Many activities took place on the Indiana University Kokomo campus during the first week of classes, thanks to the Student Life and Student Government Association. 

On Aug. 22, Student Life had the “Planners and Yogurt Parfaits” event in the Campus Quad. This event was a solid opener to the week and informed students of future Welcome Week events. Student Life members were also handing out various school supplies at this event, including highlighters, permanent markers, binders, and many other items. This is always a pretty popular event, with the majority of the parfaits being gone within the first few hours.   

The following day Student Life hosted a “DIY Canvas Bag” event in the Campus Quad. This allowed students an opportunity to get creative and relax, which was important during the chaos of the first week of classes.  

By far one of the most popular events took place on Thursday: the “Welcome Back Carnival” and T-shirt giveaway, which was run by both Student Government and Student Life. Newly instated President Mary Hogsett and Vice President Andrea Méndez Rodrígez gave out free T-shirts both Wednesday and Thursday during the carnival.  

During the carnival event, there were numerous games and activities for students to enjoy. There was everything from make-your-own stuffed animals to plentiful food options, including macaroni and cheese, fries, and vegetable shish-kabobs. There were many opportunities for students to receive free treats and prizes. Another enticing factor about this event was that if a student attended five events at the carnival and recorded it through One.IU, they received free IU Kokomo gear.

Overall, Welcome Week, as always, is a great way for students to interact with one another and get to know the members of Student Life and Student Government.  

Welcome Week also provided students with numerous chances to get involved on campus and be introduced to new people. Students not only got to meet each other, but they got to meet some faculty members as well. Ever since the pandemic, Student Life and Student Government have slowly started bringing back campus activities which give students a sense of community and pride in their school.

College can be a stressful time for many people, and Welcome Week is a way for students to step back and have some fun with one another. IU Kokomo provides many services and resources for all students to enjoy, and this week was just a part of it.