Joe Wilensky/Cornell Chronicle

Orientation supervisors gather in front of Bailey Hall Aug. 17.

After checking in to Bartels Hall to pick up their Cornell ID cards Aug. 19, nearly 4,000 new first-year and transfer students will take part in Orientation Weekend, which runs through the first day of classes, Aug. 23. Use the hashtag #CornellWelcome to post your Orientation stories throughout the weekend, and visit the New Student Programs Orientation web page for a detailed schedule of all events.

Orientation Weekend offers dozens of fun events – First Night, Silent Disco, movies, musical performances – designed by upperclass students to introduce incoming students to Cornell student life, clubs, organizations, resources and opportunities to engage intellectually, culturally and socially.

Ryan Lombardi, vice president for student and campus life, will give his first New Student Convocation speech at 8:45 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 20, at Schoellkopf Field (his remarks will appear on CornellCast after the event). He will also give the “Parenting 101” presentation Friday for families of new students.

At the annual Dump & Run sale, Aug. 20-21 in Helen Newman Gym on North Campus, new students can buy items collected from students leaving campus in May, diverting thousands of reusable items from the waste stream. The sale raises more than $60,000 a year for local charitable organizations.

All new students will participate in Speak About It, a performance-based presentation that includes thought-provoking and sometimes humorous skits and monologues based on true stories dealing with sexual consent, assault and misconduct, and bystander intervention. The program also introduces students to many Cornell resources.

Friday night brings Transfer Students’ First Night: Taste of Ithaca!, with great food from Ithaca’s best restaurants, games and conversation, along with First Night music and food on North Campus for the Class of 2020.

Tours will introduce new students to Cornell’s schools and colleges, libraries and the student union, Willard Straight Hall. There are talks for Greek students and their families, sessions on money management, receptions for students with disabilities and nontraditional students, and a welcome reception for students and their families to meet Cornell faculty and staff members.

On Saturday, Cornell’s nationally renowned University Chorus and the Glee Club perform a brief concert in beautiful Sage Chapel in the center of campus. The event features a repertoire from around the world plus favorite Cornell songs. Aspiring singers are invited to remain afterward to learn about auditions. In the First Lecture Series, new students can learn about Cornell’s surprising history and its ongoing impact on higher education.

The night wraps up with a movie on Libe Slope and a silent disco on West Campus, at which dancers choose their own music to listen to on headphones.

Joe Wilensky/Cornell Chronicle

Orientation supervisors welcome leaders to Bailey Hall Aug. 17.

Among many Sunday morning activities are outdoor fitness and yoga classes, gorge hikes, trail running, academic events, placement tests, Big Red Marching Band auditions and campus walking tours. Sunday night features lectures, the annual Cornell University Block Party on North Campus with music, games and Cornell Dining food – some of the highest rated in the nation.

Programming continues throughout the academic year to introduce new students to Cornell’s many resources and services at the Tatkon Center for First-Year Students, the support and resource center on North Campus.