Campus Welcomes Class of 2029

Move-In Day at Duke this year, on August 16, was similar to previous years: It started akin to a pep rally with a cheering parade of students, parents and school leaders carrying, lugging, toting, wheeling and pulling suitcases, boxes, trash cans, garment bags and mini-fridges. The day ended with a range of emotions. See below how it all unfolded for the incoming class of 2029. 

Morning anthem: Pop that trunk! 

Loud, upbeat music blasted from speakers in front of Trinity Residence Hall. Still, the day’s undisputed anthem was choruses of “Pop that trunk! Pop that trunk!” by the upper-level students on hand to help first-year students with their belongings as their vehicles pulled up in front of the dormitory entrance.

A line of people cheering.
Mary Pat McMahon, vice president of student affairs (left), and upper-level students cheered as families approached the Trinity Residence Hall during move-in. 
Twopeople unpacking a fridge.
Student orientation leaders help with move-in, from left: Clark Easley and Austyn Griffin. 
People carrying boxes and water bottle.
Duke President Vincent Price brings up the rear to student orientation leaders pitching in during move-in.

The first vehicle to arrive seconds after 8 a.m. was a gray, Ford Expedition driven by Steve Shankman, from New York, N.Y, with his wife Kim and their daughter, Sydney to begin her first year. When asked what it was like for Sydney to arrive at Duke, Steve answered: “It’s very big. What’s bigger than the Earth and a few other things?”

By early afternoon, Bill Wang, from Boston, was still unpacking in his dorm room. Wang, who’s interested in studying mathematics, did not expect the help he received moving in. “They were very speedy,” he said. “They just popped my trunk and grabbed everything.” Wang added that he’s “super excited” to begin his college studies at Duke and was hyped by the day. 

When Ella Whitehead of Covington, Ga., arrived and heard the throng of students and staffers, she said her first thought was, “Oh boy! Get me out of this car!” 

“It’s so nice to be greeted with energy and by people who want you here,” said Whitehead, who is interested in global health and biotechnology. 

A person walking through a hallway surrounded by people.
Bill Wang arrives in the residence hall for the first time.
Person carrying bedding with two people, laughing.
Dresden Benke (center), from Bethesda, Md., shares a laugh with her brother Jasper, 15, and mom Terrell.
One woman carrying a big stuffed animal.
Ella Whitehead arrives at her dorm with the necessities. 
Two young men unpacking in a dorm.
First-year Lucas Mendozo of Puerto Rico helps roommate Jonathan Quarles, from Houston, unpack in their dorm room.

An afternoon picnic 

In the afternoon, students with their families, along with new friends, enjoyed a picnic on Abele Quad and took in surroundings on campus. 

“Excited,” “hyped” and “jubilant” were some of the words used by new students Arnav Dhar, Varun Mukund, Nikhilesh Kalyanaraman and Mohith Gajjela as they looked up and around K-Ville towards Cameron Stadium before the students’ farewell to their families.

Four young students wearing blue duke t shirts doing the bull sign.
New students Arnav Dhar, Varun Mukund, Nikhilesh Kalyanaraman and Mohith Gajjela

Other moments were more emotional. Sydney Fernandez, from Miami, said she is looking forward to orientation’s Project Build and football and basketball games this fall. “I saw how beautiful the campus was, and I started to cry,” said Fernandez surrounded by her family.

A young woman on a Duke sign surrounded by people.
Sydney Fernandez with family 

Careen Masele, of Alexandria, Va., said she was excited, overwhelmed and “a little nervous.” But surrounded by more than a dozen family members, she also said she was looking forward to meeting new people, studying mechanical engineering and playing sports. 

Her father, Philbert Masele, said Careen is the first in the family to go to college in the United States, after moving to the U.S. from Tanzania. “I want her to focus on what she wants to pursue. I see a future engineer in her,” he said with pride. 

A family posing for the camera.
Careen Masele, pictured with her family
A young woman holding a blue devil spear with two people
Elena Mingorance, of Long Island, N.Y., is excited to reconnect with friends she knows at Duke and also meet new friends.

Elyssa Lassoued of Houston, Tex., was on the quad with her new roommate, Gia Jimenez of Lake Tahoe, Calif. Jimenez and Lassoued met at Blue Devil Days. “I’m excited to meet as many people as I can,” Lassoued said.

Four people jumping high.
From left to right: First years Elyssa Lassoed, Gia Jimenez, Caden Cope, and Penelope Kladopoulos

An evening farewell 

Before the symbolic moment arrived when parents and students separated – with parents heading up to the top seats in Cameron Indoor Stadium, and the students going to the main floor – parents offered advice to their children. 

Kinya Scott of New Jersey had this last-minute advice for her daughter, Rhianna: “Make the best of college.” 

Students are welcomed into Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Once inside, Duke leaders offered well wishes: Mary Pat McMahon, vice provost and vice president of student affairs, said, “You will be a different person walking out of here tonight. You have worked hard to get here, and you are now here. You are a Duke student!” 

Young people sending heart signs above them.
Students headed to the main floor of Cameron, where they sent their love up to families on the upper level. 
Parents sending heart signs to people below them.
Parents sent love down to their new Blue Devils.
Coach Scheyer talking to a crowd.
Head Men’s Basketball Coach Jon Scheyer reminisced that he was at Duke almost 20 years ago. “Enjoy every moment the best that you can,” he said.