Students take turns posing next to the Red Hawk Statue –Photo by Lucia Rubi Godoy
Montclair State University’s class of 2021 started the school year with an event that aimed to awaken everyone’s involvement: Red Hawk Day.
Red Hawk Day took place on Tuesday and started at Panzer Athletic Center, where incoming freshmen signed up and collected T-shirts with the color of their college from the different tables assisted by the peer leaders.
“Red Hawk Day is the first time that they are having a full experience at Montclair after orientation,” said Liselle Montrose, a senior justice studies major.
The actual series of events coordinated by the Academic Success and Retention Program (ASRP) began with a convocation out in Sprague Field. The students heard speeches from Duane Williams, the director for the office of ASRP, and Dean Carter after standing up for the national anthem and having a dance-off with Rocky the Red Hawk.
Before noon, the newcomers were lining up by T-shirt color to grab lunch with students in the same college and sit in different open areas with their respective groups.
“We ask students to meet in their respective areas right now for community lunch, and meet at least three faculty members,” said Williams. “This is the culmination of our orientation series.”
He explained that the orientation program is a three-part series that culminated with Red Hawk Day.
“We always look to improve it,” said Williams. “Last year we started the tradition of walking by the Red Hawk statue and rubbing it for good luck. Next year, hopefully we’ll be able to make some improvements to really have the faculty and staff actually welcome students in a different way.”
The community lunch was followed by a session of College 101 and Red Hawk Carnival that included dinner and games organized for the students.
