Allendale Campus once again filled with Lakers, energy

There's nothing like the buzz created when Lakers start moving back on campus. Here are some of those moments as the Allendale Campus kicked off the move-in schedule.

Amid the boxes and crates filled with his belongings, first-year student Jonah Vander Hoff and his parents, Leo and Anne, took a quick break to snap a photo and capture the milestone of his first day at college. 

Grand Valley has been a large part of the Vander Hoff family, his dad, Leo, ’95, said. Several family members — Jonah’s siblings, a cousin, an aunt and his parents — attended GVSU.

“He told me he was going to Grand Valley when he was in third grade,” Anne said. 

Jonah Vander Hoff became one of the newest members of the Laker family on Wednesday as thousands of students return to the Allendale Campus and the Pew Grand Rapids Campus this week, ready for the start of the 2024-25 academic year. Classes begin August 26. 

President Philomena V. Mantella said the moment students are back on campus is always a joyful one. 

“The campus comes alive in an incredible way,” she said. “The students are starting a new part of the journey, and the families are making a transition of some kind or another.

“You feel the excitement and joy and then the awesome responsibility to be sure that everything we're doing here is caring for that moment in time and life.”

Over at the Frey Living Center, another first-year student, Camden Stec, and his family were gathering his belongings on the lawn after a three-hour drive from their home in southeast Michigan. 

Camden’s mom, Tiffany, said they toured several universities but found Grand Valley to be the place for him.

“This was the first place we toured over a year ago,” she said. “It was the first one we came to see, and we just loved it.” 

-- By Brian Vernellis

By the time Josh Eapen arrived at the Fieldhouse August 19, his smartwatch showed he walked 16,000 steps that day.

It was all good, though, according to Eapen, a first-year, first-generation student from Troy, who spent most of his move-in day with members from the Asian Student Orientation program.

Nearly 500 students participated in five affinity student orientation programs. Black Excellence, Asian Student Orientation, Laker Familia and Native American Maajtaadaa! are all sponsored by the Office of Multicultural Affairs, and the Military and Veteran Student Orientation is sponsored by the Secchia Military and Veterans Resource Center.

"The ASO crew has been amazing," Eapen said. "It's clear to me that this is a community that clearly cares about students."

When Eapen arrived at the Fieldhouse, the Student Organization Fair was underway. The evening event presented opportunities for organizations to recruit new members and, for students like Lucero Arizaga, to give back.

Arizaga is a third-year student with a legal studies major. During morning move-in, Arizaga assisted Laker Familia students with directions and at the Fieldhouse event she recruited students to a new organization she established: Monacas-Ballet Folklorico, which will promote traditional Mexican dances.

"When I moved in my first year, students and staff from Laker Familia helped me, so now I'm stepping into that role," Arizaga said.

First-year student Naila Shelton walked from table to table at the Student Organization Fair and stopped to listen to student presenters from You Beautiful Black Woman. "I'm looking for community," Shelton said.

Overall, Shelton said she enjoyed her first day as a Laker. "I've certainly learned a lot today and everyone has been so nice; it makes me feel comfortable here," she said.

The first day of affinity group orientation began at 9 a.m. in the Fieldhouse parking lot, where staff members from Housing and Residence Life and Grand Valley Police Department directed cars loaded with students, their supporters and their belongings to living centers.

Jalen White was behind the wheel of the first car in line. His parents, Clarence and Charisse, followed closely behind. The two-car caravan wound its way to White's new home.

White, from Detroit, said he was "feeling nostalgic" but ready to dive into the schedule prepared by Black Excellence Orientation leaders. "It's nice to have this early experience on campus and to learn the environment around me," said White, who plans to study psychology.

Clarence White, after carrying boxes upstairs to Jalen's room, called this life moment "a necessary good thing." 

"I'm trying not to be sad. You raise them and need to let them go," he said.

Clarence then looked at Jalen's room and realized his refrigerator was there. "Who brought that up?" he asked. Jalen said it was a student from a fraternity.

"Great, because my days of doing that are over," Clarence joked.

-- By Michele Coffill

The Peter Secchia Military and Veterans Resource Center held a Military Connected/Student Veteran Orientation on August 21, the center's first orientation since a one-time event prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bringing the veterans orientation back is something Director Shane Scherer called a necessity.

“Resources are significantly different for adult learners and veterans versus your traditional students,” Scherer said. “We are connecting them with resources tailored specifically to veterans and things they are going to come in contact with in their college career.”

Scherer highlighted the importance of bringing veterans together when their ages and backgrounds do not fit that of the typical college student. That is a sentiment that many of the veterans attending the orientation identified with.

U.S. Marine Corps veteran Ramon Lopez said a big reason for attending the orientation is so he can be around other veterans. The first year pre-health sciences and psychology major said there is a level of comfort being with people who did not follow the traditional path to college right out of high school.

“It’s just nice being with people my age,” he said.

Army National Guard member Addison Parsell said that she was hoping to get more information about resources available to her after not feeling that level of support at a different school.

Scherer made a point to pack the orientation with resources and guest speakers to provide a holistic overview of what is available to the veteran students at orientation.

Representatives from Recreation and Wellness, Veterans Integration To Academic Leadership, the University Registrar’s Office, social justice centers, and others spoke to the students about the resources that they can take advantage of as veterans in order to thrive at Grand Valley.

Breaks were also provided, allowing the veterans to mingle. This interaction and camaraderie is what Scherer wanted to prioritize for the veterans at orientation and during their collegiate careers.

“The biggest one would be a sense of belonging,” Scherer said. “This is a great spot for them to come and be with people they feel comfortable with. They know they can always come here. This is their spot.”

-- By Thomas Chavez