Reunited…and it feels so good

While Denisse was on vacation in D.C. I fell into a deep depression and was unable to do any orientation planning. Just kidding! However, I did miss my partner in crime, and was delighted by her return .

Watch a dramatic recreation of our joyous reunion here.

Since we last updated you, much has happened. We met with Don Leach, Associate Director of Student Life, to collaborate on a video for Student Leadership training.

We also held a focus group (complete with home made guacamole, fun ice breakers, and thought-provoking questions on brightly colored paper) to pick the wise minds of upperclass students. We asked the students on campus about the highlights of their orientations and got some pretty great ideas.

Finally, I’ve been having a lot of fun with Google Docs, creating budgeting spread sheets, program descriptions, and lists galore! Now that Denisse is back, I can stop crying into my keyboard and get some real work done.

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Love from Wellsleyland,

Meg

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4th of July in D.C.

I’m happy to say that this year, I had the opportunity to celebrate 4th of July in none other than D.C.!! Yes, it was wonderful. Yes, it was crowded. And yes, it was unbelievably hot and humid! Coming from LA, I’m used to the heat. 100° doesn’t phase me, but humidity…I can do without.
My friend from Wellesley (the same person who is teaching not teaching me Portuguese) has an internship in D.C. working for Governor Patrick of MA. She was kind enough to host me for about a week and take me to all the touristy sites.

We ended up walking everywhere. We also ate a lot, so I guess that balanced out.

It was a long weekend and since pictures are worth a thousand words, here you go:

Loyal Massachusettians! We visited the WWII Memorial. Probably my new favorite memorial.

Izzy, me, and Abe Lincoln. Typical day in D.C.

And of course, no trip to D.C. is complete without a trip to the Obama residence.

We ran into our other friend from Wellesley, Faa! And we all went to the Holocaust Museum. Clearly Izzy just loves her.

Part of the 4th of July weekend festivities was a Colombian Folklife Festival on the mall.

By the time Mon. came, I was so exhausted of taking photos, so I didn’t. Now I regret not photographing all the fireworks, but oh well.

I hope everyone else (at least those of you in the U.S.) also had a great 4th of July weekend!

A final note: I had a great time in D.C., but I still missed my wonderful coworker Meg. 🙂

-Denisse

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Dear Parents,

For those of you anxiously waiting for the Parents’ mailing, don’t despair! We spent most of yesterday and some of today stuffing hundreds of envelopes just for you. Watch the mini-assembly line Meg and I did:

Now that our job is done, you can all go wait by your mailboxes for the mailings to arrive! Enjoy!

-Denisse

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A Slice of Wellesleyland!

Hi All,

Denisse and I wanted to offer you a glimpse through the looking glass and into our office. Below is the video we made this morning when I walked into work.

Love from Wellesleyland,

Meg

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Down the Rabbit Hole We Go

'Well, I'll eat it,' said Alice, 'and if it makes me grow larger, I can reach the key; and if it makes me grow smaller, I can creep under the door; so either way I'll get into the garden, and I don't care which happens!'

Today Dean Tenser, Meg, and I had our first meeting with dining services at The Wellesley College Club.  You should all know that the College Club has a restaurant with delicious food!  So it was definitely a treat for us to be invited there for a lunch meeting.  We (mainly I!) helped ourselves to everything, especially the desserts.  Everything you see above, I made sure to sample.

During the meeting, we discussed all the events we need dining services to cater, which is most of the events.  Prepare yourself to be treated with lots of food and snacks during Orientation week.  Be forewarned: You may or may not gain the Freshman 15 before classes even start. (It happened to me)  Just make sure to participate in the Fitness Breaks that Physical Ed., Recreation, and Athletics (PERA) offers during Orientation.  😉

from left to right: Joe (Director of Catering), Meg, Denisse, John (Dining Manager)

It ended up being a very productive meeting.  Joe and John had quite a few innovative ideas for themed lunches and snack breaks, which made us excited for this year’s food options.

I hope you all had a great weekend!  Meg and I had a great time basking in the wonderful Boston weather.

-Denisse

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Optional Orientation Trip Survey

During Orientation week, we’ll be offering optional trips for you to explore the area surrounding Wellesleyland.

Please fill out this survey so we can get an idea of which trips you’d like us to offer.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/T57MN5F

Thanks!
Meg

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Meet Meg!

Hello Class of 2015!

My name is Meg and I am one of the Student Orientation Coordinators this year. I am a rising senior (I can’t believe it!) and a Peace and Justice Studies Major. I absolutely love Wellesley, and I hope you will too.

I fell in love with Orientation my first year when I suddenly found myself surrounded by the most amazing women I had ever met in my entire life. I’m thrilled to be a part of creating a great experience that will be fun and informative this year.

This summer, when I’m not working on designing an incredible week for all you new students, I’ll be spending as much time in Boston as possible. I studied abroad for part of last year and my program was focused on cities; I traveled to Detroit, Michigan, Sao Paulo and Curitiba, Brazil, Cape Town, South Africa, and Hanoi, Vietnam. While studying cities internationally, I became captivated by urban spaces of all kinds. I hope to use this summer as a chance to get to know the city in Wellesley’s back yard.

Other than traveling as much as possible, some of my other interests include baking, social justice, scrabble, finding quirky tumblrs, and stand up comedy. Some of the activities I have been involved with on campus in the past include Regeneration (our student run farm), Upstage (one of our theater groups), Residential Life, Habitat for Humanity, and Mission Change (a campus queer advocacy group).

I hope you’ll check the blog often, and I cannot wait to meet you.

Sending all my love from Wellesleyland,
Meg

Brunch in Cape Town! I'm the one with the red hair on the right.

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Meet Denisse

Welcome Wellesley Class of 2015!

I’m Denisse.  I’m a junior from Los Angeles, CA.  I’m a Comparative Literature and German double major.  This is the first summer I’ve spent away from home and the first summer I’ve actually had a job! So far, working as the SOC has been great.  It’s strange being on campus and not having to go to class or do any homework.  Without academics, I’m left with a lot of free time in my evenings so I decided to take up a new hobby.  But I’m struggling trying to find the right hobby.  I’ve considered yoga, photography, cooking, painting my nails, braiding my hair, reading blogs, and so many other things, but so far, movie watching on Netflix is winning.  I’ll gladly accept suggestions.

Aside from that list, I also tried to learn some Portuguese on my own.  One of my good friends at Wellesley is half Brazilian and she introduced me to Portuguese.  Thanks to her, I can say:

meo avo e feo –  my grandpa is ugly (*note: I don’t think my grandfather is ugly.  We both thought it would be funny to say this.)

….And that’s about all I know.  Yeah, she’s a great teacher.  That’s why I decided to take it upon myself to learn using online guides.

Although I’m far from home, I rarely suffer from homesickness.  When I first arrived, I had many concerns about living in the East Coast, making new friends, and adjusting to college-level academics.  But Orientation made me love Wellesley.  I’m especially grateful for the friends I made that first week! That’s why I wanted to be part of Orientation this year.

With my former roommate and dear friend Julia!

I hope all of you are having a great summer.  And for those of you who recently graduated, congratulations!  I can’t wait to meet you.

-Denisse
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Welcome

Welcome to Adventures in Wellesleyland. This is the blog of Denisse and Meg, the Student Orientation Coordinators (SOCs) for Orientation 2011. We hope you’ll check this blog often to find out what is going on down the rabbit hole of New Student Orientation planning at Wellesley!

Meg (left) and Denisse (right) welcome you!

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