Brenau Welcomes Class of 2020 on Move-In Day

Brenau University welcomes more than 400 new Women’s College students this fall from 20 states and 10 countries – including 18 early childhood education students from Anhui Normal University in China – as it kicked off the 2016-17 academic year with its traditional residential hall “Move-In Day” Wednesday, Aug. 24.

Although the new student group comprises both transfer students as well as first-year members of the Class of 2020, Move-in Day really is about the quintessential college “freshman” moving away from home for the first time. After checking in at the Northeast Georgia History Center on Academy Street in Gainesville starting at 8:30 a.m., they had time to move into residence halls that will be their homes away from home.

More than 130 first-year residential students, including the Anhui University exchange students, checked in Wednesday morning out of about 150 registered freshmen attending this first fall session. The freshman class has a collective average GPA of 3.44 and an average SAT score of 1,020. The commuting students will check in the morning of Thursday, Aug. 25.

The 18 students from China all are juniors, transfers from ANU to complete the last two years of their undergraduate studies in early childhood education at Brenau as members of the Class of 2018. They moved into their residence halls a few days earlier when they arrived on campus after their long trip from the other side of the world.

Members of the Brenau Golden Tigers intercollegiate sports teams and coaches were on hand Wednesday to assist the new students and their families move belongings out of cars in into rooms. The new students will spend the rest of the week in orientation and get-acquainted activities before the first day of classes on Monday, Aug. 29.

The first residential freshman to arrive for check-in, Diana Quinones, is a studio arts major from Puerto Rico who now lives in Greer, South Carolina. She took to the Brenau atmosphere right away.

“My sister used to live a couple blocks from here, and she told me about this place so I checked it out,” she said. “I liked it. I love how everyone is so helpful, like the teachers want to help you get to where you want to be. There’s sisterhood here.”

Underclassmen moving into Crudup and Van Hoose Residence Halls were already settling in and getting to know one another right after registration check-in. Roommates Cassidy Morgan Buck, special education major and dance minor from Roswell, Georgia, and G.A. (GraceAnn) Brooks, a theater major from Marietta, Georgia, chatted away about their plans for the upcoming year as they moved in their belongings and tried to reassemble their home-brought furniture and lamps.

“I want to be a special ed teacher at a school,” said Buck, “At the dance studio where I currently work [Tolbert Yilmaz School of Dance in Roswell], the director has talked about setting up a program where special ed students can learn to dance and have it be the entire focus. I’m really excited to get to know everyone here at Brenau.”

Brooks is also said she also eagerly anticipates getting acquainted with her campus neighbors, even the furry, four-legged ones: “I’m looking forward to getting to know the sweet orange stray cat who lives outside!”

Raven Lillian King from Warner Robins, Georgia, plans to major in pre-physical therapy, but it is the Golden Tigers basketball team that lured her to Brenau.

“I met Coach Stewart at an open gym, and I was interested to come out so I came up and I liked Brenau. I chose sports medicine so in case I don’t make it in basketball, I’ll still be able to be part of sports,” she said.

After the first on-campus lunch at Hopkins Dining Hall, Brenau President Ed Schrader and his chocolate Labrador retriever, Jake, hosted a get-acquainted social on the adjacent Wilkes Hall front porch. Students and families met Schrader and members of the university faculty and administrative staff while being treated to King of Pops popsicles.

Although the university will not know the total number of students who enroll until the final day for dropping or adding classes, the Women’s College group is expected to be about 800.