A warm welcome for the newest Dearborn Wolverines!

The 2023-24 academic year kicked off on Friday with more than 1,000 incoming students getting their first real taste of campus life at the university. The group consisted of first-year, transfer and graduate students. 

On the field outside of the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters Building, students attended Wolverine Welcome, where they were greeted by campus leaders, learned UM-Dearborn traditions and sang their first round of The Victors as a Wolverine.

While speaking to the crowd, Dean of Students Amy Finley acknowledged how much they had already accomplished to get to this point and how Friday was the start of something new.

“Today is the day where you start to feel transformed. Today is the day where you start reaching for the stars, for your dreams. Today is the day where you start figuring out who you are and what YOU are going to do to help transform our world. Today you truly become a part of our UM-Dearborn community,” she said.

Following the brief speeches, upper-level students presented the incoming group with maize and blue keys, a campus tradition officially welcoming them to their new home. 

After an opportunity to explore campus, students finished the day with the Go Blue Bash, which featured outdoor games, carnival food and a DJ. Over 80 student organizations and 40 departments came out to introduce the new Dearborn Wolverines to the many ways to get involved at the university. 

New student Kiylee Grinnell transferred to UM-Dearborn from the Flint campus for the 4+1 Applied Behavioral Analysis Accelerated Program. 

“When everyone was gathered together and we got to actually meet and talk to people, that’s what I liked most about it,” she said, reflecting on the day. With the start of the new academic year, Grinnell says she’s most looking forward to starting her new program, one that she’s passionate about and is specific to her career goals.

First-year student Kayla Winston comes to UM-Dearborn directly from high school for the university’s electrical engineering program. She found Wolverine Welcome Day to be a fun way to meet new people and find out about clubs and opportunities at the University of Michigan Dearborn. 

“I had no idea any of this was here before and this day was a really good way for me to learn about it,” she said.

Want to check out more from the big day? See highlights from Wolverine Welcome Day and the Go Blue Bash on our Instagram page, @umdearborn.

Article by Kathryn Bourlier.