By Katelyn Patterson | Reporter
SophoMORE September kicked off Wednesday with free ice cream, custom Baylor socks and a chance to interact with fellow students during the SophServ event on Fountain Mall.
The event was the first of many throughout September, in an effort to welcome sophomores back to the Baylor campus after a difficult first year due to the pandemic. Baylor has created multiple events to try and make it up to the class of 2024 and allow them to have a unique start to their sophomore year.
Vincent Phillips, senior coordinator for Welcome Programs, said SophServ is a laid-back sophomore welcome event to introduce Sophomore September. Sophomore September is scheduled to be filled with events to get the sophomore students involved and to make them feel highlighted, Phillips said.
“We decided, this year, that our sophomore students missed out on a lot of things last year, so we wanted to say, ‘Hey, welcome back,’” Phillips said. “Last year was a COVID year, so what can we do to really bring our sophomore students into the fold?”
Phillips said the Sophomore Year Experience Committee is not restricted to people from a specific department. It’s compiled of many people from across campus in multiple positions that each bring something unique to the committee.
“The Division of Student Life, in partnership with some of our academic partners, came together to form the committee,” Philips said.
Sophomores had an opportunity to talk to members of the Sophomore Year Experience Committee during the SophServ event. These Sophomore Year Experience events hope to establish connections between the students and offer access to the resources available to them.
“While COVID-19 safety measures may have impacted your freshman year, you survived, and we want you to thrive at Baylor,” the website said.
Atlanta sophomore Ronni Gilliam said the event made her feel welcomed back onto campus this year.
“I didn’t even realize how much we missed until I saw the freshmen come in and saw their Welcome Week as opposed to our day and a half last year,” Gilliam said. “Obviously it doesn’t make up for our freshman year, but it makes us feel special.”
More events to look forward to in SophoMORE September are SophoMORE Nights during the Rice volleyball game Sept. 16 and the Texas Tech soccer game Sept. 30. There’s also a Family Weekend SophoMORE Dr. Pepper Hour planned and the SophoMORE Road Trip to Independence students can already sign up for.
