New students, parents impressed by Campbell’s first summer orientation

Sahara Knight was on the other side of the table two years ago.

Then a freshman from Fayetteville interested in getting involved at her new school, Knight approached the Dance Team table during her freshman orientation at Campbell University and asked it there were openings. She had just missed tryouts, but a new round of open auditions were approaching.

On Friday, she was the one greeting future students during the Camel Connect Expo portion of orientation for incoming freshmen and transfer students - letting them know about upcoming tryouts and her own experiences on the Dance Team.

"What I've seen today is that everyone is extremely excited to be here," said Knight, now a junior communications pre-law major who also found her job in digital media services during that 2024 orientation. "They're like me - they don't know what to expect, but they're eager to learn more about what we have to offer."

Friday marked the first of four one-day summer orientations - the second is slated for Saturday, and two more are scheduled for July. Campbell is expecting roughly 800 students who will make up the Class of 2030 over the four days.

One of them is Ane Nichols, an exercise science major from Raleigh. Nichols said she was hoping to learn more about her home for the next four years and, like Knight, perhaps learn more about potential jobs as a freshman (she coached youth swimming while in high school).

"I've really enjoyed the day so far. It's all been really well organized," she said. "Campbell felt like home the first time I visited here. Everyone was so friendly. I felt like I was meeting my neighbors."

Jesse White, an engineering major from Garner, said he chose Campbell because he liked the idea of attending a smaller school, and he was impressed by the engineering program and its reputation of having a hands-on curriculum from Day 1.

"This is my third or fourth time being on campus, but today I'm hoping to tour the dorm rooms where I'll be staying this fall," he said. "It'll be nice to see the inside of the buildings and hopefully get to know more people."

White's mother, Lynn White, said orientation is a chance for parents like her to make sure their child is going to be well taken care of.

"You want to see that he's safe and that he's coming to a nurturing environment," she said. "And I feel confident that he's going to be fine here. I asked questions earlier about how Campbell helps incoming freshmen manage anxiety, and the group was very helpful sharing their ideas and talking about how they felt when they came here as new students."

Ken and Michele Baker were on campus Friday with their son, Nathan Baker, a music major transferring from Sampson Community College as part of the Campbell Assured Admission program. Ken Baker praised the beauty of the campus and the community feel, as well as the planning that went into orientation.

"We happened to go over to the music performance hall, and when we walked in, Dr. [Dwayne] Wilson [chair of the Division of Fine Arts] saw us wandering the halls," he said. "So he brought us into his office and spent like an hour to an hour and a half talking to us and showing Nathan around. That's not the kind of thing that happens everywhere."