SHERMAN, TEXAS — By Monday afternoon, August 30, Austin College students should have moved into campus housing, completed check-in procedures, and registered for fall classes. Freshmen will have completed a full weekend of orientation activities and hopefully are feeling a bit more at home in the Austin College community.
The traditional Opening of School Convocation in Wynne Chapel at 7 p.m. Monday evening will officially begin the 162nd academic year of Austin College. Marjorie Hass, president of Austin College, will present the opening address, “The Power of Translation: Teaching and Learning at Austin College.” Student body president Carolyn Stone, a senior from Carrollton, Texas, will ring the Sam Houston Bell to begin the program.
The freshman class will lead the procession into the chapel, followed by the senior class, in cap and gown, marking the opening of the students’ final academic year and the countdown toward commencement in May. The academic procession ends with faculty and administrators in full academic regalia. The college marshal is Hunt Tooley, professor of history. Anna Laura Page is organist for the event.
A key element of the event is the official presentation and investiture of the Class of 2014, certifying the freshmen as members of the College community. The freshmen’s signed Academic Integrity pledges will be presented to administrators; Robert Johnson, chair of the Board of Trustees at the College will present the Class of 2014 banner to class representatives; and the new students will be matriculated officially and ready to begin classes.
During the event, the Austin College A Cappella Choir, directed by Wayne Crannell, will perform. In addition to President Hass, administrators taking part in the event will include John Williams, chaplain; Tex Reugg, registrar; Michael Imhoff, vice president for Academic Affairs and dean of the faculty; and Nan Davis, vice president for Institutional Enrollment. Senior Jordan Rose of Frisco, Texas, will present the invocation.
Following the event, members of the Class of 2011 will gather for a “Senior Salute” at the president’s home in celebration of their final year of learning at Austin College.
Austin College is a leading national independent liberal arts college located north of Dallas in Sherman, Texas. Founded in 1849, making it the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original charter and name, the college is related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA). Recognized nationally for academic excellence in the areas of international education, pre-professional training, and leadership studies, Austin College is one of 40 schools profiled in Loren Pope’s influential book Colleges that Change Lives.
