Newest Lancers arrive for Welcome Weekend

Riverside, Calif. (Sept. 6, 2022) – The newest Lancers received a warm reception as they arrived at California Baptist University for Welcome Weekend, Sept. 2-4. That came both from the high temperatures and the faculty, staff and student leaders. About 1,400 freshmen and transfer students arrived for the start of the fall semester at CBU.

The weekend started with residential freshmen and transfer students moving in on Sept. 2. As students arrived at their living areas with vehicles full of luggage, student volunteers lined up to help with the move.

Camdyn Taylor, an elementary education freshman, said she was very excited to move in.  

“I’m looking forward to connecting with the Lord more and making new friends,” Taylor said.  

The day also included academic involvement fairs and a Welcome Session.

During the Welcome Session in the Events Center, new students and their parents were introduced to leaders on campus, including Dr. John Montgomery, associate vice president of Student Services; Tyler Mariucci, the director of Athletics; and Dr. Charles Sands, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. The audience members learned about CBU’s values and had the opportunity to have some fun, too, by learning the CBU fight song.

“Being a university committed to the Great Commission is so important to who we are,” Sands said at the event. “One thing we want you to realize is we are here because we believe God’s called us to serve you. We want you to come here. We want you to learn, we want you to grow and we want you to become part of our Lancer Nation. One of the things we want to do is cultivate God’s gifts in you.”

Other events throughout the weekend included connecting with First-Year Experience (FYE) groups, which are designed to help the transitional needs of new students, participating in various activities across campus, experiencing Spiritual Life (SL) Night and attending a movie night to watch “The Greatest Showman.”

Eli Washburn, an exercise science sophomore, transferred into CBU after visiting the campus.  

“I really like the environment and the community on campus,” Washburn said. “I really like the program and the teachers. I’m excited to get to know more people, especially in the field I am interested in.”  

Delaney Keller, a graphic design and visual experience freshman, especially enjoyed the FYE group events since they allowed her to connect with a smaller group of students on a deeper level.

“I really like the FYE groups and getting to know people,” Keller said. “It helps calm your nerves because you are actually talking to people and communicating.”

The weekend wrapped up with the return of Clash N Roll, an annual event that has been absent from campus life since fall 2019 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 1,000 students — both new and returning — attended the event dressed in their craziest clashing outfits to play a massive game of bunco on the Front Lawn.

Alyssa Humphreys, a psychology senior, is a Community Life intern who helped prepare and run the Welcome Weekend and Clash N Roll events.

“We’re so excited to have Clash N Roll back,” Humphreys said. “It’s an event that brings everyone together right at the start of the year. It’s such high energy and it sets the tone for the rest of the year. We’ve been through a lot of struggles with COVID, and we weren’t able to do this event, so it’s really cool to be on the other side of that and be able to start this event again.”

Throughout the weekend, Humphreys said she enjoyed seeing students form connections during events.

“Once you have community and once you have connections, that’s really what’s going to lead you to be able to stay at school and enjoy your college experience,” Humphreys said.

Classes begin for the fall 2022 semester on Sept. 6.