Farewells, excitement: Move-in day a mix of emotions for new students, families

Brandeis Stories

Farewells, excitement: Move-in day a mix of emotions for new students, families

By Steve Foskett and Michelle Gaseau
Photography by Gaelen Morse and Dan Holmes
August 24, 2026 • Student Life

With lamps, blankets, mirrors and laptops in tow, new arrivals traveled from across the country over the weekend to make Brandeis their new home. Guided by a small army of Orientation Leaders, Community Advisors, and other student volunteers, they quickly settled in.

Noelle Rofkahr swapped coasts to come to Brandeis. The California resident, who will be studying political science and playing softball, said she's looking forward to meeting new people and getting to know her teammates, and is already thinking about pursuing law school when she graduates. She said she's a little nervous about the academic workload, but finding Brandeis to be so welcoming has been a comfort. And when she wants to think of home, she said she'll have a stuffed pineapple that made the trip in her backpack at the ready.

Coming from Rhode Island, her roommate, Alex Watson, had a shorter trip to get here, but agreed that everyone she has met so far has been nice. She said she's looking forward to living so close to Boston.

"I'm just going to take it day-by-day," Watson said as she quickly started organizing her half of the room on the ground floor of Renfield Hall.

Over in Shapiro Hall, Tessa Antonakis of Connecticut lugged in items with her parents. She said she visited various colleges and universities before deciding Brandeis was the best fit.

"It was definitely the people," Antonakis said. "People here seem to really care about what they're focusing on, what they're studying, or how they want to make a real impact in the world. That level of care, whether it's interpersonal connection or wanting to make a difference, I think it was strong."

She is studying psychology and pre-med with an eye toward pursuing a career as a psychiatrist, but added that may change over time. Right now she's excited to get involved with clubs and activities on campus.

"I'm just looking forward to meeting new people, and having new experiences," Antonakis said.

Sydney Jones, a junior and Community Advisor from Hawaii, helped new students and their families get to where they needed to be in Massell Quad. Being there on Sunday brought back memories of her first days at Brandeis, and said she hopes the first-years don't get too overwhelmed as they navigate being away from home and getting used to the balance of college life and academics.

"I would say just be patient with yourself," Jones said. "It's a new experience for everybody. You don't have to know everything and do everything immediately."

Kareem Khouri and his family came to Brandeis from Florida, and wasted no time unloading the rental car filled to the gills with supplies, shelves, and other belongings. As he went in and out of Deroy Hall, the track and field athlete said he plans to study psychology, but is also interested in economics and business. He said he's looking forward to meeting new people, visiting Boston, and having a different experience than he's used to in Florida.

"Back home I know everyone around me, so not knowing anyone makes me a little nervous," he said. "But I'm excited."

'A real sense of family'

Nearly 800 new undergraduate and graduate students are here for the fall semester. First-year students moved in Sunday, but getting here was just the first item on their agenda. The afternoon included various activities and official welcomes from university administration, including President Arthur Levine.

At the welcome event for families and loved ones, President Levine, an alum himself, empathized with the group sharing his personal experiences dropping off his children for college and also offered insight into the ways a Brandeis experience is unique.

"It's welcoming, it's caring, it's accepting," he said before sharing the values that guide the institution: a love of learning, excellence of education, abhorrence of hate, antisemitism and discrimination of all kinds, and a responsibility to repair the world.

"There's a real sense of family," he added, expressing that when he returned to Brandeis two years ago to take on the presidency he " fell in love with Brandeis all over again."

Later at the student welcome, Lewis Brooks, founding director of the Center for Careers and Applied Liberal Arts - also an alum and a parent - provided a brief presentation of the history of Brandeis and its founding president, Abram Sachar.

He told the students they would be the first class to celebrate Sachar Day - to honor the university's founding - on Oct. 14.

He concluded his presentation by providing a list of his top things to do at Brandeis, including:

• Take a photo to recreate in four years.
• Have a meal with a professor.
• Take the train from Brandeis/Roberts station into Boston.
• Get an internship.
• Take a class in a subject not offered in high school.
• Study abroad, and "if you have FOMO," go in the summer.
• Root for a Brandeis athletics team or join an intramural team.
• Go to the observatory.
• Visit a chapel - there are three on campus - and fittingly, they don't cast a shadow on each other.
• Talk to an alum: network and reach out.
• Visit the Rose Art Museum or Kniznich Gallery.
• Slide down a hill in winter.
• See a theater performance.