Elizabeth McMahon
Contributing Writer
As we move closer to midterms, and become more familiar with the faces of the class of 2028, we should see how they’re enjoying their first semester on our beautiful Mountain. In order to embrace our fellow Tigers, we interviewed a handful of this year’s freshmen class in regards to how their initial experience of Sewanee has been.
Getting Adjusted
The first few months of college is arguably the most important period for any freshmen as they adjust to life on campus. As they are running to lectures, creating new friendships, and discovering the Domain, the Sewanee community is stamping its identity onto these new members. When interviewing a handful of the members of the class of 2028, they overwhelmingly had a positive outlook, with many stating that Sewanee felt like home and that the community was filled with warm and friendly members.
Peri Feddermann (C’ 28) said “It was never a question of where I was going to go…it always felt really homey.”
As it reflects our core values, the students here strive for a strong community—all the way from the seasoned senior to the newly-fledged freshmen—and to foster this bond between all Tigers. Additionally, the Sewanee community has proven why it is an academically prestigious institution through its culture.
“I don’t feel judged at all in the classroom and I can go to my professor for anything,” Caroline Luttrull (C’ 28) said.
Dwelling in Unity
With these positive interactions amongst peers and professors, the class of 2028 feels not only confident in their freshmen year, but also feels the embrace of the current residents living on the Domain.
As this year’s crop of freshmen mingle with the current student body, they are starting to learn about the many traditions here on the Domain. One particular tradition that many freshmen have mentioned during these interviews was The Order of the Gown, a prestigious organization awarded to those who succeed academically. Many freshmen have noticed the flowing black gowns adorned with colorful pins and made comments like Margaret Spiers (C’ 28) did when she exclaimed, “I like the gowns and seeing everyone wear them; it’s really fun.”
In addition to this, many seem eager to achieve membership into The Order of the Gowns as well as they are willing to engage in other traditions such as the Passing Hello.
When speaking about this particular tradition, Reid Wischer (C’ 28) mentioned that, “I liked the Passing Hello because it’s just a good way to meet people.”
Although there are many standing traditions here at Sewanee, some freshmen are excited to not only to participate in them, but also make new ones. “But I’m mostly just excited to make traditions in my friend group,” Juliana Dedman Szendrey (C’ 28) said.
To Szendrey and many others, being able to connect to her peers and deepen bonds is what she looks forward to as she attends Sewanee as well as being able to continue those traditions she made into her years well beyond college.
Despite only having been here for a mere handful of weeks, the class of 2028 are already beginning to discover tidbits they wish they had known before arriving at college. For Mia Nilsen (C’ 28), she wished she was more organized than what she was beforehand. She particularly spoke on setting up her dorm and said that to, “…get everything unpacked right away, get your living space set up so that the rest of your mind can be like ‘ah ok, like where I’m living is ok now so it is all going to be ok,’.” This time is already stressful enough and she found that by being organized, it helped ease her mind and make the process more smooth.
What does Sewanee offer?
Sewanee has an abundance of activities to offer its residents, and although these freshmen have only been living on the Domain for a mere handful of weeks, Sewanee has given them quite a few memorable experiences.
When questioned about her experience with the Women’s Swim Team, Nilsen beamed when speaking about her meeting with her coaches, stating that, “When I had my first individual meeting with my sport’s coach, I could tell, ‘Okay, these guys are going to help me and going to push me to succeed and make me a really good swimmer and a really good athlete’. I think they have my best interests at heart.”
Although the initial weeks at college can be nerve wracking for many first-year students, these memories lay the groundworks for an enjoyable experience for the following four years to come for this new wave of academics.
The Passing Hello has been a long-standing tradition in The University of the South, and there is a strong argument to be made that it has impacted the culture of Sewanee. It has created a friendly face on every street corner and its effects are felt by everyone on campus, including Blake Burgiss (C’ 28) when he noted, “When I came here, I knew the Sewanee Wave was a thing, but I didn’t know there was legitimately you meet somebody once and they are there for you.”
