Vaqueros saddle up for Welcome Week

To kick off the Fall 2023 semester, the Student Union’s Office of Student Activities is hosting Welcome Week, which gives Vaqueros the opportunity to get informed about organizations, campus life and resources offered by the university. 

Cristina Rodriguez, assistant director for Student Activities, said the previous academic school year had a large number of attendees during Welcome Week. 

“We did have roughly a little over 400 in Brownsville and close to 1,000 in Edinburg,” Rodriguez said. “It is our goal this year to hit those marks.”

Welcome Week will commence with The Stomp from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Student Union on the Brownsville Campus and from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the University Recreation Center on the Edinburg Campus. The event will give students the opportunity to get a glimpse of college life, receive UTRGV swag and entertainment.

The semester kickoff celebration continues through Sept. 14.

 “I feel like it’s a fun way to all get together and stuff,” incoming biology freshman Dezerae Ibarra said about Welcome Week. “It’s easier to make friends. Right now, we are kind of nervous for the first day of school, and I don’t know what’s going to happen.”

Ibarra said she wants to meet people and make friends.

Rodriguez said new festivities will be held based on the time of day the events take place. Brownsville’s activities are during the day, while Edinburg’s are in the evening.

“We have Kona Ice as one of the nice giveaway items [in Brownsville],” she said. “In Edinburg, we do have a band. A live band that will perform the last hour. So those are unique items to both campuses. But we are with Pepsi and they will be giving out drinks as well as some snacks at the event. … And then also Chartwells will be present as well. So you get to see a lot of new food opportunities that the campus is going to be offering to the students.”

Wednesday, UTRGV celebrates its eighth anniversary with events on the Edinburg, Harlingen and Brownsville campuses and in McAllen. 

“Since we do have The Stomp on both Edinburg and Brownsville, we wanted to add an element to the Harlingen campus,” Rodriguez said. “We do have a couple of departments coming out and joining efforts with UTRGV Day to have a fair in Harlingen.”

Students can learn about student organizations at the Involvement Fair, which is scheduled from noon to 2 p.m. Sept. 5 in the University Ballroom and from noon to 2 p.m. Sept. 7 in Salón Cassia on the Brownsville campus.

“If you reach out to First Year Experience Trailblazers, there is an identified student that works with a group of freshmen, reminding them of upcoming events or being that support system for them,” Rodriguez said. “… So as you’re leaving class, we hope that there’s an activity or something out there that can attract your attention.”

Incoming freshman kinesiology major Rudy Vega looks forward to attending Welcome Week.

“It makes people stand out instead of being shy and staying in just one place, it expands our vision,” Vega said “Like, there’s other things not just for me, but for everyone else around.”

 A Part-Time Job Fair will take place from 11:30.a.m to 1:30.p.m. Sept. 5 in the University Ballroom on the Edinburg campus. The fair is also scheduled  from noon to 2 p.m. on Sept. 7  in Salón Cassia on the Brownsville campus. Students can engage with campus departments and off-campus employers. Students are encouraged to bring a resume.

Late Nite at the Rec is a campus tradition for UTRGV students to have fun by engaging with one another with games, entertainment and learning about recreation programs and sports clubs that are offered by the Recreation Center. The event is free and will be held from 9 p.m. to midnight Sept. 7 in the UREC on the Edinburg campus. This event will only take place on the Edinburg campus. Brownsville students are welcomed to attend.

Mabel Cortina Matos, assistant director of the Center of Student Involvement, said UTRGV has launched a program called Traditions Keeper.

 “Within that program, Traditions Keeper is going to be a program that’s going to exist on wheeling and dealing with the engagement platform that all of us use for marketing our events,” Cortina Matos said. “It’s a platform where student organizations are able to host all of their data.”

A popular staple of Welcome Week is Picnic with the President, where students can meet UTRGV President Guy Bailey. Students will be served hamburgers and soft drinks from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 12 in the University Ballroom on the Edinburg Campus. In Brownsville, the event will take place from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Sept. 14 in the PlainsCapital Bank El Gran Salón. 

Students are encouraged to bring their student ID for admission to the events. For more information about Welcome Week, visit its website.