Pitt to Hold Student Orientation Aug. 21-26

Issue Date: 
August 21, 2012

The University of Pittsburgh’s 2012 New and Transfer Student Orientation will welcome more than 4,000 freshmen and transfer students to the University Aug. 21-26. The six-day event will include campus and city tours, numerous informational sessions, and social gatherings in an effort to educate, entertain, and orient members of the class of 2016 and their families to college life at Pitt.

Pitt Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg and distinguished members of the University community will officially welcome Pitt’s newest students during Freshman Convocation: A Pitt Tradition, to be held in the Petersen Events Center, 3719 Terrace St., Oakland, at 3 p.m. Aug. 22.

The Lantern Night ceremony—Pitt’s oldest tradition—will be held in Heinz Memorial Chapel, Fifth and Bellefield Avenues, Oakland, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Aug. 26. The ceremony’s keynote speaker will be Jane Allred (A&S ’71), the newly elected president of the Pitt Alumni Association and president of Allred Marketing. The Student Activities Fair, which will be held in the Petersen Events Center from 2 to 5 p.m. earlier that day, introduces the newest members of Pitt’s community to the campus’ more than 350 student organizations.

Presentations, seminars, and open houses will be held on numerous aspects of campus life, including campus safety, health services, and Greek organizations. The University Counseling Center Open House will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 21 in the William Pitt Union (WPU), 3959 Fifth Ave., Oakland. Several informational activities will take place Aug. 22: “Student Health Service: When, Where, and How to Get Help,” from 9 to 10 a.m. in the WPU; the “Student Health Service Open House,” from 10 to 11 a.m. in the Medical Arts Building, 3708 Fifth Ave., Oakland; “Student Life: The Importance of Getting Involved,” from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the WPU; and “Get Culturally Crunk! A Block Party,” from noon to 1 p.m. in the WPU.

“Pride, Passion, Pitt: A Pitt Tradition” will be held from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Aug. 23 in the Petersen Events Center. The event will provide an overview of the many University resources that will assist new students in making a successful evolution from college students to educated, self-aware global citizens throughout their college careers.

Among the activities designed exclusively for parents and guardians will be “Campus Safety: What Parents Need to Know,” a health and safety presentation delivered by a University Police Officer, from 3 to 3:30 p.m. and “Backpacks to Briefcases: Getting Your Student’s Career Off to a Great Start,” an informational session designed to inform parents on various resources and services provided by the University, from 3:30 to 4 p.m., both sessions to be held on Aug. 21 in the WPU. Presentations will seek to answer questions and concerns of student parents and guardians as well as to provide information on University programs. In addition, parents will have an opportunity to socialize with one another at the catered informational session, “So, I’m a Panther Parent—Now What Do I Do?” to be held from 4 to 5 p.m. Aug. 21 and from noon to 1 p.m. Aug. 22 in the WPU and at the “Parent Reception,” to be held from 9 to 10 p.m. Aug. 22. in the dining room of the O’Hara Student Center, 4024 O’Hara St., Oakland.

Scheduled entertainment and social activities scheduled for the WPU lawn include “Discover Pittsburgh,” from 7 to 9 p.m. Aug. 21, which will include a sampling of food from local restaurants as well as music by local entertainers; “Ice Cream Social: Happy Birthday, Pitt!” a special celebration commemorating Pitt’s 225th Anniversary, to be held from 9 to 11 p.m. Aug. 21; and a “Global Carnivale,” to be held from 9:30 p.m. to midnight Aug. 22 and featuring international cuisines, music, and performances.

Multiple guided tours of the University and the city of Pittsburgh also will be available. Tours will include such landmarks as Pitt’s Nationality Rooms and Heinz Memorial Chapel, as well as the city’s Phipps Conservatory and Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History.

University staff will be available to answer questions and provide information at “Orientation Station,” open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 21 to 23 in the WPU’s Main Floor Atrium. Students will be able to sign up for social activities and learn about programs offered through the New and Transfer Student Orientation.

For more information on the 2012 New and Transfer Student Orientation, contact Mary Utter at 412-648-2172 or utter@pitt.edu. For complete 2012 New and Transfer Student Orientation and 2012 Parent and Family Orientation schedules, visit http://www.fye.pitt.edu/orientation-newandtransfer/schedule.php.