Class of 2030 finds its place at Tulane during Hullabaloo Hello

For Adya Darsi of Shreveport, Louisiana, the decision to attend Tulane University began taking shape the first time she visited campus as a high school student.

"I felt like I'd always be able to find my place here," said Darsi, an aspiring physician. "It's the kind of environment that I like to be in."

She was drawn to Tulane by the willingness of faculty to help students, the opportunities to participate in research as an undergraduate and, more broadly, the atmosphere she experienced on campus.

This week, Darsi officially became part of that environment, joining approximately 1,900 incoming first-year students arriving at Tulane for Hullabaloo Hello, a week of activities designed to help new students make connections, discover resources and settle into life at Tulane and in New Orleans before classes begin.

For Darsi's parents, Adi and Lata Darsi, watching their daughter begin college brought a mixture of emotions as the family stopped at a photo booth during Hullabaloo Hello.

"I'm a little nervous," Adi Darsi said. "But I'm also very excited about what the future holds for her."

Lata Darsi said her daughter had received generous scholarship offers from other universities but remained set on Tulane.

"She always wanted to go to Tulane," she said. "She did her research, and she said this was where she wanted to be."

Darsi is part of Tulane's Class of 2030, which includes 280 first-generation college students, more than 125 international students and over 185 transfer students. For the third consecutive year, Darsi's home state, Louisiana, has the largest representation in the incoming class, followed by New York, California, Texas and Massachusetts, according to Shawn Abbott, vice president for enrollment management and dean of admission.

As students and families unpacked boxes and outfitted residence hall rooms, one Hullabaloo Hello stop, the Trash to Treasure Move-In Sale, offered an opportunity to pick up something they might have forgotten or didn't realize they needed.

The annual sale, held at Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse, featured items donated by students during Move-Out in May that find new homes with students furnishing their residences during Move-In.

"We've gotten a very positive response," said Jordan Stewart, Tulane's director of the Office of Sustainability. "Kids bought laundry baskets and trash cans. And the mirrors were big sellers. Sometimes they realized they had forgotten something like hangers and came here and got 10 for $1. That's a bargain."

For students, however, settling in during Hullabaloo Hello involves much more than setting up their rooms.

Giada Floridia of Middlebury, Connecticut, said having several days on campus before the start of classes made the transition into college life easier.

"I'm really excited. I'm enjoying the week," Floridia said. "It gives us time to settle in and take it easy before class begins."

Floridia, who plans to pursue a prelaw track, said Tulane stood out to her because of its size, resources and campus culture.

"I picked Tulane because it offers such a good work-life balance, and everyone seems really happy here," she said. "I also like the fact that it's a medium-sized school. And there are so many resources."

Mary Frances Brekke of Franklin, Tennessee, had a similarly positive first impression.

"This is such a happy campus," said Brekke, who plans to study public health with a STEM focus. "Everybody has been very nice and welcoming."

Brekke received a full scholarship to attend Tulane, an important consideration because she already anticipates attending graduate school.

Helping students navigate their new surroundings are Wave Leaders, returning Tulane students who guide groups of first-year students through Hullabaloo Hello and introduce them to campus life.

"We orient the students to campus, introduce them to resources and show them what it's like to be a student at Tulane," said Sophie Labadie, a sophomore from New Orleans.

Labadie decided to become a Wave Leader after having a positive experience with her own leader when she arrived at Tulane.

"I had a great Wave Leader, and I wanted to follow the tradition," she said.

Organized by Newcomb-Tulane College, Hullabaloo Hello includes programs focused on academics, student success, wellness, community engagement and life in New Orleans, with students divided into krewes named Beignet, Po'Boy and Gumbo.

While many of the signature Hullabaloo Hello programs return each year, new programming for 2026 gave students more opportunities to participate rather than simply listen.

Five faculty-led experiential learning sessions on Thursday afternoon were designed as small, hands-on experiences, with attendance limited to 20 to 40 students.

The sessions covered topics ranging from the role of Tulane's uptown campus in movies and television to computer science and artificial intelligence, STEM education, world languages and cultures and service learning.

In another new Hullabaloo Hello initiative, students gathered Thursday in the Lavin-Bernick Center for University Life to assemble hurricane preparedness, back-to-school and personal-hygiene kits, using items donated by incoming students and their families. The kits will be distributed to various nonprofits in the New Orleans area.

The service project, organized in partnership with the Center for Public Service, offered incoming students an early introduction to Tulane's emphasis on community engagement.

Late-night sessions included Rock the Rec at the Reily Student Center, where students sampled fitness classes and sports challenges; Campus Cup at Brown Field, featuring trivia contests, inflatables and dancing; and a performance by hypnotist and mentalist Michael C. Anthony.

With New Orleans such a significant part of the Tulane experience, students participated in a wide range of off-campus visits, from swamp tours and museum visits to Mardi Gras World and a ride on the Steamboat Natchez.

The week culminated with the President's Convocation for New Students, the ceremonial welcome of the Class of 2030 into the Tulane community.

Zina Wormley of Fort Worth, Texas, who graduated from Newcomb College in 1995, said this year's Hullabaloo Hello marked the beginning of another generation's Tulane experience. Her son Zacharias, an incoming architecture student, is following in the footsteps of both his mother and father, who met as Tulane students.

"I hope that he's able to find his people and his place here in his own way," Wormley said.

Her advice to her son was simple: "Remember who you are and who you represent. Your legacy is just getting started."