By Asha Matthews
Contributing Writer
It’s almost that bittersweet time of year when our seniors are ready to move on and prospective students are getting ready to make peace with the idea that they are going to college.
To help with this process, the St. Bonaventure admissions team has planned an event, “Spring into Bonaventure,” to encourage prospective students to become fellow Bonnies. This admitted student’s day will be held on April 4 in the Reilly Center Arena. Clubs and organizations will have tables at the event to show future students just what activities they can get involved in to begin their college journey with a bang.
Assistant Director of Admissions, Peggy Masters, expects two things out of this event: nice weather so the students can get an aura of community outside of the vintage buildings and an actual confirmation to attend St. Bonaventure.
“We hope to make a student comfortable enough to confirm attending St. Bonaventure on that day, itself,” Masters said.
This year’s theme of “Making a Big Bang” coincides with the fact that not only can current students have an impact on prospective students, but prospective students will have an opportunity to meet each other.
“The day is designed with a lot of interaction with current students, but we hope that they are left with friends. Relationships will start to be developed a littler earlier,” Masters said. “We also have a class Facebook group so that orientation is that much smoother.”
For the past two years, prospective students have heard from several influential people on campus through a live stream interview. Now, the day will incorporate academics in a general sense. For example, there will be an event called “Making a Big Bang in Chemistry,” where students may witness a professor demonstrating an experiment where certain chemicals react to produce an explosion.
A self-guided tour will give the prospective students the ability to explore the campus with a form of independence. Student ambassadors are stationed in every part of campus. Then, if a prospective student wants to re-visit a part of campus, they can physically go there and will have an expert available if there are any concerns.
This event actually involves many more people than just the prospective students and student ambassadors.
Yvonne Makl, director of the Damietta Center, believes the clubs representing diversity have one of the most essential tasks on campus.
“The club leaders have an important job: to welcome future students by promoting leadership, service, friendship and pride in their solidarity at SBU,” Makl said.
The Damietta Center represents student diversity and works for the awareness of culture on campus — a part of Bonaventure that makes some students feel at home.
“Because ‘Spring into Bonaventure’ will be the decision maker for some, the Damietta Center hopes to celebrate our diversity together with the prospective students — the one true thing we have in common at Bonaventure,” Makl said. “I think that all of the club leaders that represent this diversity at the Reilly Center are eager to help make that decision a ‘yes.’”
Makl believes this is an opportunity for all current students to be proud of who they are and what they bring to campus.
“They are the real ambassadors and are the reason for the tie-breakers when Bonas is compared to other schools,” she said. “Let’s all show them what a Bonnie really is.”
Ryan Lim, junior chemistry major and MERT representative said he believes the relationship between a future Bonnie and a current one is a two-way street in which both parties gain something.
“Spring into Bonas is a great opportunity to really see the vast number of organizations we have here on campus,” he said. “Finding your place is an important aspect to being a freshman, so finding a group of people with similar interests is a strong driving point. We’re always looking for new students that can commit themselves to helping the community.”
Anisha Satish, junior biology and psychology major and chair of the Performance Committee on the Campus Activities Board, reflected her own experience as a prospective student revolved around seeing what additional features Bonaventure had to offer compared to other schools.
“I think by having a table at Spring into Bonas, we hope that when students see all of the different types of events CAB plans, they’ll be excited to give their input and start their journey at Bonas,” she said. “They can only truly be part of the Wolf Pack if they like what they see and it is our jobs to make them see why Bonaventure is the right choice.”
Current students are key to making the event on April 4 a success for prospective students that attend.
mattheal11@bonaventure.edu
