Two hundred sixty-four freshmen and 33 transfer students arrived on campus last August for the start of CMC's 55th year. Orientation week was packed with activities aimed to entertain, educate, and enlighten the Class of 2004.

Fifteen resident assistants, 27 dorm sponsors, six orientation committee members and 22 academic liaisons greeted new students. Saying goodbye were more than 400 parents and family members on hand to help their students move in, and to attend parent discussion panels featuring a faculty member, key administrator, student resident assistant, and a member of the Parents Club board. Parents and guests also were treated to their first taste of the Athenaeum, where they had a chance to meet President Pamela B. Gann.

"Orientation began one day earlier this year, largely to accommodate added programming about technology on campus," said David Rosengard '00, coordinator of residential life and student computing at CMC. The extra day meant a mix of old traditions—like foreign-language placement exams, the president's dessert reception, and the annual turf dinner on Scripps' Bowling Green Lawn—and new innovative programs to make students feel at home on their campus.

"I Rann With Gann II," a 5K run across campus and Claremont, proved to be more popular than its predecessor, with over 100 participating. In effort to build better relationships with the local community, students swarmed to Casa Colina, a physical rehabilitation facility in Pomona, where they assisted residents and worked on an outdoor renewal project.

For the first time this year, CMC's office of information technology trained 14 resident technology assistants, or RTAs. New positions of leadership on campus, RTAs are upperclassmen who serve as technology consultants to students in their residence halls, assisting them in connecting their computers to the network and setting up their e-mail and calendars.

Orientation week concluded—and the school year began—with CMC's annual opening Convocation. The College honored philosophy professor and former men's soccer coach Stephen Davis for 30 years of service. Four professors were recognized for their leadership in the classroom and in their academic fields. Government professor John J. Pitney Jr. received the Glenn R. Huntoon Teaching Award, given by the student body. Economics-accounting professor Marc Massoud received the David Huntoon Senior Teaching Award, while mathematics professor Asuman Aksoy received the Roy P. Crocker Merit Award for teaching, and government professor Joseph Bessette received the Presidential Award.

In his address, New Dean of the Faculty William Ascher stressed the importance of being fully engaged in public affairs, both locally and globally. "The pull towards engagement is equal to the pull towards apathy," he said. "We have an obligation to strive to be informed of everything." He spoke of commitment to liberal arts and public engagement and about the importance of research, as it allows professors to master their chosen issue, not merely regurgitate others' work.

Sarah Cavanaugh '04 moves into Stark Residence Hall with the help of her father