Amani, ‘12

Greetings Prospective Spiders!

Welcome to the 2009-10 school year at UR!  If you’re reading my blog for the first time, just know that it is my job to do the best I can to enlighten you about life at UR.  While I will attempt to cover as many aspects of college life as possible, please keep in mind that this is only one perspective out of many.  I encourage you to also check out the blog entries of our other Spider Diarists, so you can see Richmond through various lenses.  Within our UR “bubble,” we are a diverse world–please do not limit yourself.  Instead, listen and learn with an open mind, and never be afraid to explore.

Now that I have made my new readers feel welcome, I would not be doing my job justice if I did not extend welcome to all of my fans (e.g. parents of newly enrolled Spiders, friends and associates within the student body, and of course, my supporters in the Admissions Office).  Hello, welcome back, and thank you for making my first year as a diarist a success!  There’s nothing like walking around campus and having visiting students and their parents whisper and point until they gain enough confidence to say, “Hey, I know you!  You write the Spider Diaries!  Amani, right?”  Sometimes I want to say “No” just to see how they would respond, lol, but I never do.  Everyone’s feedback helps me to know that I’m on the right track in what I’m doing.

And now, down to business…

I hope your respective summers went well!  Mine was quite busy–I studied abroad for five and a half weeks in Seville, Spain.  It was really a one-of-a-kind experience, but I will have to tell you about that in an upcoming post.

I just finished up with the Pre-Orientation Program which is hosted by the Office of Multicultural Affairs.  Pretty much Pre-O gives a select number of diverse students a chance to get a leg up on the orientation process.  I participated in the program last year as an incoming freshman, and I wanted to give back to the program because I gained a lot from it.  This year I worked on the other side of the fence as a Pre-O counselor.  In this capacity, I functioned as a member of staff, responsible for facilitating the college transition of the participants. 

What is unique about Pre-O is that instead of having 15+ students assigned to one or two advisors, we as counselors are assigned to one or two students.  These students are called our “Specials,” and we offer our personal assistance with anything they may need throughout (and beyond) the duration of our program.  For this reason, our Pre-O saying is “We Are Family,” because we do indeed become a close-knit family.  Additionally, during Pre-O, the students are thoroughly entertained by songs, skits, and games/activities that coincide with thematic content of workshops and sessions.  As staff, I was one of the ones singing, dancing, and putting on performances for the amused participants.  Sure, sometimes we were silly, but we were always having fun.  We wanted to let the incoming students know that you don’t have to take yourself so seriously all of the time.  College is a lot of work, but it should also be a lot of fun.

My part of Pre-O (training plus the actual orientation program) lasted 5 days.  I worked hard, but I had a lot of fun, which is what Dr. Cade (our director of Multicultural Affairs) guarantees all her Pre-O staff.  Since the rest of the freshmen have moved in and are participating in regular orientation and the rest of the student body moves in tomorrow, I decided to go home and take a little break before classes start on Monday.  I knew the lines at D-Hall (our caf) and the bookstore would be outrageous, so I just took a little retreat back to my own room at home to avoid all of the chaos.

That’s all for now.  Please check back regularly to stay updated on my personal journey through UR.  I will soon be posting about my summer study abroad experience as well as how my new classes are going.

Until then,

Amani