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St. Olaf welcomes one of its strongest first-year classes

By Amy Gage
September 19, 2006

St. Olaf welcomed its largest and one of its academically strongest classes during Week One festivities over Labor Day weekend.

Nearly 800 first-year students joined international students and transfer students for a program that traditionally includes meetings with advisers, social activities with junior counselors and, this year, a common reading.

KyleMichael
Michael Kyle
Vice President and Dean of Enrollment Michael Kyle presented an overview of the Class of 2010 at the opening faculty meeting on Thursday, Aug. 31. He noted the largest applicant pool in the college's history, which, at 3,703, is 17.2 percent higher than last year's.

An "uptick" in selectivity has made for a statistically impressive class -- with more incoming students who ranked first or second in their high school classes (11 percent), more in the top 10 percent of their classes (51 percent) and more who earned perfect grade-point averages (21 percent).

"I hope you can be as proud of these numbers as I am," Kyle told the assembly of professors and cabinet members, noting also that the average ACT for the incoming class increased a full point, from 27 to 28.

Given the national reputation that St. Olaf enjoys in science, mathematics, music, religious studies and other academic programs, it is no surprise that the Class of 2010 hails from around the country. Along with 458 Minnesotans are students from Florida, Texas, Colorado, California, Alaska, Oregon, Maine and Washington, among numerous other states.

The class also includes two U.S. Presidential Scholars: Breanna R. Zarmbinski, of Mendota Heights, Minn., and Stephen Longfield, of Dubuque, Iowa. Nationally, only 141 Presidential Scholars are named each year, and they enroll at some 3,000 colleges and universities. St. Olaf currently has four presidential scholars, including sophomores Kevin Friede and Ben Baker from the Class of 2009.

"This prestigious program has honored some of our country's best talent for the past 42 years," Kyle said at the opening faculty meeting. "We have four of them. This is unique and remarkable, in my view."

Facts and figures
By some measures, the composition of the first-year class is similar to that in previous years.

Fifty-seven percent of new students are from Minnesota compared with 58 percent last year. Ten percent are multicultural (11 percent, 2005); 49 percent are Lutheran (48 percent, 2005); 31 percent are legacy students, meaning they have relatives who also attended St. Olaf (30 percent, 2005); and 14 percent are first-generation students (17 percent, 2005).

Where this class does differ is in the size of the pool from which it was drawn.

Some 3,160 students applied for admission to St. Olaf in 2005, compared with 3,259 in 2004 and a whopping 3,703 this year. A larger pool of applicants allows the college to be more selective -- as evidenced by the higher academic profile and broader geographic makeup of the Class of 2010.

"I am delighted with the diverse mix of talents and experiences our new first-year class brings to St. Olaf," says Kyle, a 1985 graduate of the college.

"This terrific group of students was admitted from the largest applicant pool in the college's history. They have been fun to know through the admissions process, and we look forward to watching them contribute to a wide variety of classes, groups, organizations and teams in the years ahead."

A stormy beginning
St. Olaf administrators had a tense week prior to Week One, as the campus and all of the Northfield community recovered from a devastating hailstorm Aug. 24 that left vehicles demolished and the ground littered with branches and leaves. The storm received enough news coverage statewide that Kyle was prompted to send an e-mail message to the incoming class.

"We are busy preparing for the start of your time at St. Olaf, and the effects of this violent storm do not diminish our readiness for your arrival," he wrote. "Enjoy these last days of summer with family and friends with the knowledge that those of us on campus are eagerly anticipating your arrival."

And, indeed, the new students' arrival was nothing short of a celebration, with more programs for parents this year and a festive, welcoming atmosphere all around.

"We are so impressed," said Dodie Thomas, mother of incoming student Thomas Halvorson of Edina and wife of an Ole, Bob Halvorson '77. Along with hundreds of other parents, she said good-bye to her son Saturday in an emotional farewell ceremony in Skoglund Center Auditorium that featured hymn singing, a speech by President David R. Anderson '74 and a processional by members of the faculty.

Although some colleges hold orientation in the spring or summer, St. Olaf waits until just before Labor Day weekend -- allowing new students to move in and see the campus before registration or information sessions begin.

Those students received a three-ring binder crammed with welcome letters, deadlines and e-mail passwords in July, but the best way to get oriented, especially on a residential campus, is in person, says Buntrock Commons Director Tim Schroer. "Students need to know the basics first to get off on the right foot," he says.

Day One of Week One -- and the first step on incoming students' four-year journey at St. Olaf -- concluded with an ice cream social and a dance in Buntrock Commons. Rain showers, absent the hail, continued the next day.

The semester began for all students on Sept. 7.

Contact David Gonnerman at 507-786-3315 or gonnermd@stolaf.edu.