ALLENDALE, Mich. — Despite scorching temperatures, Welcome Week is still on at Grand Valley State University as new parents and students file in for the new year.
With more than 7,000 new students, GVSU President Philomena Mantella said it's the largest and most diverse incoming class in the university's history.
In the face of sweltering heat, the university pulled together to give new students the full move-in day experience on Wednesday.
"Look around, I mean, there is police officers, there's volunteers, there's alumni volunteers," Mantella said. "We consider it our joy to do this. So, there is more activity than ever before."
With so many new students, Mantella said the university is having to lease living space from nearby apartments in order to accommodate the growth.
Freshmen like Starshawn Cook were met by a bustling scene on Wednesday.
"At first, I thought I was gonna be, like, a little bit overwhelmed," Cook said. "But it's actually really exciting. I think more of it will process when my family leaves and I'm, like, by myself."
For Cook and many others, move-in day was a family affair.
"This is very exciting, like my son said, to me because I never went to college and he's the first one to go and just doing the right thing and showing him the right way," Starshawn's father Starsky Cook said.
"She's got a song that she plays for him to fly," Starshawn's grandmother Debra Woods said. "She wants him to spread his wings and be the best that he can be."
Welcome Week symbolizes a new chapter for Starshawn and many others, with his family ready to see him fly and anchor up.
"[GVSU has] got a good history," Woods said. "It's got a good staff. I'm sure that they're gonna take excellent care of my grandson, and he's gonna get a well rounded education."
"My daughter's going to be bawling when it's time for us to leave," Woods said. "We're probably going to have to drag her off the campus. I'll probably have to drive home. But other than that, I think we might make it through."
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