In the last four years, the period of time prior to the beginning of classes allotted for freshmen to adjust to campus life has undergone numerous changes. We’ve seen the time dwindle from a full week to just three relevant days. Furthermore, it has been called Freshman Welcome Week, the Freshman Experience and we’ve heard rumblings of yet another chapter in this naming merry-go-round: First Year Experience.

There have been a lot of positive changes in the program. Rather than making mad dashes around campus, every student service has been consolidated into the UC. This is a great service to the weary parents chasing after their sons and daughters as they savor the first few hours of their college experience. In fact, the change was such a success that the lines were backed up through the hallways trying to get everything squared away. We suppose waiting in lines is better than sprints across the quad.

The name and focus of the event should remain on a single goal: Keeping new students excited about UTM so that they return year after year. The retention numbers are poised to make a comeback, but there is still much more work to be done. Ending the “suitcase college” stigma associated with UTM requires a group effort of campus administrators, peer leaders and fellow students.

The vicious cycle of nobody staying on the weekends is only perpetuated by the attitude that nothing happens on the weekend because nobody stays. While there are no easy solutions, we must all come to a consensus opinion that low retention and bored, apathetic students are linked.

We eagerly await what the new academic year has in store to address this issue.