Dorothy thought there was no place like home in the Wizard of Oz. But as students returned to Lander University’s campus Wednesday for Move-In Day, Latanya Gray described her granddaughter’s academic home with praise: “Lander is like a big hug.”
Gray, who helped her granddaughter, freshman Khyris-Jean Alston, move into Chipley Hall said from the time Alston decided to attend Lander through the first day on campus, “Everyone has been very welcoming, very warm.”
Since Fall 2020, Move-In has evolved from a one-day frenzied experience of moving students onto campus into an extended five-day transition that makes the process easier for students and their families, said Catherine Covar, Lander’s director of Housing and Residence Life.
For the Fall 2024 semester, Lander moved 430 students into residence halls on Wednesday and expected to move in more than 1,300 additional students before classes begin Aug. 19.
“The first day went extremely well. Our success can be attributed to our Lander community of volunteers, housing staff and residence hall assistants who came together to welcome and assist our newest freshman class to Lander,” Covar said. “We were honored this year to have the Mayor of Greenwood, Brandon Smith, and others from the City of Greenwood to help welcome our students.”
Alston, who is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in nursing, said she chose Lander because “it was a school everyone was talking about. I decided to visit because I wanted to what the hype was all about.”
She is following in the footsteps of her grandmother, who was a family medicine and trauma nurse. “Nursing runs in the family,” said Alston, who already has earned a Certified Nursing Assistant license. “I’ve always wanted to help people, and I’ve learned so much from my grandmother. I don’t know quite what to expect on the first day of class, but I’m ready to start my classes.”
Ella Philpot, a freshman from Latta, spent part of her Move-In Day assembling a shelving unit with her sister, Hollen. Lander was the third college she toured during high school. “Something just felt right about being here. I liked the community. I saw other students interacting with each other, and I thought, ‘this could be right for me.’”
Her mother, Stephanie Philpot, said Ella “is the first daughter to be away from home. Today has been good, but the previous days were not so good. It’s hard letting go, but Ella is very independent, and being here will make her even more so.”
For Christopher Reid, of Columbia, the freshman year will be more like a sophomore year. He completed a year’s worth of academic courses through a dual enrollment program. “Taking college-level courses in high school was a good way to prepare me for college,” he said, “and it was a way to save money, too.”
His mother, Teresa Reid, said, “I am super, super proud of him. He has been very focused on his classes even before he got here today.”
Among the students bringing special items from home was Katelyn Corteville, of Mountville, whose décor will include photos of her cats Freya, Kai and Bex. Corteville, who plans to become a teacher, said leaving her cats was the most challenging part of coming to college. “They are so close to my heart.”
The future educator said a friend told her that “Lander produces the best teachers.” When she learned about Lander’s Montessori program – the only one of its kind in South Carolina for which educators can earn national certification in Montessori education – Corteville was sold on her college choice. “I knew then that this is what I wanted to do,” she said.
Students named photographs, snacks and computers among the favorite items they brought to campus.
Alston had a quick response when asked about her most special item. “Me!”