A cohort of 460 new students was welcomed into the Kenyon community on Sunday, Aug. 25, during the College’s Opening Convocation ceremony.
First-year and transfer students began by processing past faculty members and administrators in full academic regalia before taking their seats in the Lowry Center as part of the annual tradition.
In greeting the newest additions to campus, along with their families and friends, President Julie Kornfeld said they made a deliberate choice to join a special place that for 200 years has placed a premium on valuing people and remains firmly rooted in relationships.
“There are no strangers here,” she said. “For two centuries now, we’ve done more than build an education; we’ve built community.”
The choice to become part of that community is one that comes with great promise for a group that brings a diversity of talent and experiences to Gambier, but it also comes with responsibility, Kornfeld said.
“As you prepare for a world full of innumerable complexities and more than a little strife, I ask you to be curious, but not judgmental. I encourage you to ask questions, but don’t expect the answers you already have,” she said.
Diane Anci, vice president for enrollment management and dean of admissions and financial aid, urged the new students to make a home for each other, whether in a classroom or residence hall. “Help make this a place where there is deep comfort alongside the effort and the joyous mess of imperfection,” she said.
Anci saluted the qualities that the group brings to “this magical community of thinkers and learners” after being selected from among more than 8,000 who submitted an application to the College. They were described in glowing terms by their previous counselors and teachers, she said: “Overwhelmingly, they used words like intelligent, smart, brilliant, deep. … The next big batch of descriptors included creative, kind, curious.”
This year’s group comes from nearly 37 states and 20 countries. Twenty-two percent identify as a student of color, while 10 percent are international.
Trustee Densil Porteous ’02 extolled the blend of old and new at the College celebrating its bicentennial year, noting that students are encouraged to honor traditions while also “forging your own path, creating new traditions, and leaving your own mark on this hilltop.”
Provost Jeff Bowman discussed the role the College’s talented and passionate faculty have in making that happen through their dedication to teaching and one-on-one interactions. “Kenyon professors want to get to know you — to challenge and inspire you — as scholars, as artists, and as individuals,” he said.
For students to take advantage of all that Kenyon has to offer, they should bring a mix of humility and inquisitiveness, said Celestino Limas, vice president for student affairs. “In your time here you will be challenged, you will fail, you will succeed, and you will wrestle with complex ideas, so remember that while we expect your best effort, please understand that you owe yourself your best effort,” he said.
Student Council President Marissa Sun ’25 stressed that Kenyon is a place like none other, full of ocean blue skies, lifelong friends, and opportunities to become a better writer, researcher and scholar.
“There is no one right way to experience life on the Hill,” she said. “But you make this place and your journey unique through your friendships, triumphs and memories.”
Immediately following the ceremony, new students gathered on the steps outside Rosse Hall, where they joined together in traditional College songs as part of the New Student Sing under the direction of Professor of Music Benjamin “Doc” Locke.
