Freshmen move into housing at Cal Poly on sweltering day
Students and families swarmed the Cal Poly campus Sunday, sweating as they moved into university housing during sweltering heat that reached 102 degrees on campus.
“This is my second time around, and I’m not sobbing this time,” said Mary Swanson from Washington after she gave her son Matthew, a business administration freshman, a final hug goodbye. “But after I drive away it might be a different story.”
Because of ongoing construction, and in an effort to create a more organized move-in, students and their families were taken to a staging area to offload their luggage and items into carts, which they then pushed to their buildings, said Jon Fink, director of custodial operations. Volunteers helped push carts and direct students.
Fall quarter classes begin Thursday after several Week of Welcome activities. WOW programs will pause for students and orientation leaders to attend classes, and resume Friday evening and run through the weekend. There are 5,173 new students participating in WOW activities this fall, according to a Cal Poly news release.
Freshmen Ryan Dugan, Jad Nachabe and Matthew Trahan moved into Cerro Islay this weekend, or “Mount Everest,” as they called it. They laughed, noting that pushing the carts up the hill in the heat would help them avoid the Freshman 15, as well as give them “Cal Poly calves.”
Cal Poly President Jeffrey Armstrong was among those greeting students and helping them move in Sunday.
“Cal Poly Mustang move-in, it’s a fantastic time, and this year it’s going so smoothly,” he said. “I tip my hat to student affairs.”
I would rather take her back home, but she has to fly sometime.
Keith Savell as he dropped off his daughter Liana Katz-Savell at Cal Poly
Isabella Saldana, a freshman from San Diego studying animal science, said she was excited to get her dorm room set up and meet all of her roommates, and couldn’t wait to start WOW. Saldana said she was nervous about getting lost starting classes, and that she was going to try to check out the classrooms beforehand.
Kelsey Molina, a freshman from Fremont studying English, had her mom, dad and brother helping her move in Sunday. Molina said that she was excited to be moving in and couldn’t wait to meet new people and be in a new environment. She added that she’s already met some students through a summer bridge program that she attended at Cal Poly.
“We’re just moving her in this weekend, the students here have been phenomenal, really well organized, really supportive,” said Keith Savell from Oakland, who dropped off his daughter Liana Katz-Savell, a freshman studying child development. “It’s been a great first experience for us, and for her especially.”
When asked how he felt about leaving his daughter, Savell grinned and responded, “I would rather take her back home, but she has to fly sometime.”
This story was originally published September 18, 2016 at 9:08 PM with the headline "Freshmen move into housing at Cal Poly on sweltering day."