August 22, 2008
Academic year will kick off with Fall Convocation September 3
In less than a week, 596 first-year students who will make up the Class of 2012 arrive at Clark. Move-in day is scheduled for Wednesday, August 27; international students arrive on Sunday, August 24.
For the first time, Clark is welcoming 20 incoming students from the Davis United World College Scholars Program. Created by philanthropist Shelby M.C. Davis, the program is intended to help internationalize the American undergraduate experience by supporting need-based scholarships for graduates of the worldwide United World College schools who enroll at selected American colleges and universities. The program is supporting over 1,750 scholars from over 130 countries.
The ACE Summer Institute, our pre-first-year program for African descent, Latino, Native American, and Asian American (ALANA) domestic students and first-generation college students, began August 12 and runs through Tuesday, August 26.
Connections: The ALANA Student Orientation Program, runs from August 24-26. This new preorientation program assists the academic, cultural and social adjustment of African, Latino (a), Asian/Pacific Islander, and Native American descent students to Clark University and Worcester.
Orientation—which at Clark is called "Week One"—runs from Wednesday, August 27 through Monday, September 1. "Clarkiepalooza," an event featuring music, carnival attractions and a drive-in movie, will take place on the Campus Green on August 27, from 6:30-8 p.m. Clark faculty and staff will help serve dinner as a way of welcoming new students.
For the sixth year, Clark is offering TREK programs exclusively to incoming first-year students. These programs help students ease their transition from high school into college. A group of 18 new students are currently in New Orleans rebuilding homes affected by Hurricane Katrina in Slidell, LA. They will be working with Habitat for Humanity and the Collegiate Challenge and will be in New Orleans to mark the third anniversary of Katrina.
In addition, 13 new students will be hiking the Appalachian Trail in Newry, Maine, while another 33 will venture out to Charlton, Mass., for a week of teambuilding and ropes course activities.
Fall classes start on Tuesday, September 2.
The fall Convocation and Salute to Student Scholars mark the official opening of the academic year and will begin at 2 p.m. Wednesday, September 3, in the Daniels Theater, Atwood Hall. A short, formal ceremony will include opening remarks by President John Bassett and the awarding of university-wide awards and fellowships to outstanding students.
A Salute to Student Scholars reception will follow Convocation at 3 p.m. in Tilton Hall, Higgins University Center.
Incoming first-year students were asked to complete a summer reading assignment and they will be introduced to Clark's academic life with professors leading stimulating discussions related to the book, "The Travels of a T-Shirt in a Global Economy: An Economist Examines the Markets, Power and Politics of World Trade." The book's author, Pietra Rivoli, will deliver "Reason, Passion, and the Travels of a T-shirt" at Convocation.
For further details on these and other happenings at Clark, please contact the Media Relations office, 508-793-7554/7635. Check online for schedules and information about events throughout the year: www.clarku.edu.