August 4, 2017
Dear Wilson Parents and Families,
Believe it or not, the summer is just about over and the fall semester is not far away! Over the summer, Wilson has been literally buzzing with activity. The new Wilson College website is complete, the new sidewalks and streetlamps project bordering the campus is almost complete, and the paving projects throughout campus are finally finished. I promise you will be impressed with all of these amazing changes when you get to campus this fall.
Over the next few weeks, there will be clothes to pack, school supplies to find and buy, roommates to talk about “who’s bringing what,” and plans to make because Move-In Day is right around the corner, and for our newest Wilson students, that day is Thursday, August 24th.
As crazy as it may seem, Move-In Day is my very favorite day of this year, and it has been so for me since my own freshman move-in day back in 1992. I think it has always been my favorite day because the energy on a college campus is absolutely palatable. On that first day, everything on campus is alive with possibility and potential is real.
I recognize that as your student prepares for that day, you are also preparing in a very different way as you begin to entrust Wilson College with your son or daughter. As you do so, please know that here at Wilson we have been preparing for your son or daughter for not only over the past summer but for the many years since our founding in 1869. Our deep traditions and our Honor Principle continue to set Wilson apart as an institution that values personal development and academic integrity above all else.
Here in the Division of Student Development, we want to help your students in everyday life through campus dining, residential life, student activities, religious life, career development, and campus security. We help our unique populations through international student affairs, the Single Parent Scholars Program, and the Child Care Center. We are also here to help your students through the tough times through our experienced therapists in counseling services and our nurse in health services. You can check out all of our individual services on our webpage at https://www.wilson.edu/student-life.
This fall, we welcome our new Helen Carnell Eden Chaplain, Reverend Derek Wadlington, and our new AmeriCorps VISTA supervising the Learning Campus Program, Jamie Burnett. I want to welcome you and your student to meet them both at the beginning of the year and possibly even spend time with the two of them and the rest of us on campus during our annual Family Weekend, October 20-22.
Please know that we all put your student first, and we are here to help and support her/him through each and every day in our community here at Wilson. It is our mission to help all our students to feel a part of this unique community that values them as individuals, supports them as scholars, and prepares them for life beyond the Wilson gates. I look forward to seeing you on campus during Move-In Day and throughout the fall semester, and I hope we have the opportunity to talk while you are here.
Wilson love,
Dean Mary Beth
Mary Beth Williams, Ph.D.
Vice President for Student Development & Dean of Students
marybeth.williams@wilson.edu