Saskatchewan Polytechnic rolled out four straight days of activities for the 2023 student Welcome Week, with orientations, tours, workshops, refreshments, games, and more from Aug. 28 to 31.
Kelsi Murrow is the student engagement co-ordinator for Sask Polytech's Moose Jaw and Regina campuses, although most of the events she runs occur in Moose Jaw. She said her role is to help ensure that students are enjoying their lives on campus, in addition to receiving an education.
"This is really just to start the year off with a bang," Murrow said during the Student Connect Festival on Aug. 31. "We want the students to know that, yes, you're here for school, but we also have a good time.
"Today is day four of our Welcome Week events. Monday was our greeter day, where we had free coffee and showed students how to get around campus, find their classrooms, answer any other questions they had, and build their excitement for the rest of the week.
"Tuesday, we had a 'Picnic on the Greens' event, which was a bit more lowkey after the chaos of Monday. Yesterday, Wednesday, we had a Campus and Community Services Fair, so a bunch of booths showing students all the supports available here on campus as well as in the City of Moose Jaw.
"And today is the big fun day, last day, and it's our Student Connect Festival."
The festival included the Saskatchewan Polytech Student Association (SPSA) selling barbecue foods, a lemonade stand, a Métis finger-weaving station, a tie dye station, popcorn, disc golf, spike ball, a henna table, inflatables, and representatives from SGI going around quizzing students about responsible driving, with a cab voucher reward for the best answers.
There was also axe throwing by Little Chicago Entertainment, which no other welcome week in the province can boast, Murrow said.
"Every campus has their own events going on right now at the same time, but axe throwing is unique to Moose Jaw. As usual, it's kind of the center of everything, lots of people over there. I love everything, but that's a personal favourite of mine that I get excited about every year."
"We are having a good time over here, there is a lot of stuff that we can do, like before getting the henna, we went over and tie-dyed our t-shirts, which was very fun," said Naunibh Kaur, who is starting her first year of a business diploma in human resources at Sask Polytech Moose Jaw. She was getting a henna design painted on her arm by Moose Jaw-based artist Avni Patel.
"This is my second year coming out for the welcome week here at Sask Polytechnic," Patel said. "I've been doing henna more than 10 years, and more than five years in Moose Jaw. I do it from my home and take party orders and everything, and it's fun to come out for this."
Welcome Week is only one of the ways Sask Polytech helps new students settle in. There are still several programs to complete once the school year officially starts, including the My First Five orientation program series, as well as program-specific orientations and orientations especially designed for Indigenous and international students.
The school year start date was Aug. 28, while classes begin in earnest in September.
