Move-In volunteers
help 3,700 new faces

by Joe King

Move-In Day 2003 might have been the ultimate in warm welcomes for new students, and not just because of the temperatures.

With a heat index that soared to 107 degrees, the weather was dangerously hot, NIU staff meteorologist Gilbert Sebenste said. However, the 1,000-plus NIU faculty, students and staff who turned out despite the heat helped arriving students and their families keep their cool, sparing them from much of the heavy lifting and hauling that many anticipated would be part of their day.

“Everyone involved in Move-In Day this year really went above and beyond the call of duty,” said NIU President John Peters, who himself spent a couple of hours moving and greeting students. “The weather was oppressive and the crowds were enormous, but every single person out there went to great lengths to make everyone feel welcome and move them in quickly. It was really quite amazing.”

Many of the parents who dropped off students shared that sentiment.

“[There were] no traffic jams. No waiting on an elevator for one to two hours. No feeling that you were on your own. From the campus police that directed us off of I-88 to the CA on my daughter’s floor, they made us feel welcome,” said Kim Beasley, a mother who is a veteran of several move-ins at Eastern Illinois and Illinois State, all of which she said paled in comparison to NIU.

“It was a delightful way to begin a new college career,” wrote Mark Wagner, an alumnus who was dropping off his son for his freshman year. “It’s certainly a reflection of the strategic thinking that has kept NIU as one of the state’s popular universities to attend. As a ’79 grad, I have witnessed many positive changes to the landscape of NIU over the years. Keep up the wonderful work.”

Such high praise was welcome, but not surprising news to Director of Student Housing and Dining Michael Coakley.

“I think this was the best Move-In Day we have had since we began using the golf carts,” Coakley said. “It just went very smoothly, there were very few complaints and the people who worked it seemed to have a good time.”

Among the keys to dramatically speeding up the process this year was a new check-in
procedure that required students to merely swipe in with their One Card, and a new traffic pattern that kept cars off of city streets.

The traffic plan, designed by the campus Gridlock Committee, was intended to minimize traffic on Annie Glidden Road and in the city’s downtown, and by almost every account it was a success.

“I didn’t hear any complaints. Everything seemed to work smoothly,” said DeKalb Chief of Police Bill Feithen, who appreciated the contrast from past years when traffic congestion and minor accidents on the city’s major thoroughfares created day-long headaches for his force.

“The key to any plan is how it is executed, and I thought that our officers did a great job of interacting with the public and keeping traffic moving,” said NIU Chief of Police Don Grady, whose officers worked from 2 a.m. until at least 6 p.m. to keep things moving smoothly.

Not everything was perfect.

At least one parent pointed out the need for porta-potties for those waiting in line for their cars to be unloaded. Signage could be improved, and there were some lines of traffic, particularly those leading to Grant Towers A and B, that organizers would like to see move faster.

“There are always things that can be improved, but we are delighted with the way things went this year,” Coakley said.

Move-In Day Photo Gallery

9-2-03