First Virtual First Year Experience Program Honors Winning Teams for the Class of 2024

The Class of 2024 and participating upper class mentors attended a virtual award ceremony for the First Year Experience (FYE) program, a year-long slate of activities and workshops that supports students in their transition from high school to university, teaching them “how to be a Hoya.”

The FYE program at QF partner university GU-Q  was launched last year to extend the benefits of New Student Orientation (NSO) week. This year, the program went online to ensure continued support for students in a year unlike any other. Speaking to everyone at the virtual event, Laura Hiatt, associate director of academic services and program coordinator, said: “Despite the challenges, you’ve come together as a community, a cohort, a batch, and we are proud of all you’ve done this semester.” 

In the Fall 2020 semester, students were put into eight teams, and mentored by 16 upper class mentors. The program offered participants 14 events, ten workshops, two pre-midterm Meditations, one e-book session to familiarize them with the virtual textbook format for the year, and one course registration session to keep their academic schedule on track. 

Program offerings also included a Canvas course with recordings for students in other time zones or for asynchronous review, plus quizzes and discussion boards with new topics each week. Additionally, Team Captains held weekly virtual office hours and “mentor chats” on various themes throughout the semester.

Participation certificates were given to the 67 students who attended at least three activities live or asynchronously over the Fall FYE program.

Highest Participation Awards were given to the top three students with the highest levels of participation, combining attendance, Canvas quizzes and discussions, and a treasure hunt: Salome Mamuladze, Khumuyon Suyunov, and Anam Fatima. 

The 2nd Annual FYE Team Championship Award was given to the team with the highest average participation points per team, combining attendance, Canvas quizzes and discussions, a library treasure hunt, and survey responses. The winning team was “Invictus,” captained by Jawaher Alshamari and Rafa Reina Islam.

 And lastly, FYE Superlative Awards were determined by vote by the Class of 2024 and team captains, which acknowledged the camaraderie the class has built even online.

Workshop topics over the course of the program covered everything from effective university-level reading skills and citing in Chicago style, to managing stress and understanding how our cultural values can impact relationships with fellow students, faculty, and staff.

The second semester of the program will offer workshops for continued support though the program is less intensive, as students gain the confidence and the skills they need to navigate university life. To conclude the ceremony, Hiatt encouraged the students to take advantage of the many other GU-Q resources that support student success, including the Georgetown Leadership Track program, Office of Academic Services, personal librarians, advising deans, clubs and activities, and the Honor Council.

Hiatt leads the Onboarding and Transition Task Force  that organizes FYE.  Other members of the task force were nominated by Brendan Hill, senior associate dean for students, Anne Nebel, associate dean for teaching, learning and assessment, and James MacGregor, associate dean of academic affairs, to ensure that  all aspects of student support are addressed. The task force gathers input from both student-facing, and non-student facing departments to recommend policies and procedures that ensure that incoming students feel welcome, have the information they need to succeed and have opportunities to reflect and gain from their first year experiences.