Following a record-breaking fall semester enrollment of around 1,400 new students spring welcomes 150 more.
Each year, California Baptist University hosts two new student orientations. The spring 2012 new student orientation was held Jan. 6–9.
The event was held to welcome the new students and give them an idea of what college life is like.
Joe Adcock and his team of FOCUS coordinators, Taylor Rilling, Courtney Duquesnel, Hailey Harrington, Joey Garcia, Mitchell Spezzaferri and Bryce Burditt led this new crop of students through a series of academic workshops and social events to get them acclimated to the culture of CBU.
“The purpose of FOCUS is for new students to get connected to all that CBU offers, and allow them to become part of the amazing, unique, God-fearing community at CBU,” Harrington said.
“Orientation was exciting because I learned about all the fun events that CBU has to offer, like Midnight Madness and homecoming,” transfer student Mike Goik said.
Orientation highlights are always the social events, which included a trip to Knott’s Berry Farm, an Anaheim Ducks game and crazy CBU Bunko.
“Spring orientation is easier to manage because the volume of people is considerably lower,” Adcock said. “It allows me to develop closer relationships with the new students.”
The new students notice this difference.
“At orientation I got to meet everyone that I see around campus, which was really cool,” Goik said. “Everyone at CBU feels so close and positive.”
FOCUS leaders see orientation as a time to be disciples and help lead people from their groups into a relationship with Christ.
“We desire to see FOCUS reach its discipleship potential, and for the Lord to be at the center of all our decisions and everything we do,” Harrington said.
“My biggest goal as a coordinator is to lead and encourage the FOCUS leaders in their walk with Christ and give them the tools to do the same with the new students,” Rilling said.
With fewer attendees spring orientation may have been easier to manage, but it was not without its challenges. Adcock and the FOCUS team had to work quickly to be able to host all the activities for the students.
“We had to jump right back into it,” Adcock said. “FOCUS returned to school on Jan. 3, and the new students came back just three days later.”
Orientation is not where the mentoring of the new students ends, as each student now participates in a semester long FOCUS class that is devoted to enriching their college experience.
