Class of 2016 Arrives for Orientation Week

Duke University's class of 2016 arrives Tuesday.

The newest crop of Duke students -- 1,718 in all -- will largely have the campus to themselves for the first several days of their college careers, a strategy Duke employs to help them get their bearings, find their way around town and have their first shared academic experience.

First-year students will move into residence halls on East Campus, where they'll take part in a number of social activities this week.  Photos from Orientation Week will be posted here.

"The first week is critical in creating a sense of connection with the university and community," said Clay Adams, assistant dean for residence life and director of New Student Programs.  "Our students come from all over the world. It's important to give them time to adjust before they start their academic endeavors."

On West Campus, residence halls for upperclassmen open Friday, and classes for all begin next Monday, Aug. 27.

The class of 2016 represents 49 U.S. states and 50 countries. The most hail from California and North Carolina, each state contributing 175 members to the class. Other top contributors include New York with 157 students and Florida, with 122.

This class includes 198 African-Americans, the most ever in a first-year class. It also includes the third-highest number of Latino students -- 119 -- and the second-highest number of Asian first-years, 476. And 186 new students come from other countries, 11 percent of the class.

"This group of students comes in with unquestionably the strongest academic credentials I've seen in my 20 years," said Christoph Guttentag, dean of undergraduate admissions. "But beyond that, the most important thing I've learned is that predictions are doomed to underestimate them. They always do more, accomplish more and create more than we expect."

On Tuesday, students will move in, get their Duke ID cards and begin to get acclimated. At 4 p.m., Duke will sponsor the Taste of Duke dinner for students and their families on the East Campus Gazebo Lawn. There will be an evening social event at 10 p.m. on the East Campus quad.

On Wednesday, Duke President Richard Brodhead will welcome students officially at 11 a.m. at the annual convocation ceremony. It will be held at Duke Chapel and streamed live on Duke's Ustream channel.

A religious life open house will be held Wednesday at 3 p.m. in the Bryan Center on West Campus.

At 7 p.m. Wednesday, Duke students will meet on the East Campus quad for the annual class photo. Duke will provide live video streaming of the event on Duke's Ustream channel, including student reporting, commentary and interactive chat features.

On Thursday, new students will attend one of two mandatory True Blue sessions addressing responsible social behavior on campus. At night, they'll be bused to downtown Durham for dinner and entertainment at the American Tobacco campus and Durham Performing Arts Center.

On Friday, new students will gather in one of two sessions with Ann Patchett, the author of this year's summer reading selection, "State of Wonder."

"It will provide an amazing kickoff to the discussions they'll have," Adams said of the sessions with Patchett. "It enhances the goal of the reading program, which is to have a shared academic experience."

On Saturday, faculty members will help new students learn a bit about Durham by leading small-group excursions into the community. One example: The Durham Grub Crawl, in which economics professor John Caccavale and his wife, Ruth, introduce students to the Durham Farmer’s Market, a series of popular food trucks and other local eateries.

Author Maya Angelou highlights Sunday's orientation, to be held at 4 p.m. at Duke Chapel on West Campus. Her speech is not open to the public and will not be streamed live on the Internet, but can be viewed in Page Auditorium during the event.

The Twitter hashtag #Duke2016 will be in use during orientation week. A full list of events for first-year students is available here.

Motorists traveling to and around Duke's East and West campuses should allow for extra travel time due to move-in week.

On Tuesday, all parking areas on East Campus will be cleared of vehicles from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Entrances to East Campus will be closed to everyone except students and their families moving in.