Welcome to W&L - Class of 2028! April - May 2024

We would like to warmly welcome you to Washington and Lee University and express our delight about the beginning of a relationship that will not only define the next four years of your life but will undoubtedly shape your future. You will soon enter a distinctive university, one of America's oldest, built on a strong foundation, but one that is also consistent with its motto, "not unmindful of the future."

By way of introduction, we are the First-Year Experience (FYE) team at Washington and Lee. Our office will work with you during the summer to guide you through the process of joining our community and answer any questions you might have regarding academic and co-curricular matters for your first year on campus. Our FYE team includes:

Jason Rodocker - Associate Dean of Students and Dean for First-Year Experience
Ronda Bryant - Associate Dean of Students
Kim Hodge - Assistant Dean of Students
Mariel Potter - Student Affairs Operations and First-Year Coordinator

You may reach our office by calling (540) 458-8037 or emailing newstudent@wlu.edu.

We encourage you to share this message with your parents/guardians and keep them informed. However, we expect to hear from you first if you or they have any questions. Please take ownership of your educational experience.

The primary mode of communication between W&L and you as a student from this point forward is your university email. From now on, you will need to check your W&L email on a daily basis for important information from the University.

Required Forms for Confirmed Students
Now that you have activated your W&L email and network account, you can begin completing the required forms for confirmed students. The forms are located on the First Year Experience webpage under New Student Onboarding. Please note that some may not be available until certain dates. Some forms must be printed, completed, and mailed to the address on the top of the form, and other forms, such as your housing application, can be completed online. Your seven-digit student ID number may be needed to complete various forms. You can find your student ID number under your profile in Workday.

Faculty Adviser Match
We collect information from you about your academic, community and work experiences as well as your interests toward an area of study here at W&L in order to assign you to an initial faculty adviser and so your adviser can become familiar with your experiences before your in-person meeting during orientation. You will receive notification of your faculty adviser's name and contact information in August via W&L email.

Leading Edge Match
All FYs will participate in Leading Edge, which is theme-based trips that help you get orientated to our community. Please learn more about these highly regarded trips at the Leading Edge website before completing the questionnaire on the FYE webpage.

First-Year Housing Match
You are able to electronically agree to your housing contract in eRezlife and select housing and roommate preferences through the online application. Although we cannot make any guarantees, we do our best to meet your requests submitted on your housing application. For further information about this, please visit the Office of Residence Life webpage.

Summer Registration
Registration occurs during the summer. You should review the first-year registration resources on the registrar's website. The University will use your preferences to place FYs in schedules in a way that optimizes overall satisfaction and reduces stress. Faculty serving as summer registration advisers will help you understand how to complete the registration form, but these advisers are different from the initial faculty adviser you will have throughout your first couple years.

FYE 100
All FYs are encouraged to take FYE 100 - a one-credit, FY only, fall term only course co-taught by faculty, staff, and student leaders and designed to help FYs transition to college life. You should review the FYE 100 content and list FYE 100 on your registration form if you are interested.

Move-In
Additional move-in details will be shared closer to arrival, but understanding the dates and basic expectations can help you prepare. Fall athletes, international students, AIM students, and Bonner scholars will arrive early and should communicate with their coaches or coordinators for details. All other FYs will move in August 24, 2024 (Saturday). Orientation will begin for all first-years the evening of August 24. Classes begin on September 5, 2024 (Thursday).

Physical/Immunization Appointment
You will want to schedule your physical and immunizations appointment with a physician as soon as appropriate. The required medical forms will be available for you to print, fill out, and take with you to your appointment. Please note: if your insurance coverage will not let you schedule your appointment before July 1st, we will accept your forms past the July 31st deadline, but please mail them as quickly as possible. Look in the upper-left hand corner of these forms for return instructions.

FYE Website & Summer Timeline
We strongly recommend you review the entire FYE website at your earliest convenience before completing any forms and return to it throughout the year as a reminder of resources, opportunities, and other information. Please note the internal W&L webpages, different from the external site you've likely engaged with so far, begin with my.wlu.edu and have more details important to you and your family as W&L community members now.

You and your parents/guardians can review key correspondence from FYE on the FYE website at any time.

We know you'll have many questions as you prepare for your first year of college. The FYE website will likely answer most of your questions (and help you identify questions you didn't realize you should have). This information will ease your transition, help you stay organized, and further your excitement about the remarkable experiences that await you here at Washington and Lee.

You will soon receive a New Student Summer Timeline in the mail. We have created this timeline as a simplified guide for you to remember important dates and deadlines throughout your summer. Each important date and deadline directs you to the website or the office you should contact if you need assistance or have any questions. Be sure to keep this timeline in a visible place, such as the refrigerator, so that you do not miss any important deadlines over the summer!

Interact with Future Classmates and Current Students:

  • GroupMe: W&L Class of 2028
  • WhatsApp: W&L Class of 2028
  • FYOC Instagram: @wlufyoc
  • Class of 2028 Instagram: @wlu_28
  • Facebook: Washington and Lee University Class of 2028
  • TikTok: @wlufyoc
  • Snapchat: @wlufyoc
  • Pinterest: W&L FYOC
  • YouTube: W&L FYOC Communications
  • Linktree: https://linktr.ee/WLUFYOC
  • Use the hashtag #wlu28

Congratulations on joining W&L, and we look forward to working with you.

Sincerely,

Dean Rodocker
Dean Bryant
Dean Hodge

P.S. Save the Date! Parents and Family Weekend is October 4 - 6, 2024. Suggested accommodations and other information can be found at http://go.wlu.edu/pfw. Please advise your family to make their travel plans now for Parents and Family Weekend as Lexington accommodations fill up quickly. Please encourage parents/guardians to use the FYE website as a resource throughout the year as well.