DeKALB – From Aug. 21 through Aug. 25, Week of Welcome events occurred across campus for new and returning students. Events throughout the week included a campfire to Corn Fest.
WOW Campfire Connections:
From 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Wednesday at the West Lagoon, Outdoor Adventures hosted the Campfire Connections event.
At the event, there was a campfire where students were able to meet up with friends or make new connections while roasting marshmallows.
Drinks and snacks were also available for students at the event.
Music played that students could listen to or dance to.
Jessie Gear, a first-year psychology major, said she enjoyed the event and thought the fire was neat for NIU to put on.
“I think it’s pretty cool. The fact that they’re having a fire on the school campus is kind of fun, I didn’t expect it,” Gear said.
Campus Activities Board Block Party:
The Campus Activities Board hosted their annual block party event from 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Thursday at Central Park, near Patterson Residence Hall.
There were numerous activities for students to participate in at the Block Party, including a zip line, inflatable obstacle course and food such as hamburgers and hotdogs.
The Block Party also had glow-in-the-dark activities such as bags, axe throwing and mini golf.
Around 1,200 students attended the Block Party. Participants had to log in through Huskie Hub, sign a waiver and receive a wristband before they were allowed to enter the Block Party.
Kendall Vasquez, a clinical mental health counseling graduate student, said her favorite part of the event was the free food for students.
“I do like how they have free food available for students, because I know last year they had food trucks and we had to pay, so that wasn’t my favorite,” Vasquez said.
Amarion Weathersby, a junior communication major and president of CAB, said his goal for CAB events, including the block party, is to bring school spirit back to NIU.
“I wanted to become president because I see a lack of school spirit, and when I say that there are students that have school spirit, but NIU as a whole, especially after COVID, the school spirit has gone down, so my mission is to bring that school spirit back through our events,” Weathersby said.
Jewel Jamboree:
The Jewel Jamboree event was hosted from 10 p.m. to midnight on Thursday at Jewel-Osco, located at 1320 Sycamore Road.
Free items, such as snacks and drinks, were available at the event. There were also games for students to play including trying to knock down pins with a football. The Jewel Jamboree also had a person on stilts and a DJ.
Cast Iron Coffee, Bubbl’r and Insomnia Cookies had promotional tables stationed around the parking lot that students could visit and get free items from.
Over 800 students went to the Jewel Jamboree event.
Students were given a wristband to be allowed inside the store to receive their free items.
Conor Meeks, a junior finance major, said his favorite part about the event was seeing how many students attended.
“My favorite part is seeing everyone here (at the Jewel Jamboree). It gets you in the groove of back to school and college students like free stuff, so keep it coming,” Meeks said.
Tasha Sheetz, a field manager with Bubbl’r, said she was excited about the turnout of the event.
“I haven’t really got a chance to digest everything yet, it’s been pretty crazy but it looks like a lot of fun though with all of the different brands that are here, and it looks like a really great turnout,” Sheetz said.
Corn Fest:
From Friday through Sunday, Corn Fest, DeKalb’s annual festival, took place downtown.
Corn Fest occurred from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.
Corn Fest included carnival rides, a corn boil and performers. The main entertainment at Corn Fest was the band Sugar Ray who performed from 9:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday.
Carl Faber, president of DeKalb County Farm and Soybean Growers, said one of his favorite parts of Corn Fest is the food.
“My favorite part of Corn Fest would probably be the community and the food. It’s always good to get out and talk to people, especially since the weather has been amazing. It’s pretty fun to answer some of the questions people ask about farming,” Faber said.
President’s Welcome Back Picnic:
From 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday at the East Lagoon, the President’s Welcome Back Picnic occurred.
The President’s Picnic included free food and activities such as volleyball and kayaking. NIU Dining Services created a special dinner specifically for the President’s Picnic which caused on-campus dining to be closed for the event.
The President’s Picnic allowed students to connect with old friends or meet new people. Students also had the opportunity to meet NIU President Lisa Freeman.
NIU President Lisa Freeman said she looks forward to not just the President’s Picnic but all of the Week of Welcome events.
“I look forward to this event (the President’s Picnic) every year, but I also look forward to all of the Week of Welcome events that come before it, starting with welcoming the new faculty and then all of the events that are associated with move-in and Week of Welcome for students,” Freeman said.
