For years, traditional freshman orientations have greeted incoming students with large crowds, impersonal meetings, and overwhelming, whirlwind tours of totally alien and unfamiliar environments. In a nutshell, such sessions have more often helped raise the level of anxiety rather than smooth the transition to academia.

"When I was a freshman, we moved in on a Saturday and went through a dizzying orientation before starting classes on Monday," explains Todd Plagman, a resident assistant at Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU, Bloomington, IL), a school which now takes a unique, more personal approach to orientation.

At IWU, freshmen are welcomed on campus and introduced to college life through a program called First-Year Experience (FYE). Through various activities, discussions, and games, students are able to form a stress-free and fun connection to the college, its faculty, and other students.

In FYE, students are exposed to real-deal freshmen issues, and given the opportunity to directly interact with faculty and staff beyond the classroom. "The idea is to approach and address issues early on," explains Julie Thornton, IWU's assistant dean of students. "We've designed programs that provide opportunities for students to learn and grow together."

Getting to know professors is an important part of the program. "We've found that students want quality contact with the staff early on in their college careers," says Jim Matthews, dean of students at IWU, "and they want that contact to continue throughout their college years."

IWU's highly successful "Professors Do Duty" program guarantees such contact. It invites faculty and staff into residence halls to meet and interact with students outside of the classroom setting. "It gives us all some great opportunities to get to know the students," says April DeConick, associate professor of religion.

In addition, the school's Fall Festival includes a week-long schedule of activities and events. Within a festival atmosphere, students get to study up on campus services and discuss campus safety, alcohol education, diversity, and other relevant issues.

"Orientation definitely helped me out," says Elizabeth Johnson, a freshman at IWU. "From the moment I arrived it's been a great experience."

And it's not only IWU students who are afforded valuable get-accustomed lessons. Three orientation sessions are held annually for parents, too, culminating with "Family Weekend," a traditional mainstay at IWU. With the aim of easing the transition for parents, says Matthews, this program gets parents involved in the "college family," and leaves the door open for continued communication between them, students, and staff.

Orientation is a great chance to get to know the people and community," adds freshman John Rapp, "and it helps to get you involved in organizations and classes."

Virtual Orientation
IWU isn't the only school pioneering this new orientation movement. In what is sure to become a trend, the University of Denver (DU, Denver, CO) presented each freshman with an interactive CD at its most recent orientation. Covering topics normally found in the university handbook, the school's cyber-freshmen feature offers interactive scenarios performed by DU students, information on the city's transportation system, and a guide to restaurants and cultural activities. Other techno-highlights include faculty profiles, course descriptions, and tidbits on the health and social issues of college life -- including serious issues like date rape.

"We've had a terrific response from our students," says DU spokeswoman Sheila Phelan-Wright, who noted that the school even received requests for the CD from upperclassmen.

Intro to Community Service 101
At Roanoke College (Salem, VA) freshmen instantly become part of their campus and community. The school's new Co-Curricular Learning and Service (CCLS) 101 program is "designed to connect students to the learning opportunities outside the classroom," explains William Tenbrunsel, assistant dean.

In CCLS 101, Roanoke students are required to complete at least five hours of community service, in addition to a minimum of five hours of extracurricular activities, such as joining a group or club or taking part in a student organization.

Students also meet almost every week with their advisors. According to Tenbrunsel, the meetings, usually held in groups of five to 10 students, have solidified the bond between students and advisors, and have helped to establish significant academic progress.

Reading is Fundamental -- for Everyone
When the phrase "required reading" is uttered at Champlain College (Champlain, VT) that means required reading for everyone -- professors included! The school's summer reading program, initiated last year, had faculty and students involved in an orientation book club. Last summer's assignment was to read Julia Alvarez's In the Time of Butterflies. Then, during the first week of classes, activities related to the novel were held, culminating with a visit from the author herself that included an evening of readings and discussions.

With the success of the program and the interest it generated, Champlain plans to expand the program in the future, broadening the horizons of its students, and helping them adjust to the difficulties of college life.