Photo by Bryan Oller

Colorado College welcomes the 519 incoming members of the Class of 2021 and 31 transfer students. New Student Orientation began on Saturday, Aug. 19, with a host of activities including a welcome luncheon, opening remarks by CC President Jill Tiefenthaler, and “Sense of Place” programming.

The incoming class, culled from a record 8,222 applicants, had a 15 percent admittance rate, with 51 percent receiving some form of financial aid, 26.7 percent self-identifying as students
of color, and 53 being first-generation college students. The class includes 48 QuestBridge students; QuestBridge is a nonprofit organization that matches high-achieving, underserved students with opportunities in higher education.

A large component of CC’s New Student Orientation is the Priddy Experience, in which students fan out across the Southwest for five days on service trips led by other Colorado College students. There were 66 Priddy trips scheduled, including four for athletes arriving on campus early, working with 41 organizations in the Southwest region. Students volunteered with organizations ranging from the Santa Fe Habitat for Humanity in New Mexico to Easter Seals in Denver to a dog rescue shelter in Texas, as well as numerous backcountry organizations offering opportunities for trail maintenance and campsite restoration.

The incoming CC students, led by 142 New Student Orientation leaders, contributed approximately 11,000 hours of community service to organizations throughout the region – before Block 1 even began.

Opening Convocation, held on Monday, Aug. 28, in Shove Memorial Chapel, opens the 2017-18 academic year. This year’s Opening Convocation address will be delivered by Colum McCann P’21, the Irish writer and author of “Let the Great World Spin.” Also addressing students is Dorsa Djalilzadeh ’18, president of CC’s Student Government Association. Classes begin immediately following Opening Convocation, with the entire campus community invited to attend a Tutt Library celebration and ice cream social in the afternoon.