Move-In Day, Choctaw Fanfare Augur Exciting Academic Season for New MC Students, Families

Maddie Ann Storey said her unforgettable Move-In Day experience as a freshman informs how she serves as a student Move-In Day lead this year.

The first Mississippi College event that made Maddie Ann Storey feel like a real-live, honest-to-goodness university student was Move-In Day.

It also made her realize she had selected to attend the absolute best university for her.

The junior elementary education major from Meadville still remembers every detail of her experience two late summers ago.

“Dad has us wake up at the crack of dawn to make the drive over to my new home,” Storey said. “We enlisted the help of my grandparents to lift and transport all of the things I had decided to bring.

“To my complete and utter surprise, we were met by students who moved everything in for us! This act of service really cemented that I was exactly where I needed to be.”

A caravan of new Mississippi College students are scheduled to arrive at the Clinton campus during the annual Move-In Day event, scheduled for Tuesday-Wednesday, Aug. 13-14. New freshmen who live within 30 miles of campus will officially move in at 8 a.m. Tuesday, with transfer students from within 30 miles of MC to follow at 10 a.m. On Wednesday, all remaining freshmen will move in at 8 a.m. and all remaining transfer students will do so at 10 a.m.

Throughout both days, enthusiastic MC family members will greet students and their families, pass out bottles of water and MC swag, and help the new arrivals unload their vehicles and set up residence hall rooms worthy of being posted online.

According to Jonathan Ambrose, vice president for student experience and dean of students, Move-In Day – one of the most exciting events for incoming students at MC – sets the tone for their college careers.

“Move-In Day is an opportunity for the University to put its best foot forward and for parents to see who it is that they’re entrusting their students with,” Ambrose said. “Outside of visiting the campus during summer orientation or visiting the Admissions Office, Move-In Day is their first taste of what it’s like to be at Mississippi College.

“We want to provide them with an experience like no other. That’s why we approach Move-In Day with extreme customer service and make it less burdensome on families as they see their students off to college.”

“Move-In Day” at MC is actually a misnomer – it now takes two days to complete the event, thanks in large part to the Speed Scholarship, which provides full undergraduate tuition to high school seniors and transfer students entering the Christian University who are Mississippi residents. Major renovations to historic Ratliff Hall this summer will mark the first time post-pandemic that every residence hall on MC’s campus will house students for the academic year.

“After our class grew exponentially last year because of the Speed Scholarship, we realized moving 600-plus new students in one day was too much,“ Ambrose said. “Last year, 70 percent of our freshmen class lived more than 100 miles away.

“We wanted to get those in central Mississippi moved in, then let our out-of-state students have an opportunity to experience Move-In Day as well.”

He said volunteers are what make Move-In Day such a memorable event for incoming students.

“It’s a well-oiled machine,” Ambrose said. “The students and families snake through the parking lot by the Physical Plant and come through the Gates, where they are welcomed by faculty and staff who direct them where they’re going. Parents are shocked when all these faculty and staff members are waving at them, welcoming them to campus to kick off their student’s collegiate career.

“Move-In Day is an important endeavor because it showcases our mission, it shows our heart and service to our students, and gets them to ‘buy in’ at an early stage what we’re really about and what sets us apart as an institution.”

The unofficial kickoff to the fall semester, Move-In Day heralds the arrival of student activities throughout the fall semester. At 3 p.m. on Day Two, the new students will gather with their families at First Baptist Church Clinton for New Student and Parent Convocation, which serves as the official launch of their MC careers.

During convocation, the students will be formally welcomed into the Mississippi College family by MC President Blake Thompson, who will charge them to uphold the University’s mission of academic excellence and commitment to the cause of Christ.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, Thompson will lead the students in their inaugural walk through the storied Gates at the entrance of campus, through the idyllic Quad, and onto the legendary Steps on College Street, where their official class photo will be taken.

MC’s campus bell will toll during the processional, and the class will be greeted with cheers from MC’s upperclassmen, student-athletes, faculty, and staff members.

Following the freshman class photo, the Choctaw Fanfare will begin at 4 p.m. Varsity student-athletes that compete for Mississippi College in the Gulf South Conference, MC cheerleaders, and MC dance squad members will parade through the Quad to resounding music from the University’s marching band.

The freshman students will join their upper-class peers, faculty, and staff to applaud the Division II student-athletes in the traditional Choctaw Walk as they sign autographs and mingle with the MC family at tailgating tents lining the heart of campus.

“Athletics is a large part of the student experience that we offer at Mississippi College,” Ambrose said. “We want our new students to support our student-athletes in the classroom and on the field. The Choctaw Walk recognizes our student-athletes and builds excitement for our athletic teams.

“Our student-athletes help with Move-In Day, bringing the new students’ possessions to their rooms, and welcoming them to campus. Choctaw Fanfare does a ‘180.’ It provides an opportunity for the new students to recognize and show appreciation to the student-athletes for what they do for the University.”

At 6 p.m., the Choctaw football team, led by first-year head coach Mike Kershaw, will give a preview of the 2024 gridiron campaign by conducting a scrimmage in Robinson-Hale Stadium. Once the scrimmage is over, Ambrose said it will be time for the new students to bid their parents and families adieu.

“We try to get everyone excited about the upcoming football season, but after the scrimmage, we tell the parents that their time here is over. It’ll be time for them to go.

“Then we usually have a big kickoff event for Welcome Week that night.”

Storey, who has a lead position during both Move-In days this year, said her unforgettable Move-In Day experience informs how she approaches her task.

“Thanks to the people who made the decision to serve their school and its students, I felt at ease and comfortable on my first day,” she said. “This thought process has stuck with me ever since, and I could not think of a better way to give back than to serve MC students the same way I was served.

“This is the new students’ first time to feel like college students. I’m looking forward to seeing all of the new students that I met at orientation.”

Ambrose said he is aware of no other collegiate experience that can match Move-In Day at MC.

“The way I describe it to parents at orientation is that we’re going to give them Disney on steroids,” Ambrose said. “It’s my hope and prayer that they will get a true sense of who we are as an institution and what they can look forward to as we help their students develop into future adults with a sense of commitment to serving others.

“I hope they can see Christ through what we are doing. Not only do we talk about it as part of our mission, but it’s important for them to experience it through their first interaction with the college during Move-In Day. It’s a hectic time on campus, but we want to put families at ease about who they’ve entrusted their students with.”