Class of 2022 Arrives for Move-in Day

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MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – At 9 a.m. sharp, the gates to Château Road opened and within moments the first group of vehicles rolled up to Battell Hall. By 9:10, they were already on their way back out the gate, making room for the stream of cars delivering first-year students on Labor Day.

With the efficiency of a pit crew, teams of orientation leaders descended on the vehicles, unloading each within minutes, and hefted the contents up the Battell stairways.

Similar scenes played out at Allen, Stewart, and Ross as members of the Class of 2022 settled into their new homes to begin the weeklong orientation known as MiddView. President Laurie Patton greeted many of the families in person as they arrived at their residence halls.

Over the coming week, students will meet with advisors, learn more about academic and campus life policies, participate in Convocation, and then leave campus for a multiday adventure related to a theme they chose earlier in the summer. Some will go on wilderness explorations, others on community engagement trips, and still others will explore Vermont.

Julia Goydan (pink shirt) of Chester, NY, and Brooke Laird (second from right) of Darien, CT, figure out the best way to use their space in Allen Hall.

Julia Goydan of Chester, N.Y., and Brooke Laird of Darien, Conn., were mulling the best way to use their unusual space on the top floor of Allen Hall. “We’ve been presented with some interesting architecture,” said Goydan, alluding to the slanted ceilings leading down to the head of her bed. A previous resident of the room had made the most of the angled roofline, Goydan’s dad observed, by adding glow-in-the-dark stars for some nighttime sparkle. “It’s going to be great,” Goydan resolved. “We’re figuring out where to put these dressers and getting some additional lighting to brighten it up and make it our own.” Both were looking forward to their orientation trips later in the week—Goydan will be canoeing on Tupper Lake in the Adirondacks while Laird goes backpacking on the Long Trail.

The Class of 2022 is a highly talented group representing 45 states, the District of Columbia, and 63 countries. The College received 9,227 applications and offered admission to 1,734 students for an 18.8 percent admission rate. Twenty-nine percent of the class is made up of U.S. students of color and 16 percent are the first in their family to attend college. About 660 first-year students are expected on campus this fall with another 104 enrolling in February.

Alyna Baharozian of Westford, MA, with her parents Dwayne and Christine in Alyna’s Allen Hall room.

Just a little after 10 a.m. Alyna Baharozian of Westford, Mass., was putting the finishing touches on her room. Her parents, Dwayne and Christine, were enjoying the relative ease of Alyna’s move-in, having sent their two older kids to the University of Michigan. “This is a lot easier than Ann Arbor,” Dwayne laughed. “We drive 11 hours to get there!” Alyna, who is interested in biology and economics, is planning to play for the Panther women’s basketball team this year. But for the moment, she’s focused on learning more about the College and exploring Lake Champlain on her MiddView trip.

Down the hall, Serrin Kim of Boise, Idaho, negotiated her cello past a throng of new arrivals into her Allen Hall room. Inside, the cheerful chaos continued as her roommate, Michaela Sullivan of Newport, R.I., tried out various locations for the last few pieces of furniture.

Michaela Sullivan of Newport, Rhode Island, thinks about the best place for her shelves. Her roommate is Serrin Kim (yellow shirt) of Boise, Idaho.

“These shelving things are giving us a hard time, but I think we’ve figured it out,” said Sullivan, sliding the portable shelf into a slot between the two beds. It wasn’t ideal, but then Sullivan’s mom reminded them that if they lofted their beds, they would have full access to both sets of shelves. Problem solved.

The challenge of making everything fit just where you want it can be like a game of Tetris, joked Middlebury Custodial Supervisor Dan Celik, who was busy meeting students and answering all kinds of questions in Allen Hall. Celik and his staff make a point of being visible on move-in day. “Our custodial team works with the residence-life staff to create the bonds and relationships that are going to last through their two semesters here,” he said.

Caleigh Pope and her mother, Marie, of Rye, N.Y., were setting up shop on the top floor of Allen Hall and hoping to meet her roommate, who had stepped out before they arrived.

Caleigh Pope and her mother, Marie, of Rye, NY, work on Caleigh’s room on the top floor of Allen Hall.

A spacious room with a dormer was Pope’s reward for lugging her belongings up four flights on a sticky late-summer day. Pope said she’s thinking about chemistry as a possible major and is excited to jump into her biochemistry-themed first-year seminar titled “Venomous Cures,” with Professor Glen Ernstrom.

Despite the increasing heat and humidity, roommates Eugene Bentley of Cleveland, Ohio, and Tyler Capello of Wellesley, Mass., were thinking ahead to winter and had covered the floor with carpeting between their two beds. Their ground-level room in Stewart Hall looks out on a beautiful stand of trees on the southern end of campus.

The two were pleasantly surprised to learn that they’re both hockey players and, perhaps fittingly, that both of them love the band Coldplay. Bentley is heading off on a wilderness exploration backpacking trip later in the week, while Capello works his fly-fishing skills during an orientation trip to nearby waterways.

First-year students Eugene Bentley, left, and Tyler Capello set up their room on the lower level of Stewart Hall.

Later in the afternoon, parents braved a brief, yet torrential, downpour on their way to hear President Patton and Dean of Admissions Greg Buckles give welcoming remarks at Mead Chapel. “I am delighted to have your students join this extraordinary community that holds an extraordinary set of values,” said Patton.

Students, meanwhile, rounded out their busy first day with an introduction to Middlebury’s Commons system followed by dinner and hall meetings. The annual Convocation to mark the start of the new year will take place on Thursday, September 6, at 7 p.m. in Mead Chapel. Classes begin on Tuesday, September 11.

Reporting by Stephen Diehl; Photos by Todd Balfour