Starting the semester with a warm welcome

The beginning of the spring semester is here and UTRGV is making students feel at home during its sixth annual Week of Welcome, today through Jan. 25, with numerous activities on both campuses.

Student Activities, the Student Union and University Recreation will host activities, Info Depots and giveaways throughout the week with the purpose of welcoming current and incoming Vaqueros.

Student Union Director Edna Zambrano explained the purpose of the Week of Welcome.

“The Week of Welcome is intended to be the week in January where we welcome students back,” Zambrano said. “And so, we still have some activities to kind of help new students navigate the campus.”

She said the Info Depots are intended to help new students learn more about UTRGV resources.

“We want to make sure that we have events to welcome them, to kind of show them the campus and give them a taste of the kind of activities that we have throughout the year,” Zambrano said. “It’s sponsored by the Student Activities Office and then a lot of other departments kind of work together to have events every day.”

Naomi Valdez, program coordinator for Student Activities, said some changes were made to Week of Welcome after the university announced that the first two weeks of classes will be virtual because of the “emergence and rapid spread” of the COVID-19 Omicron variant.

“We have changed some minor details about the different modes of original events happening,” Valdez said. “One of them, specifically, is a rewind bingo game that is being sponsored by [the Campus Activities Board]. It was, at first, planned to be in person.”

She said that for the safety of students, the rewind bingo will now be rescheduled.

“Some of our big signature events are still going to be in person, and so, we are really excited about that,” Valdez said. “The other events that we have are really outside, like the drive-in [movie]. So, in those events we have enough space for students and staff and faculty.”

Zambrano said it is important for students to go to the Info Depots.

“It’s a nice little information table for new students, in case they’re a little bit lost,” she said. “Usually, the shuttle schedules are important because a lot of students get to campus and realize, like, ‘Oh, I need to be able to get to Brownsville today or go to another part of campus.’ So, it’s good information to have handy on those first two days of classes.”

On the Edinburg campus, you can find the Info Depots at the Visitors Center, Student Union and the UREC, and on the Brownsville campus, at the Student Union, Main Building and library.

Valdez said the university has changed the manner of conducting events in order to prioritize health.  

“I feel like we have taken into account that COVID numbers are increasing,” she said. “And we want to still have fun, celebrating and engaging events for students while being safe.”

Christina Rodriguez, UREC marketing and student development coordinator, said the best way to keep everyone safe is by having events outside.

“[We are] trying to space out our events to offer some social distance, as much as we can, especially since it is outdoors,” Rodriguez said. “We will have promotional products like hand sanitizers to give away. So, if you don’t have one, you can definitely pick one from our table.”

Zambrano said both campuses will have almost the same events for the Week of Welcome.

“It may not be on the same day but we duplicate everything,” she said. “So, for example, let’s say this Tuesday, you will have a billiards tournament in Edinburg and then the next week, on Tuesday or Wednesday, you will have it in Brownsville.”

Valdez said the only difference between both campuses is that Brownsville will have the Welcome Back Bash while Edinburg will have the WOW Tailgate.

“We want our students to show up to our event and bring their friends or roommates to come with us a little bit,” she said. “And learn about campus resources or student organizations on campus and how to get involved.”