Gallons of tempera paint will have a starring role as new students arrive on the Hardin-Simmons University campus this week. One of the most visual and exciting events during New Student Orientation (NSO) week is simply called The Games. A huge slip-n-slide is set up on the intramural field, along with kiddie pools filled with paint.
During the event, close to 500 new HSU students will become layered in multicolored paint as they participate in strategic activities designed for optimum paint coverage. The Games is scheduled for Thursday, August 23, at 9:30 a.m., on the intramural fields for anyone who dares to witness it.
The paint war event is one of many activities planned for the incoming transfer and freshman students. This week, the new students are divided into family groups of 15 to 18 each and participate in games that help them learn the campus.
On Wednesday afternoon, August 22, at the Traditions Assembly, students learn the school songs and how the campus came to look as it does today. Also during these lessons on how to be an HSU Cowboy, they will learn the correct way to use the index finger and thumb pointed like a Cowboy’s gun waving back in forth in the air, creating the “Guns Up” sign.
One of the most riveting events during the assembly is a performance by the Ex-Cowgirls. Mostly in their 70s and 80s, the Ex-Cowgirls perform The Stomp, a rousing dance routine that typically garners a standing ovation from the rather amazed group of student newcomers.
The theme for NSO and the various team names are kept under tight wraps until the opening assembly on Tuesday evening in Behrens Auditorium. The nine member Steering Committee has been working on campus throughout the summer to get ready for the activities, making sure no detail is missed.
Tomorrow night, Tuesday, August 21, parents and students tell each other good-bye after an ice cream party on the HSU front lawn by the pond. The 7:30 p.m. parent/student time together is decidedly harder on the parents than the students. Students know they are in for a week of meeting new friends, rousing assemblies, and learning what it means to be independent and responsible adults, forging on to carve the person they will become.
NSO Schedule
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
- 9:00 am - 1:00 pm Orientation Registration - Johnson Building
- 9:00 am Move In - Behrens Hall (freshmen women, east side of campus) Nix Hall (freshmen men, west side of campus)
- 2:30 pm Parents' Meeting - Behrens Auditorium
- 4:00 pm Dinner On Your Own
- 6:45 pm President's Dessert Party - Front Lawn/Pond
- 7:30 pm Parents' Good-bye Time
- 8:00 pm Opening Assembly - Behrens Auditorium
- 9:00 pm Small Group Meeting - Various Locations
- 10:30 pm Residence Hall Meeting
- 10:30 pm Commuter Meeting - Moody Center Room #108
Wednesday, August 22
- 8:30 am Breakfast - Moody Center
- 8:45 am Campus Tag - Game to help new students learn the campus – Locations include: Observatory, Johnson Building, Library, Mabee Complex, Intermural Field
- 11:00 am Clean Up
- 11:30 am Lunch - Moody Center
- 1:00 pm Major Meetings
- 2:15-2:45 pm Small group meeting #2
- 2:15-3:15 pm Summer Read 2012
- 3:30-4:30 pm Information Station
- 4:30 pm Dress for Banquet
- 5:30 pm Traditions Assembly - Behrens Auditorium; Ex-Cowgirls perform the Cowgirl Stomp (many of these dancers are in their 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s)
- 6:30 pm Banquet - Mabee Complex
- 7:30 pm Beanie Capping - Behrens Auditorium; (secret ceremony, no cameras)
- 9:00 pm Alumni Ice Cream Social
Thursday, August 23
- 8:00 am Breakfast
- 9:30 am The Games – a.k.a. Paint Wars, New Intermural Fields
- 11:00 am Clean Up
- 12:00 pm Lunch
- 1:30 pm New Student Survey
- 2:30 pm Information Fair
- 2:30 pm Music Theory & Private Lesson Placement - Hemphill Music Building
- 4:00 pm Small Group Meetings & Individual Choice Dinner
- 6:00 pm Dessert Parties & Small Group Meetings - Faculty/Staff Homes
- 7:30 pm Limelight - Behrens Auditorium
- 8:30 pm Cheer Time - Behrens Auditorium
- 10:00 pm Cowboy Dance/Concert - Horse Barn/Rodeo area; White Horse Museum is open)
Friday, August 24
- 8:30 am Breakfast
- 9:30 am Faculty Speak Session - Behrens Auditorium (Faculty members talk with students about academic success)
- 11:00 am Dr. Pogue
- 11:30 am Lunch
- 1:00 pm Student Development Assembly
- 2:00 pm Hot Topics
- 4:00 pm Small Group Meetings - Various Locations
- 5:00 pm Dinner - Moody Center
- 6:00 pm Pep Rally - Mabee Complex ; Good video/photo op
- 6:30 pm Final Cheer Off
- 9:00 pm Movie @ Paramount Theatre (Flick is a surprise, but students will be pleased when they find out!)
Saturday, August 25
- 9:00 am Breakfast (Meal plans start)
- 10:00-12:00 am Community Outreach – Partnering with United Way to paint and clean/repair Taylor County Expo Center (inside coliseum)
- 12:00 pm Lunch
- 2:00 pm Clean Up/Free Time
- 4:30 pm Small Group Meeting
- 5:30 pm Dinner - Moody Center
- 6:30 pm Awards Assembly - Behrens Auditorium
- 8:00-11pm New Student Mixer – Prime Time
Sunday, August 26
- 8:30 am Breakfast before church