Incoming Freshmen Orientation

We call it “Wrangler Round-up”, and my last school called it “Meet the Mavericks”. I don’t know what they call it at your place, but it probably has some catchy little phrase. So let’s talk about freshman orientation tips…

No matter what it’s called, it’s the day incoming freshmen come on to campus before school starts. Traditionally, they will pick up their schedule, and have the ability to “walk through their schedule” so they are less confused on the first day. Most schools also use this day as a way for families to pre-pay course fees, buy a phys ed uniform, and maybe learn about organizations.

And there it is…learning about organizations on campus.

The first introduction of your CTSO to a willing and excited audience. 

This is not a drill! You need to be ready to shine!

A Golden Opportunity For Leaders

As we’ve discussed previously (CLICK TO READ), the majority of my leadership team was installed last spring, before summer vacation. Freshmen orientation is one of the first things they need to tackle as a group, and it takes advance planning and some work to make sure it comes off flawlessly. This will be the first “test” for your new officer team. In May, and throughout the summer, my team has been having meetings, drawing up plans, and executing their vision for this event.

Since their budget for this activity is quite small—like…nothing—they have to be creative and use the resources we already have. This in itself is a great lesson for our leadership team, because for the entire year they will be working with very limited funding. We don’t “overcharge” our members to support these types of programs—we only charge the state and national fees for students to join our organization, so everything else must be paid through fundraising dollars. 

Don’t lose sight of the overarching goal for freshmen orientation: EXPOSURE!!!

EXPOSURE is the key word for your freshman orientation tips.

We want new students to remember the name of our organization, so when our first meeting is shown on the morning announcements, they will connect the name recognition, and come check us out.   

Volunteer For Tours

It’s important to remember our overarching goal, and get as fully involved in this activity as possible. One of the ways our students can become visible is to join the select group of students who will be giving new families tours of the campus. Probably through the guidance office (Magnet office in my case), students can usually volunteer for this duty.

On the day of the event, they will be given a small group of families to show around the campus. While this is an extremely important activity for new students, it is also a golden opportunity for our leaders to encourage new students to get involved in all aspects of the high school experience—including our organization! 

Show Off Your Classroom

A side note…

#1: I don’t work before the contract starts. This is a philosophical decision I made long ago, and has nothing to do with how much I love my school and my program.

#2: I also don’t spend my own personal money to outfit my classroom or buy supplies for my students.

Both of those deliberate decisions are topics for future blogs, so I won’t dwell on them. I bring it up because freshmen orientation is before school starts, so my classroom is not “student ready” at this time. Fortunately for me, I’m permitted to leave things hanging on walls, I do not remove bulletin boards, and I don’t have to totally sterilize my room of my personal effects, so when the families come through on the tour, they can somewhat see the beauty of The Boardroom (my classroom). 

Your classroom needs to look warm, welcoming and inviting to the newcomers. That might mean doing a little work in advance if you’re in a new room, or you have to totally tear down for the summer break. The best advice I can give you if that is your situation is to recruit your leadership team to come in early to make your room presentable.

If at all possible, have student work from last year on the walls. On my front windows, I have the magazine covers students made last year before graduation hanging for the incoming students to see, and they make an impressive and interesting display. We have years of chapter awards for FBLA and DECA hanging on the walls, as well, to show our years of successful competitive events. 

Most importantly, my family photos are already up. They make me happy, that’s all.

Create A “Booth”

Here is the “meat” of the freshman orientation sandwich. This is our money shot. We have a table set up in the cafeteria to support our CTSO. The first stop for new families is the cafeteria to get their new schedule, pay fees, buy swag, etc. We set up our own table. This is where we build the buzz for our organization, and make connections to the new students at the earliest opportunity.

Here’s some quick-fire freshman orientation tips about what we have:

GIVE AWAYS

It’s summer in Vegas. What could be better than an OtterPop? We purchased hundreds of these quite a while ago, and we pull them out for a variety of purposes. Yes, we have them as treats at meetings from time to time, but we also use them as a fundraiser on super hot days. At this event, we are simply handing them out to anyone who visits our table. It gives us an opportunity to greet them, introduce ourselves, and welcome them to our school. Food is the greatest conversation starter, and is a great way to break the ice (pun on OtterPop intended…)

ACTIVITY

I suggest you have something for the new freshmen to do when they come to your booth. Not only is this another way to start a conversation, but who doesn’t love doing something? Suggestions for this could include a huge coloring page that everyone contributes to (you can hang it in your room afterwards), a spinning wheel to win a prize, or even a pull the lollypop tree for an additional price. None of these suggestions is terribly expensive, but will help your leaders communicate with the new students, and hopefully will help the new freshmen be more comfortable on our campus.

EXHIBITS

We are a fully functioning CTSO, so we have evidence of different things we have done. For example, we have some of our plaques and trophies on display for the new freshmen to see, as these will appeal to those students who have a competitive mentality. We display photos or evidence of community service projects we do, as well, since this is a large part of our organizational structure. Another thing we highlight is the State Officer campaigns we have won, since it is part of our legacy for our leaders to serve our state organization.

INFORMATION

We have a brochure to hand out, too. Why is this last on our list? Because incoming freshmen don’t care! We have the brochure available because this type of information appeals to the parents, and will give them insight into our organization. The students will enjoy the giveaways and activities much more than the printed information, but we make it available so that parents can read it later, and hopefully encourage their child to become involved.

Encourage Participation

Remember our overarching goal? EXPOSURE

By participating in freshmen orientation as fully and completely as you can, you will dramatically increase your exposure to the newest students, and hopefully that will translate into their participation in the organization.

Here’s one of the secret tips for freshman orientation: You can’t fail, even if not one freshmen joins your CTSO

How can I say that? Because it has happened to me more than once, and it still wasn’t a failure. If nothing else, we assisted the newest students in feeling comfortable and wanted at our school. Even if our organization didn’t appeal to them for whatever reason, they had strong, positive first meetings with some of the greatest leaders on campus. They will walk on campus feeling more confident, and prepared to make decisions about how to spend their free time.

You served your school community, and that is always a win.

Set The Tone

The most valuable thing for your CTSO from this experience is the opportunity it gave your leadership team. This was the first event they planned on their own, and they had to work together with other school organizations and administration to ensure its success. This successful program will be the springboard from which they plan their first meeting, and will continue the legacy you have started.

Maybe your leadership team struggled planning this event. Perhaps the booth didn’t look quite as professional as you had hoped. Maybe they forgot to freeze enough OtterPops. They only printed 50 brochures? In black and white? No matter what slip-ups or misfires they had today, it just doesn’t matter. They did the best they could, and regardless of poor execution, I guarantee they impressed the new freshmen. They’re freshmen!!! Things not going perfectly well could be the best thing that could happen to you, because your leadership team will be fired-up and anxious to overcome their performance. 

Freshmen orientation will, no doubt, set the tone for the year. Helping your students plan for it—and learn from it afterwards—will pay dividends the entire school year to come. 

Now, go freeze the OtterPops! 

THANK YOU FOR READING THIS FAR

Wow, thank you for reading these freshman orientation tips!

Hey, since you’re here! You may as well check out reflecting to move forward, here, and the many lessons from the 4th of July, here! Check out our other topics here! Either way, I appreciate you!

Please leave a COMMENT about any tips you may have!! Or comment what your favorite lesson of mine was! How’s your student organization operating? What are your freshman orientation tips?

Feel free to contact me or leave a COMMENT with anything you would like to hear more about! Or reach out with any unrelated questions, comments, concerns, or random outbursts of excitement by clicking here.