MADISON, S.D. (KELO) – Public universities in South Dakota began moving freshman students into their residence halls Friday before classes start August 26.
Students at Dakota State University in Madison are excited about the first week and welcome events the university is putting on, including orientation this weekend, classes starting Monday, an Old Dominion concert on Tuesday and the first home football game on Thursday.
“I’m excited; It sounds really fun and everybody’s talking highly about it, so it should be really good,” said Kyia Schmidt, a freshman elementary education major from Plankinton.
Schmidt said the move in process was smooth and she was able to get all moved in in two hours with the DSU moving crew’s help. The moving crew is made up of mostly upperclassmen student athletes who assist with heavy furniture. This is Braxton Lacher’s third year as a moving crew member.
“I think my favorite part is just getting to meet new people,” Lacher said. “I think you see all these new faces, all these new people that come to share the same thing that you get to share with DSU and it’s just, it’s fun to relate to them, to introduce yourself, to hopefully be that smiling face, to welcome them so they’re not as nervous.”
Amy Crissinger, DSU’s vice president of student affairs, said 850 students are expected to move into residence halls this weekend.
“I think everybody’s always really happy to see the students come back,” Crissinger said. “It can get pretty quiet, but the energy comes back and you’re a college campus again.”
To kick off the new school year, DSU is hosting multiple events for students and the community. Welcome week includes Trojan Olympics for new students on Sunday, classes starting on Monday and the Kick Off Celebration on Tuesday night. The concert starts at 6 p.m. and features Old Dominion, Brothers Osborne, Elle King and Blake Horstmann. Tickets start at $75.
The Kick Off Celebration concludes on Thursday night with the first home football game in the new $41 million Beacom Premier Complex and Brian Kern Family Stadium.
“We’re really excited to kick that off since there’s definitely the buzz around the new athletic facility, that’s going to be a big deal for us,” Crissinger said.
This is Lacher’s senior year and final semester as a snapper on the football team. He’s also a biology and chemistry major and hopes to go to med school after graduating.
“I’m most excited to really see how the hard work of all my three other years here is gonna pay off whether it’s in football, whether it’s in the classroom,” he said. “I’m excited to finally have that senior year where you get to continue to meet new people, but also have those relationships that you’ve built through the three years and continue to develop those.”
