Sights from Move-In Day 2019 at UWM: Sighs, hugs and tears. Bags, boxes and bins. Families and students coordinating their movements on smartphones. Towering stacks of plastic-wrapped possessions moving on bright yellow carts.
That was the scene Tuesday morning as students began moving into campus residence halls.
About 2,400 of the approximately 3,800 students moving into UWM residence halls this week are new first-year students at UWM.
“Exciting” was the word most of the new students used in describing the move-in day.
“It’s going to be a fun time,” said Matt Becker, a first-year student from Hartford, Wisconsin. “It’s a whole new stage of my life.” Like many students, his family – dad Joe, mom Cheri and younger sister Jane, accompanied him.
“My dad came here back in the day,” said Becker, earning a wince from his dad.
Excited and nervous
“I’m excited, nervous… all of the above,” said Zane Schreiner, a first-year engineering student and Air Force ROTC cadet from Rib Lake. “It’s all going smoothly so far,” said mom Lisa Schreiner as she and her mother, Laurie Schreiner, helped Zane pack up a moving cart.
Arran Borkowski a civil engineering major from Appleton, also had help from his family with mom Kate, dad Todd and brother Kyle, a UWM student, giving a hand. His father, aunt and uncle are all UWM grads.
Zach Rydberg from southern Indiana was coordinating with his new roommate, Phillip Yoo, as they and their parents prepared to transfer Rydberg’s stuff up to their room.
More than 400 volunteers and housing employees were on hand to assist students and families with the move-in. “It’s really nice to be able to help,” said Dominique Smith, who works in the Dean of Students office. She and Cailin Ahnen were helping students sign in and pick up their room keys. “We’re all working together, and it’s well organized, Smith said.
Volunteers happy to help
“It’s very exciting to be part of this,” said sophomore Krystal Magnusson, who was volunteering for the second year at move-in day. She was busy directing a steady flow of students passing through the lobby of the Sandburg Towers and answering hundreds of questions as the morning progressed.
The residence halls were bustling, with students and parents navigating parking, packing and transporting their possessions, asking questions, filling out forms and resolving problems.
Move-in to the Sandburg Towers started Tuesday and continues Wednesday. In addition to Sandburg, students will be moving into Cambridge (Aug. 27-28), RiverView (Aug. 27) Kenilworth (Sept. 1) and Purin (Aug. 27-29) during the week.
What’s new
Among this year’s renovations and additions in UWM’s five residential communities are:
— RiverView has a new movie theater/gaming room, as well as a new dining option, the RiverView Eatery.
— Sandburg will have a new Student Leadership Resource Room/Collaborative Space.
— Renovations have started at the Sandburg Hall Towers to update facilities and improve ADA access.
Students will enjoy a week of fun and activities before classes start on Tuesday, Sept. 3. Fall Welcome events include a concert by Kesha, a campus campout, grocery bingo, crafts, a boat tour and trips to the Milwaukee Art Museum, Fiserv Forum, Miller Park and the Harley-Davidson Museum.
A complete list of Fall Welcome activities is available online.
