Claire Smith
Features Editor
Beginning college can be exciting and nerve-racking, but Murray State hosts a yearly event that helps make that transition smooth.
Great Beginnings, which is in its 25th year, helps freshmen and transfer students settle into life at the University.
Trish Lofton, Curris Center administrative assistant, said Great Beginnings is an annual tradition for the University.
“New and returning students get assistance in a variety of areas like financial aid, meal plans, advising and so much more,” Lofton said.
The event also gives commuters and residential students an opportunity to mingle whether that be within their shared residential college or at events like bingo and Waterfield Wired.
Planning for Great Beginnings starts in January with the campus and community collaborating to make the event possible.
Events like Explore Murray and bingo have remained a favorite among students and during planning they try to add a new event for students to enjoy.
“Great Beginnings 2019 has been a huge success,” Lofton said. “New students were greeted by faculty and staff throughout this past weekend to assist with move-in and getting acquainted with campus.”
Great Beginnings also helps ease the transition for parents with an opportunity to write a farewell letter to their son or daughter and a time to say goodbye before their student meets their Great Beginnings leader.
Great Beginnings leaders are upperclassmen who help new students transition smoothly into college life.
Each leader shows a group of students around campus and attends events with them.
Ally Davis, a junior from Newburgh, Indiana, has always participated in on-campus activities and remembers enjoying Great Beginnings when she was a freshman.
“Since I am almost a senior now, I needed to put more time to my studies but I still wanted to be involved,” Davis said. “So, I thought that becoming a GBL would be a great way to still be involved.”
Great Beginnings features many activities from ice breakers to a hypnotist.
Each year hypnotist Tom Deluca visits the University and puts on a show that draws freshmen and upperclassmen.
Students can volunteer to go on stage and be hypnotized. Throughout the show the audience was thrown into fits of laughter as students danced, forgot their name and sang answers to questions.
The show took place on the second day of classes and was a nice pause for the beginning of the semester.
Jett Spivey, freshman from Rosiclare, Illinois, has enjoyed meeting other people through Great Beginnings.
He also enjoys taking classes that he’s interested in.
Cole Wyatt, freshman from Benton, Kentucky, said Murray is like a second home.
He went to basketball camp at Murray State and grew up around the area.
Great Beginnings will carry on throughout August and September. A complete list of activities can be found at TheNews.org.