor groups as teams and “countries”)
Saturday, August 22: OB Picnic (a great socialization event with the only expectation being the consumption of food)
Saturday, August 22: OB Carnival (get ready for some classic carnival games)
Sunday, August 23: Upperclassmen Move-In (the rest of the student body officially returns to campus)
Sunday, August 23: OB Worship/Chapel Orientation (a wonderful time of growing together spiritually while getting the general gist of the chapel program)
Sunday, August 23: OB Ice Cream Social (Socialization and ice cream…can’t get much better than that)
Sunday, August 23: OB Off-Broadway (a gut-busting show of hilarious skits performed by OB members and the Freshmen RAs)
Monday, August 24: First day of class (the rest of the weekday events are hosted in the evening so as not to conflict with classes) and OB Hoedown Throwdown (a square dancing extravaganza!)
Tuesday, August 25: OB Bonfire (great social event at a classic summer/fall activity)
Wednesday, August 26: OB Praise and Ministry Info Service (another chance for students to worship together but also gain some information about the different ministry organizations on campus)
Thursday, August 27: OB International Student Social (a chance for our new and current international students to mingle and get to know each other)
Thursday, August 27: Human Game Knight (a great evening of active games and entertainment)
Friday, August 28: OB Campus Organization Fair (every club, organization, ministry, Greek organization and Housing Group will have a table to provide information to new students)
Saturday, August 29: OB Ultimate Frisbee Tournament (this is a competition between freshmen halls as an introduction to the most popular non-varsity pastime on campus)
Saturday, August 29: OB All-Campus Worship (a chance for the campus community to come together and worship our God)
Friday, September 4: OB All-Campus Street Dance (held outdoors in HAL Courtyard, this is a fun dancing event for the entire campus)
Friday, September 18: OB Freshmen Talent Show (a chance for the new kids on the block to showcase their various skills and talents to campus)
Saturday, September 19: OB Service Project (bonding through serving the local community as a freshmen class)
Monday, September 28: College and Commerce (Grove City Chamber of Commerce Mixer)
Photo Courtesy of Orientation Board Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/grovecityorientationboard
Photo Courtesy of Orientation Board Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/grovecityorientationboard
Photo Courtesy of Orientation Board Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/grovecityorientationboard
Photo Courtesy of Orientation Board Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/grovecityorientationboard