New Student Orientation
http://www.rockford.edu/welcome
All new students are required to attend an orientation to Rockford University. Freshman Orientation provides students with an understanding of the expectations both in and out of the classroom and sets the foundation for academic success. Throughout Orientation, students will learn about valuable resources on campus, interact with a variety of student leaders, and participate in unique social experiences to make lasting connections with their classmates. Furthermore, Orientation is designed to help students connect with their First-Year Advisors and other University staff members, thereby building the supportive relationships that will sustain them during their years at Rockford University.
Freshman Orientation is a three-day event held on-campus during Saturday August 15th through 17th.
Students can register for orientation by visiting: www.rockford.edu/welcome
First-Year Advisors
The First-Year Advising Program pairs each student entering with fewer than 20 credits with a First-Year Advisor, a specially-trained faculty or academic staff member. Each advisor helps students formulate educational goals prior to starting classes at Rockford University and supports them in attaining those goals during that first year. In addition, one of the advisors from the team will also lead a section of the First-Year seminar course.
First-Year Seminar (FYS 101)
Through First-Year Seminar, first-year students are introduced to the nature of a liberal arts education and to the academic skills required for success at Rockford University. Small groups of students work with professors to examine significant works and to explore their relationship to the various academic disciplines and their implications for our society. Class assignments will help students develop and strengthen academic skills in expository writing, public speaking and critical thinking, hallmarks of the liberally educated person.
The First-Year Seminar is worth three credits and is required of all students entering with fewer than 20 credits.
First Year Experience Student Leaders: Reggie Experience Guides (Reggies)
Regent Experience Guides act as leaders to freshmen as they embark on their Regent Experience at Rockford University. Through their multilayered involvement in Freshmen Orientation, Freshman Retreat, Freshman Seminar, and the spring mentorship program, Reggies assist and mentor new students. The goals of this peer mentoring program is to provide new students with academic and social support through enhanced college experiences and a variety of educational experiences that augment their leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills. Reggies will assist with students’ transition to college life by supplementing student needs through programming, providing referrals to available support services, and facilitating mentor-mentee relationships through regular communication and participation during Freshman Orientation, Freshman Retreat, Freshman Seminar, and the spring mentorship program.
Two Regent Experience Guides are paired per First-Year Seminar class.
Residence Life for First-Year Students
Living on campus can be one of the most formative experiences of a student’s life. Residential students tell us they develop lifelong friendships in the halls and enjoy the independence of campus residency that helps them learn practical skills that last a lifetime. Living on campus fosters a sense of community and allows a student the opportunity to be fully engaged in the University experience.
While first-year students can choose from a variety of living options, Rockford University offers a first year student housing option that affords the first-year students to share similar experiences, while providing programs and services geared to help new students transition into the University experience.
See “Residence Life” (https://www.rockford.edu/community/reslife/) for more information.