Carnival, Y2K Party, Pops With Professors Make 2024 Welcome Week One to Remember at Mississippi College

MC Welcome Week Crew members enjoy ramping up the excitement to celebrate the end of summer break and the return of regular classes.

Taking in breathtaking views of the Mississippi College campus atop a 67-foot Ferris wheel behind Alumni Hall. Enjoying live music and exceptional cuisine at a block party on the historic brick streets of Olde Towne Clinton. Beating the summer heat by chowing down on refreshing popsicles while engaging in lively conversations with faculty members.

Welcome Week 2024 at Mississippi College promises to be unlike any other at the Christian University. And Welcome Week Crew members in the Office of Student Well-being like Olivia Brown are champing at the bit to get things started.

“Welcome Week feels so special and is so different from what every other college does because of how closely knit everyone becomes throughout the week,” said Brown, a senior communications major from Brandon who serves as a Welcome Week director. “Starting with “Prep Week” for Crew, we all bond so quickly and have such a great team experience that flows over into the Welcome Week events.

“New students should never feel alone at any event. Whether they attend by themselves, with their roommate, or with someone they just met, they will find others and make friendships quickly at the events. The Crew wants to get to know the new students and make them feel loved, accepted, and at home at MC.”

Grant McNally, a sophomore biology pre-med major from Ocean Springs who serves on Welcome Week Crew, said the group’s goal is to let students know they are at home at MC and their peers are excited that they have decided to join the MC family. His advice to the newbies?

“Get excited for Welcome Week, because it is going to be a wonderful time,” McNally said. “Open yourself up to each event and embrace the activities. Reach out to others and get to know as many people as possible.

“We are praying for your safe travels to campus, a great Welcome Week, and an amazing 2024-25 school year.”

Conner Dyess, a senior communication major from Brandon, remembers when he was an “anxious freshman” who didn’t know many people when he arrived at MC.

Welcome Week changed that.

“Because of Welcome Week, I have formed friendships that have lasted throughout my college journey,” said Dyess, who is serving as a Welcome Week director. “Welcome Week is special because it is an amazing opportunity that allows upperclassmen to bring in a whole new set of faces onto our campus and pour into them at the start of the new school year.

“I am looking forward to serving the campus one last time as a member of Crew and to help set another group of students up for success at MC.”

Hannah Hinckley loves the overall passion for MC that Welcome Week generates.

“Welcome Week is so special because of the enthusiasm that everyone has at the beginning of a new semester – especially that of the new students and the Crew,” said the junior chemistry pre-med and English literature double major from McComb. “Everyone on campus returns with the desire to deepen old relationships and cultivate new ones.

“So many people are excited to be back on campus and, for newly incoming students, Welcome Week serves as the first ‘Welcome Home’ for where they plan to spend the next few years. Welcome Week takes the frustration out of being on a new campus, not knowing where things are, lacking relationships or the opportunities to meet people, and removes that awkward amount of time spent alone in your residence hall room before classes start.”

MC’s Welcome Week Crew members truly enjoy ramping up the excitement to celebrate the end of summer break and the return of regular classes and coursework. Transitioning from Move-In Day and Choctaw Fanfare – a pair of events that help introduce incoming students to the Christian University’s campus culture – Welcome Week shifts MC students’ focus to the arrival of the fall semester and the beginning of the 199th academic session at the Christian University.

Chip Wilson, director of student well-being at MC, said Welcome Week is not solely focused on fun.

“It’s not entirely about having the most fun we can ever have – although there is plenty of that,” Wilson said. “We’re also incorporating aspects of what academic life at MC will look like, what Christian life looks like on our campus, and what residence life is all about as well.

“We’re plugging into all the different areas that students will encounter throughout their time at MC.”

Following the Choctaws football scrimmage on Wednesday, Aug. 14, parents and families who helped move their students into residence halls will be ushered off campus and an exciting Welcome Week kickoff event will begin, starting a daily string of programs designed to prepare students for the fall semester. The “Welcome Week Kickoff” is scheduled for 8 p.m. in Swor Auditorium in Nelson Hall.

Unlike past years, when the Welcome Week programs were geared more toward new students, Wilson said the 2024 slate will encompass fun activities for returning “veterans.”

“We will have one or two events each day that will be open to off-campus students,” Wilson said. “We are trying to incorporate more campus camaraderie to help provide a fun atmosphere and make MC a place that all students want to be.

