On the heels of midterms and with spring break, basketball madness and finals looming came an important date for members of Duke's Class of 2015, the March 8 deadline for joining a major.
To celebrate that milestone with the appropriate fanfare and welcome sophomores to their new departments, the Academic Advising Center, the Sophomore Class Council and Duke Student Government introduced Academic Homecoming: A Major Celebration, hosting the inaugural event Wednesday afternoon on the main quad on West Campus. Pictured, Harris Cooper, professor and chair of psychology and neuroscience, talks with students.
"We've traveled so far together over the past two years," ElizaBeth Fox, director of the Academic Advising Center and associate dean of Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, told the sophomores as part of an introduction alongside class president Bret Lesavoy. "Today we celebrate that journey, and we wish you well on the journey ahead."
Faculty members from majors across the university were on hand to welcome and chat with their new students. Sophomores also heard remarks from Tom Katsouleas, dean of the Pratt School of Engineering, and Laurie L. Patton, dean of arts and sciences, before posing for a class photo on the Duke Chapel steps.
Academic Homecoming was also supported by Duke University Libraries, the Office of Undergraduate Education, Pratt, Trinity and the Sophomore Year Experience.
Photo by Jon Gardiner/Duke University Photography