Colorful tie-dye, matcha and a foam party keep Northeastern’s Boston campus buzzing during Welcome Week
Monday’s Welcome Week activities featured a barbecue lunch, Connect 4, spikeball, large Jenga, cornhole, friendship rocks and temporary tattoos.
Pink, yellow, orange, purple and blue were among the popular colors splashing around the tie-dyed T-shirt tent at Centennial Common on Northeastern University’s Boston campus Monday afternoon.
But first-year student Melina Mitchell, a computer science and biology major, used only two colors on her white T-shirt: red and black. And she was very excited about it.
“I’m hoping it comes out good. I made it in school colors, so I’m hoping to wear it to games,” Mitchell said, as a remix version of Camila Cabello’s song “Havana” echoed through speakers on the common. “I tried to do a spiral. We’ll see how it turns out.”
Mitchell was hanging out with fellow first-years Pooja Ramakrishnan and Van Din, friends who met at orientation during the summer. And the three of them were eager to participate in the many organized events that were part of Northeastern’s Welcome Week — especially the matcha drinks.
Centennial Common was buzzing with activities, lawn games and a barbecue lunch. Students played Connect 4, spikeball, large Jenga and cornhole. They also made friendship rocks, donned temporary tattoos and sloshed bubbles at the foam table.
First-year students Mostakim Hossain, a biology pre-med major, and Davis Willeby, a biochemistry pre-med major, challenged second-year students Daniel Zhon and Julian Liu to a spikeball competition.
“We just met them and asked them to play,” said Hossain, adding he was very excited about the upcoming school year.
While enjoying all the activities on the common Monday, Willeby said he was really looking forward to getting involved in everything Northeastern offers, such as co-ops and research.
“There’s so much support at Northeastern. So I just want to take advantage of that,” Willeby said.
First-year student Amanda Weeks, a music industry and communications studies major, and her roommate Sierra-Leone Chhoeun, a first-year business and economics major, were playing Connect 4.
Weeks said she would wrap all the day’s fun around a little bit of schoolwork she needs to complete for one of her courses that is due on Wednesday, Sept. 3, when classes begin.
“We’re also going to check out ‘Shrek’ under the stars,” she said, in reference to the movie scheduled to show on Centennial Common Monday night, with sundaes and green popcorn.
Weeks and Chhoeun said they loved the Boston campus and were eager to begin their Northeastern journey.
“I’m looking forward to the experience in general, just being part of the campus,” Chhoeun said.
The library, and all “the chill spots,” Weeks said, were her favorite campus locations.
First-year student Alanah Peters, a criminal justice and psychology major, and third-year student Molly Forman, a psychology and design major, played cornhole and Connect 4, and were very enthusiastic about making tie-dyed T-shirts.
“Mine is going to have a lot of pink,” Forman said about her shirt. While Peters said, “It’s going to be spontaneous.”
On Tuesday, President Joseph E. Aoun will welcome new students during convocation, which will be held at 11 a.m. at Matthews Arena. Meanwhile, convocation will also take place at the Oakland campus. On Thursday, the London campus convocation will be held.
Also on Tuesday, students will be able to learn about the nearly 600 student organizations on the Boston campus at Fall Fest. The event takes place from noon to 4 p.m. across the campus.
Students during Welcome Week also explored such Boston landmarks as the Museum of Fine Arts, the Boston Public Garden, the Charles River Esplanade, the Boston Public Library and Faneuil Hall. In an effort to help students navigate the subway system in Boston, Orientation Leaders accompanied them on trips to Mike’s Pastry in the North End, Levain Bakery in Back Bay and bubble tea shops in Chinatown.