“We are striving to create a well-rounded student. Welcome Week is a time that shows students what their experience at MC will be like. We have very intentional events planned that will help them make friends, learn something about the University, and enjoy the Christian environment.”

He said transfer students will not be overlooked, either. A couple of special events - a Transfers on Track brunch at 1826 and the Piazza or Transfer Treats at Cups on Monroe Street – are planned specifically with them in mind.

“Even though they’ve had college experiences at other schools already,” Wilson said, “our goal is to get them plugged into campus life early, because we will have them for a shorter period of time. We want them to love their two years at MC just as much as someone who has been with us for four years.”

Wilson is implementing what he hopes will become a Welcome Week tradition for MC alumni: writing encouraging messages to incoming students.

“We thought how wonderful it would be for the students to receive a little note on their first day of class from those who were once in their shoes,” Wilson said. “Just three or four sentences saying, ‘Hey, I was once where you are, and I love MC,’ or that they made friends with someone on their first day. One alum wrote that he met his future wife on the first day of class.

“We’ll be handing them out to students along with Chick-fil-A chicken biscuits on the way to their first class of the semester.”

Major Welcome Week events will include:

Where Are My Classes? (11 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 15, on the Quad)

Newbies can receive a mini-tour of the Clinton campus from student Welcome Week Crew or Scouts and find out exactly where they are to report when classes begin on Monday.

“That Crew member or Scout will walk them to every single class that they have and show them where all the buildings are,” Wilson said. “Hopefully, that will alleviate some of those nerves that they normally have on that first day of school.”

Pops with Professors (3 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 15, select buildings throughout campus)

New students are invited to mingle with faculty and staff in their respective departments and get to know the world-class professionals who will be sharing their wisdom and knowledge during their undergraduate careers.

“I’m excited about this event, because it has great potential to create some long-lasting bonds and let students know that at MC, they’re not just a number,” Wilson said.

Y2K (8 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 15, the Reed House at 1120 U.S. Highway 49 North)

The Reed House at Live Oaks Golf Course in Jackson will play host to a fantastic Year 2000 dance party, where students will dress in their favorite duds of two decades past and dance the night away.

“MC students in general love a dance party,” Wilson said, “and they also love a themed event. We anticipate this will be one of the highest attended events of the week.”

Local Church Fair (4:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, Alumni Hall)

Representatives from dozens of local houses of worship will be on campus to connect with all MC students and invite them to discover their new “church home” while in college.

“One of the goals of Welcome Week is to get every student plugged into a church and to have a place to go on Sundays and Wednesday nights,” Wilson said. “We’ll be providing pizzas, so the students can enjoy a meal while they visit with the church representatives.

“Local churches that have large college ministries around our campus will sponsor events during Welcome Week, too. The Baptist Student Union and Reformed University Fellowship will have a presence. Welcome Week will provide intentional times for students to see what ministries they can plug into and become a part of.”

Welcome Week Carnival (7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, in the parking lot behind Alumni Hall)

Billed as “the greatest event MC has ever seen,” a full-fledged carnival – complete with concession treats, carney-style games under carnival tents, balloon animals and a caricature artist, a silent disco, a pair of rock walls, and the aforementioned Ferris wheel – will entertain students on a Saturday night for the ages.

ResLife Dodgeball (1:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 18, behind the Holloway Rotunda)

Students will don clothes they don’t mind getting wet for a fan-favorite game of Slip and Slide Dodgeball, hosted by Residence Life. It’s the perfect place for students to team up with others in their residence hall and enjoy a fun summertime afternoon.

Family Dinner (4:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 18, Caf Patio, Pedestrian Street, and the Quad)

After drying off, students will settle in with the rest of the MC family for a Sunday meal before attending the traditional Worship Night in Nelson Hall’s Swor Auditorium, featuring MC’s Chapel Band, led by the incomparable Tyler Kemp. Jackson Breedlove, an MC alum, will address the students and explain how God cares and provides for them throughout their educational journeys.

“There’s so much more to the MC experience than carnivals and classes,” Wilson said. “We hope students will see opportunities to grow in their faith while they’re here.”

The Great Chick-fil-A Biscuit Pass-Out (8 a.m. Monday, Aug. 19, The Quad and MCC Patio)

On the way to their first class of the semester, students can pick up a free energy boost from the Welcome Week Crew.

“Thanks to Welcome Week, all students should feel confident they are right where they need to be when classes start,” Wilson said.

For a complete list of 2024 Welcome Week activities or for more information, click here. MC alumni who wish to write a note for a new student can email Wilson at wilson28@mc.edu.