[468] CUSTOMS Begins 2-month Orientation Run at MTSU

Release date: May 18, 2009


News & Public Affairs contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919 or jweiler@mtsu.edu
New Student & Family Programs contact: Gina Poff, 615-898-2454 or gpoff@mtsu.edu


CUSTOMS Begins 2-month Orientation Run at MTSU


(MURFREESBORO) — Just when you think there will be a break in the MTSU action—after a busy spring culminating in a commencement with the largest graduating class in MTSU’s history—here comes the first of four summer sessions and CUSTOMS.
Starting Wednesday, May 20, and running through late July, the process begins again as new faces, along with their families, arrive on campus for two days of familiarizing themselves with their new academic home for the next four years.
Admissions, financial aid, housing, advising and other departments only have a small window of time to catch their breath before the new undergraduates arrive.
Gina Poff, who is director of New Student and Family Programs, which oversees the running of CUSTOMS, said all of MTSU eagerly awaits the orientation to help the new students make the transition into the university.
“The MTSU campus gets very excited when CUSTOMS begins,” Poff said. “The energy is high and seems to be contagious. There is something so refreshing about seeing the new faces and the excitement that they have about their next step in life. The campus community really embraces the new students and their family members from the beginning.
“So many parents and students comment on how friendly folks are and how comfortable they feel about their choice of coming to MTSU. Although CUSTOMS is a lot of work for staff and the new students, it really pays off in the end. It is a great way to start off the new journey into MTSU, and the freshmen really get a sense of what it is like to be part of the MTSU community.”
In recent years, scholarship recipients attended the first CUSTOMS sessions. Scholarship students will receive first priority, Poff said, but she added that the first session would be open to all students admitted.
“With the enrollment numbers looking to be increasing, we want to utilize the staff, faculty and facilities to their fullest,” she said.
Poff added that officials expect 50 to 75 more students at each session this summer than in previous years.

CUSTOMS prepares new students for MTSU’s educational opportunities, and initiates the integration of new students into the intellectual, cultural and social climate of the institution.
For more information, visit www.mtsu.edu/nsfp—click on “CUSTOMS” or “CUSTOMS: New Student Orientation”—or call 615-898-2454.

CUSTOMS Summer ’09 dates

• May 20-21: Scholarship session/all students;
• June 2-3: Majors from Colleges of Basic and Applied Sciences and Mass Communication, undeclared;
• June 5-6: Majors from Colleges of Business, Education and Behavioral Science, and Liberal Arts, undeclared;
• June 16-17: Business, education, liberal arts and undeclared majors;
• June 23-24: CBAS, mass comm, undeclared;
• July 8-9: CBAS, mass comm, undeclared;
• July 14-15: Business, education, liberal arts, undeclared;
• July 17-18: CBAS, mass comm, undeclared;
• July 23-24: Business, education, liberal arts, undeclared; and
• July 28-29: All colleges.

For MTSU news and information, go to mtsunews.com.