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VOLUME 115 ORIENTATION GUIDE
A new A.I. major is possibly coming to OU...PG 4 Bobcats offer advice on finding a job on campus...PG 5 OU’s top athletes returning for the Fall Season... PG 9 Quick meals that are easy to make in a dorm room... PG 13 How to navigate a party school as an introvert... PG 14
SUMMER 2024
THEPOSTATHENS.COM
OU expects similar enrollment numbers as last year PAIGE FISHER | FOR THE POST
Ohio University is expecting incoming-student enrollment for the Fall semester 2024 to be about the same as previous record-breaking years. For the 2023 Fall Semester, OU had 4,517 first-year students enrolled at its Athens campus and are hoping to enroll roughly the same amount for the upcoming year, Vice President for Enrollment Management Candace J. Boeninger wrote in an email. “Interest in Ohio University is at an all-time high, and enrollment of new and continuing students on the Athens campus has been especially strong in the past couple of years,” Boeninger said in an email. According to a previous The Post report, OU has had record breaking enrollment numbers for incoming students. The university had 4,441 first-year students in Fall 2022 and 4,516 year-students in Fall 2023 according to a university news release. It’s too early for OU to project final enrollment of first-year students because of shifts in this year’s enrollment confirmation deadlines nationwide, Boeninger wrote in an email. However, she wrote the university plans to accommodate slightly smaller or larg-
er class sizes if enrollment patterns change. “We work closely with academic and administrative leadership throughout the enrollment cycle, including the summer orientation season, to ensure that OHIO can accommodate the entering and returning classes well as they shape up,” Boeninger said in an email. 2,462 first-year students and 91 transfer students have registered to attend Bobcat Student Orientation throughout the summer, University Spokesperson Samantha Pelham wrote in an email. During the Spring or Summer 2024, OU Housing and Residence Life intends to take several residence halls offline, according to a previous The Post report on the housing master plan. The front four South Green dorms — Pickering, Brown, Crawford and McKinnon Halls — are going off line for capital improvements, according to the report. One hall is expected to be taken offline each year following the summer of 2024. All dorms are expected to be back online before the beginning of the 2024-25 Fall semester, Director of Housing and Residence Life Jneanne Hacker wrote in an email. Other housing opportunities including leased spaces at The Rivers will also be available to students. “All of Ohio University’s residence halls will be online for Fall 2024, as well as 618 master leased spaces at ‘The Rivers,’” Hacker wrote in an email. Having other spaces for students available also allows for Housing and
Residence Life to prepare and accommodate for any change in enrollment patterns that may occur throughout the summer. “Housing and Residence Life’s occupancy management model is well positioned to respond to any change in enrollment while ensuring that we support the housing needs of first- and second-year students residing on campus,” Hacker wrote. OU is a sophisticated and advanced public university that is prepared for a variety of enrollment scenarios, and does not seek to enroll a specific ‘class size’ number, Boeninger wrote. “We are constantly working to understand how the University can best deliver on its mission as a public university and support our students well, and we know that planful, stable enrollment
levels help us provide the distinctive Ohio University experience,” Boeninger wrote. The university is expecting about the same class size for incoming students as last year, Boeninger wrote. The increasing interest in OU is encouraging for the increasing retention and graduation rates, she wrote. “New incoming students have enrolled in record numbers, and we are encouraged by strong rates for fall-tospring return, first-year retention, and four- and six-year graduation,” Boeninger said in an email. “These measures are all signs of the University’s ability to attract outstanding students and support their success.”
livering breaking news, featuring a new small business or even providing a review on a new album release, The Post can be trusted to deliver content you as a Bobcat will want to read. As you embark on this new chapter, there are so many things we can say to you to make the transition a little easier. Everything from calling your parents and loved ones to joining new organizations can improve your experience. However, one piece of advice that has helped us throughout our college career is this: be yourself. You will soon meet an abundance of people who will change your life. From friends to professors to staff, OU will be the birthplace of some of your most cherished relationships. Having authenticity as the base of any relationship will help to ensure they are long-lasting. We hope you enjoy the rest of your BSO experience, and do not forget to
keep a look out for the newest edition of The Post. In the meantime, you can visit our website at www.postathens.com or our YouTube page and follow us on Instagram @thepostathens, Facebook @The Post and X, formerly known as Twitter, @The Post. Once classes are in session, feel free to stop by our newsroom in Baker University Center 325.
@PAIGEMAFISHER PF585820@OHIO.EDU
Letter from the editors: BSO is just the beginning
of a fantastic experience
ALYSSA CRUZ | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF MADALYN BLAIR | MANAGING EDITOR
Hello, new Bobcats! We are so excited to welcome you to Ohio University. As two incoming seniors ourselves, it is quite bittersweet to think back on our Bobcat Student Orientation as happening nearly three years ago. We know you must be feeling a multitude of new emotions: from scared to overwhelmed to excited. Let us assure you OU is where you are meant to be, and you are about to embark on an amazing new experience. A lot of things are going to change in your life soon, but there will be one thing that will be a constant: The Post! For those of you who are not familiar with what we do, we are an inde-
pendent, award-winning student-run news publication on OU’s campus and in the Athens community. We have been around in some capacity since 1911, and we pride ourselves in delivering our readers innovative and detailed storytelling through multi-platform reporting. The Post covers topics relating to student interests, faculty, academia, culture, the arts and athletics, as well as state and national issues. Along with producing digital content daily, The Post also publishes a weekly print tabloid each Tuesday classes at OU are in session. The tabloid is distributed to 80 campus and community locations. More than anything, we strive to create content to inform, entertain and help our readers. Whether that be de-
Cheers, new Bobcats!
Alyssa Cruz & Madalyn Blair Alyssa Cruz and Madalyn Blair are seniors studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of these columnists do not reflect those of The Post.
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