小蝌蚪APP

Jaguars Pounce On Move-In Days

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Posted on August 13, 2021

Thomas Becnel

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Jeffery Baity had his hands full of bedding, with a bright blanket draped over one shoulder, when a student worker offered him a rolling bin during Move-In Days at the 小蝌蚪APP. 

鈥淚 switched tactics,鈥� announced the South freshman from Selma, Alabama. 鈥淚 stopped holding and started pushing.鈥�

Baity鈥檚 gold and orange blanket won鈥檛 match his bed linens, but some things are more important than color-coordinated fabrics. Sometimes a bedspread covers family history and memories from home. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 from Afghanistan,鈥� explained Jeffery鈥檚 mom, Verlisa Baity. 鈥淗is aunt was in the Army and she sent it to him.鈥�

This week, more than 2,400 students are carrying clothes and computers, along with hopes and dreams, into residence halls at the 小蝌蚪APP.

This year, Move-In Day became Move-In Days that began Thursday and will continue through Sunday. Week of Welcome and Beyond will extend through Aug. 29.

鈥淭here are programs every morning, noon and night. We want to make sure students know that there are plenty of things to do on campus,鈥� said Dr. Krista Harrell, assistant vice president of Student Affairs. 鈥淲e鈥檙e also trying to do an additional focus on our rising sophomores. Because of COVID, they didn鈥檛 have a traditional first-year experience. It was virtual, so we wanted to reach out to them this year.鈥�

Recent coronavirus restrictions include mask requirements and social distancing for indoor instructional settings. University policies will be reviewed each week this fall. For now, the student calendar is full of everything from scavenger hunts and trivia nights to outdoor movies and block parties.

鈥淲e have our USA First Night events on Saturday in the Mitchell Center,鈥� Harrell said. 鈥淭he Convocation is scheduled for Hancock Whitney Stadium on Monday morning. We鈥檒l start off with a pep rally at 9:30 and do a welcome to the students at 10.鈥� (UPDATE: Due to inclement weather, outdoor events Monday at Hancock Whitney have been canceled; Convocation will be virtual.) 

Rooms and Roommates

Move-In Day, an August tradition at South, offers staff and volunteer help for students going into residence halls. The weather, however, is often a mix of southern heat and scattered thunderstorms.

This year is no different.

On Thursday, in between showers, students and families carted in piles of pillows, bags of clothes, and boxes of school supplies.

Patricia Brannan met Rebecca McIntosh, her Camellia Hall roommate, in the room they will share. Both of them had received the other鈥檚 e-mail address from the University, but neither one had sent a message.

鈥淚 was too nervous,鈥� McIntosh said, laughing.

鈥淚 was too nervous, too,鈥� Brannan said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want to sound like a stalker.鈥�

They discussed shower curtains and bathroom mats while unloading clothes, arranging desks and making beds.

Brannan carried all of her belongings in a single bin. She has family in Alabama, but moved to Mobile from Hawaii, where her father is stationed in the military. She spent several minutes arranging a duvet and slipping a foam pad into a fitted sheet.

鈥淢y cousin told me that the No. 1 thing you need is a mattress topper,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his looks better than it did in the bag.鈥�

McIntosh, who鈥檚 from Fairhope, Alabama, used hanging racks to organize her shoes, pants and shirts. Her share of room decor included a tapestry of two hands forming a heart, along with string art that spelled out 鈥淗ello.鈥�

The Parent Trap

In residence halls across South, parents tried to be helpful without doing too much. There鈥檚 a fine line somewhere between bossy and concerned, careful and smothering.

Amelia Filer and her parents spent two days driving to Mobile from Manitowoc, Wisconsin. They have family nearby in Spanish Fort, Alabama, which makes them feel a little better about their daughter moving across the country.

Amelia鈥檚 mother, Gwen, tried not to cry.

鈥淚 did a little tiny bit the first day,鈥� she said, laughing. 鈥淚鈥檓 sure the waterworks will come later.鈥�

Amelia鈥檚 back-to-school supplies included a Keurig coffeemaker and a 鈥淪unshine State of Mind鈥� coffee mug. She鈥檚 a yoga enthusiast who looks forward to classes at the Student Recreation Center. She chose the twin bed on the left side of her room.

鈥淭his one鈥檚 a little higher,鈥� she explained, 鈥渟o I can put more stuff under it.鈥�

Joseph Davis, a father from Huntsville, Alabama, followed his son Wesley to Mobile in a U-Haul moving van. Lots of room for lots of stuff.

鈥淗e鈥檚 got futons, luggage, you name it,鈥� Davis said. 鈥淭he kid planned ahead 鈥� it was his idea. With the rain, he said, 鈥榃e鈥檙e getting a van.鈥欌��

Tyrell Williams, a freshman from Northport, Alabama, had his mother and grandmother leading a family move-in crew.

He wore a backwards baseball cap with 鈥淏ig Bruh鈥� embroidered on the side. His little brother had a matching cap that said 鈥淟鈥檌l Bruh.鈥�

The new Jaguar slept through most of the drive to Mobile.

鈥淚 had all four of my wisdom teeth removed last Friday,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 just getting back to eating.鈥�

His grandmother said she鈥檇 been praying for her grandson. His mother said she wasn鈥檛 prepared for her boy to start college. 

鈥淚t came so quick,鈥� said Yvette Williams. 鈥淗e was just in my arms, and now I鈥檓 about to leave him.鈥�

Baity, the freshman from Selma, carried his Afghan blanket. His other prized possession is a PlayStation 4 console, which allows him to relax with videogames such as 鈥淕rand Theft Auto鈥� and 鈥淩ainbow Six Siege.鈥�

During the move, he allowed his mom to take the lead in unpacking and organizing his things at Camellia Hall. Baity鈥檚 sister joked that he was just the supervisor. He said that sounded pretty good to him.

He planned ahead with Jeremy Robinson, the freshman sharing his room, who happens to be his best friend from Selma High School.

鈥淗e hadn鈥檛 decided on a college, so I said, 鈥楥ome to South, you can be my roommate,鈥欌�� Baity said. 鈥淗e applied the same day.鈥�

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