Stanford to roll out the red carpet for new undergraduate students on Tuesday

The campus will come alive early Tuesday morning as Stanford welcomes 1,781 first-year and new transfer students – and their families and friends – to the Farm on move-in day.

Each student will receive a rousing greeting at the entrance of their dorm by cheering student volunteers who have memorized their names and faces.

New first-year and transfer students will participate this week in orientation programs designed to introduce them to the wide array of academic, intellectual, leadership, cultural and social experiences available on campus. (Image credit: L.A. Cicero)

The Class of 2020 hails from every state in the nation – as well as Washington, D.C. – and from 69 countries, according to Richard H. Shaw, dean of admission and financial aid.

Shaw said 10 percent of the first-year students are international students and 3 percent are permanent residents of the United States. Slightly more than half of them are female – 50.8 percent – and 49.2 percent are male. The vast majority – 94.5 percent – ranked in the top 10 percent of their high school class. Fifteen percent are the first members of their families to attend a four-year college. One is a military service veteran.

Among the 39 transfer students joining the Stanford community, 64 percent attended community colleges and 38 percent are the first members of their families to attend a four-year college, Shaw said. Seven are military service veterans. More than half – 56 percent – are male and 44 percent are female. One of the transfers is an international student, bringing the total number of countries represented by incoming students to 70.

Tuesday also marks the first day of New Student Orientation (NSO), six days of programs designed to introduce new students to the wide array of academic, intellectual, leadership, cultural and social experiences available at Stanford.

Events on Tuesday include open houses, campus tours and welcome activities. Students also will be able to register their bikes, register to vote and pick up a free bike helmet.

Parents and family members are invited to take part in many move-in day activities, as well as programs designed to provide them with their own one-day immersion into Stanford’s rich intellectual life and cultural traditions. Events include parent panels, a Parent Resource Center in front of the Stanford Bookstore and free lunch in residence dining halls.

The day will culminate with the 126th Opening Convocation Ceremony, the formal opening of the academic year, which will take place from 4 to 5 p.m. in the Inner Quad. Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne, who took office on Sept. 1, will welcome new students and their families and friends.

Shaw will speak at the ceremony. So will Harry J. Elam Jr., vice provost for undergraduate education. Debnil Sur, a senior majoring in computer science, will give the student address. The Rev. Jane Shaw, dean for religious life, will offer the invocation. At the end of the program, student soloists will perform Hail, Stanford, Hail, and then lead the audience in a second round of the Stanford hymn, whose words are printed on the Convocation program.

Following Convocation, parents and family members will say goodbye to their students and head for dinner with Provost John Etchemendy. New students will head back to their dorms for “Welcome Home” activities and their first house meetings.

NSO continues for five more days, with activities designed to engage first-year and transfer students intellectually and socially. The programs include discussions on alcohol, sexual behavior and relationships, religious life and personal identity. During the week, students will meet with their pre-major advisors and attend academic planning sessions designed to help them choose their first-year courses.

On one evening, Stanford undergraduates will present Faces of Community, a program of reflections, narratives, dance and music designed to introduce new students to the university’s diverse community. One afternoon, student actors will present The Real World: Stanford, a program about navigating the nuances of life on the Farm, potential pitfalls and the quest for well-being and happiness.

On Friday afternoon, President Marc Tessier-Lavigne will host a special reception for the new students on the lawn of Hoover House.

Among the programs focused on academic life is the First Lecture featuring Allyson Hobbs, associate professor of American history, who will talk about the nature, purpose and value of a liberal education. Later in the week, faculty members will share their experiences forging their academic paths, conducting research and working with undergraduates.

During NSO, students will gather in Memorial Auditorium for a roundtable discussion by the authors of the books assigned to incoming students under the Three Books program. This year’s books are We the Animals by Justin Torres, We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo and A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That Arise in Disaster by Rebecca Solnit. Elizabeth Tallent, a professor of English who selected the books, will moderate the discussion and give students the opportunity to ask questions.

Undergraduate housing opens for returning students on Thursday, Sept. 22, and classes begin Monday, Sept. 26.