Instead of feeling isolated from the rest of the student body, students just like Burgiss instead feel embraced by the Sewanee family and as if unexpected friendliness has transformed their college experience for the better. On top of this pleasantly surprisingly warmth, some freshmen did not expect to be as socially active on campus as they are right now.
When asked, Henry Varden (C’ 28) pointed out how he, “…didn’t expect to be so out and about on weekends and still so dedicated to all of my classes; I definitely did not think I would be as interested in the weekend things.” This school is not only strong in its academics, but also in its social life. Although putting oneself out there might be intimidating, Sewanee has shown its true, welcoming colors.
Given that Sewanee has thirteen thousand acres of land, there are many places and sites on the Domain to explore. A popular choice for the Class of 2028’s favorite place on campus so far has been duPont Library because of its calm and peaceful environment, but there were many other places these freshmen have enjoyed as well. Some people, like Declan Oberlies (C’ 28), found it difficult to choose just one spot in particular and instead opted to say that his favorite place, “…is just out in the Domain. With cross country, I’ll just go on long runs and just getting lost and getting found.”
Unlike the majority of colleges in the United States, Sewanee has an abundance of nature where the students are able to explore and it is wonderful to see that the new incoming class is already making good use of this wonderful opportunity.
Clurg Hacks
It is often said that food is the center of community and that in a way is applicable to Sewanee as well. McClurg Dining Hall is arguably our center of the Sewanee community—both geographically and metaphorically. When questioned about their favorite Clurg food or hack, this year’s freshmen had a variety of answers. The cookie ice cream sandwich was a popular choice, but there were many creative ones as well.
One such “Clurg hack” was Caroline Luttrull’s (C’ 28) pasta bowl with tofu. “And then I add soy sauce and the sweet chili sauce. The sweet chili sauce is essential to the bowl. Then I add scallions on top; it’s so good!”
Others, like Varden, favor more simple, but very homey dishes such as, “…the grits because it just makes me think of home because I’m from Kentucky so that’s what my family makes all the time.”
Whether you are looking to try something new or searching for a dish that reminds you of home, McClurg Dining Hall is able to provide that—as long as you get creative!
Orientation or Disorientation?
Although the official move-in day was August 24, many students arrived at Sewanee early for either FYP, PRE, or athletics. Not only did being on campus early allow them to explore the campus before others arrive, but they had the opportunity to create new friendships.
Burgiss summed this up when he spoke about his experience. “I did PRE and when doing PRE you have no idea what it is coming into it; it’s part of the charm,” Burgiss said. “With PRE I think the biggest part is that you have fun; everyone there, after maybe a day, gives up on trying to be cool…that is the best part is that you’re taken into a small group of people that you really get to know and gives you a good base of friends going into college.”
This feeling seems to be mutual with not only FYP, but with the athletes as well. Spiers, a member of the Women’s Basketball Team, expressed how the team culture is. “We are very competitive, but as soon as the play is over, we are laughing and giggling and cheering each other on,” Spiers said. “It is definitely a very family-esque environment.”
When speaking with Feddermann, she detailed her first time caving and described how, “It was not like anything I have ever done before. Like when I signed up for PRE, I signed up for the other two activities that we did, but got caving instead. When we were descending into the earth and my PRE mom was talking to me and she was like ‘Your commentary going into the cave was so entertaining’ because I was like ‘I did not sign up for this! This is not happening!’ and the entire time I hated it and was terrified. Simultaneously scariest and coolest thing I have ever done; I want to try all the caves.”
In addition to the activities offered by PRE and FYP, some freshmen also mentioned how interacting with others has been a remarkable experience, especially in regards to coaches.
Additionally, everyone that was questioned elaborated on their experiences and all seemed to believe that these programs have had a positive impact on their experience on the Mountain. The biggest of these impacts—from all groups involved in pre-orientation programs—was the friendships they created. Varden summed this up the best saying that, “It gave me a friend group; my FYP group has stayed together really well.” Although friend groups shift and alter over the years, these freshmen will always have a set of people to lean on and call friends.
Good luck to everyone, but especially the freshmen, as we begin this year’s Advent Semester.