A Day in the Life

Freshman Orientation

Rebecca and I spent Tuesday and Wednesday at Belmont University at the Freshman Orientation.  First I must say that I was very impressed with the University!  They were so organized and complete in their orientation.  I’m still in awe that she will be attending this school in the Fall.  It’s really a great place!  I’m so thankful to God that He led us here!

We arrived Tuesday at 8 am.  We registered and then took Rebecca’s things to the dorm to check in.  She was staying on campus tonight.  After that we headed over to the Massey Performing Arts Center for the welcome from the president.  He did a great job at making us feel welcome and assuring us that we had made a great decision to send our student to Belmont.  After that the parents went one way and the students the other for specific seminars.  Rebecca wasn’t quite sure about this as she knew no one, but she went on her way.  My first seminar was on residence life which answered several of my questions and then on to the fun stuff, financial aid!  I had more questions about the finances than anything else.  The financial advisor did a great job in easing our worries about money and explained it very well.  Apparently Belmont is a model for other colleges on how to do the money thing easy without complication.  Meanwhile, Rebecca learned about Residence Life, the convocation requirement and the core curriculum. 

Next we met at the cafeteria for lunch.  They have an impressive cafeteria, not like anything I remembered in college.  They have everything from a salad bar, pizza, pasta, sandwiches, and other things to choose from.  And the food was good.

After the lunch break, we spit up again.  The parents attended the Parenting seminar, basically helping us to let go and let them become adults.  Then we all met with Belmont’s Leadership Team while enjoying some great desserts and punch (chocolate covered strawberries were really good).  Meanwhile, Rebecca attended sessions on Student Life Opportunities, Studying Abroad, Financial services and how to use the classfinder.

We then met together for the specific colleges/schools/departments.  Ours was the College of Visual and Performing Arts which was rather big as it includes theater, music and art.  After meeting the head of the college and the chairs, we split up into our specific area of study.  During this orientation it was only Rebecca and another girl, so we got individual attention.  He spoke about the different paths in theater they could take and whether they wanted a BA (Bachelor of Arts) or BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts).  Rebecca chose BFA with a focus on performance.  The BFA is a heavy load and therefore she will not be able to double major or minor like she had wanted, but this is what she wants to do.  He then said I could go and he would work on the schedule with her.  I said goodbye and went back to the hotel for the night.  It was only 4pm. 

 
When I left, I was not quite sure how to get back to my hotel.  The directions we had were not correct and we did some driving around before we got to Belmont.  So I was turned around in all directions.  I just prayed and asked God to get me back because I didn’t know where I was.  While waiting at a light, I found a map and figured out where I was and where to go next.  I figured it out and ended up going to the hotel a different way, but a faster one.  After stopping for something to eat, I went back to the room.

I had a hotel room all to myself (a first) and also a tv with cable!  I talked on the phone and watched tv until I fell asleep at ten.  Well, by 4am I was wide awake.  After trying awhile to go back to sleep, I finally just got up.  I read the Bible and then watched some of the older shows on tv.  I went down for breakfast at 6am (not much there, but the OJ tasted good).  At 7:30 I was ready to check out and go back to the college.

Traffic was better today and I got there by 8am.  I called Rebecca and she met me with her things by the door and then I parked.  She checked out of her dorm.  Last night after I left, she had a tour of downtown Nashville and visited the capital (that counted for one of her convocation points).  She then had a tour of the bell tour and learned the myths and legends of Belmont.  She met a few friends during her stay and was pretty tired so went to bed early.

This morning began with a breakfast in one of the residence hall.  We then got to tour Heron Hall (where she will be living).  It’s a nice dorm.  She’s on the first floor and we saw where her dorm is.  She will be sharing a room with 2 others and they will share the bathroom too.  There are 4 washers and dryers in the basement along with a kitchen and TV area.

Then we went on to the closing session together where we received our final remarks.  But that wasn’t all.  We split up again for a few more sessions.  I found out about administrative services for students and parents.  Rebecca was off to sign up for her classes in the Fall.  Registration opened at 10:45 and then it was a made dash on the computer to get your classes.  Rebecca got the ones that she wanted.

We visited the security center and she got her student ID and filled out her car form.  Then we went next store to the bookstore to purchase a t-shirt and hoodie and of course the car decal.  We were then ready to head home to Florida.  It was 11:30 am central time.

The ride home was long, but we arrived home at 2:30 am very tired and brains overflowing with new information.