ORONO, Maine — The University of Maine hosted its annual Maine Hello day on Friday. The campus-wide event allowed returning students and staff to help move in new students on campus. They literally brought suitcases and boxes from arriving cars to, potentially, the top floor of a dormitory.
“We’re welcoming people into our home, pretty much,” Ryan Boulay, a resident assistant, said.
The university welcomed a geographically diverse group with the new Class of 2027. Of the more than 2,000 first-year students and over 400 transfer students, from Aroostook County to York County, every county of the 16 in Maine was represented. Forty-four states of the 50 are represented as well. The new international students came from 20 countries.
New students living on campus can expect renovated lounges at multiple on-campus dorms, including Kennebec, Somerset, Knox, Oxford, and Androscoggin halls.
“I always look forward to Maine Hello with a great sense of anticipation,” UMaine President Joan Ferrini-Mundy said. “With the start of every new academic year, the university renews our promise to our students and reaffirms our commitment to delivering knowledge and transformational learning opportunities. This transformation is awe-inspiring.”
Classes officially begin Monday.