For new School of Management (SOM) students, “orientation” means more than just academic program reminders and lectures.  This year’s activities included a volunteer project and some fun local activities organized by SOM’s Student Orientation Leaders.

New and returning SOM students joined Clark’s Community Engagement & Volunteering Office for some volunteer time on Martin Luther King, Jr. day last week. The group headed down Main Street to the nearby Central Community Branch YMCA, where the students took part in an important community service project packaging pajama donations for local youth in need. Take a look at some of the fantastic photos below!

“We obviously love seeing our new students jump in to give back to our community,” added assistant dean, Laura Burgess, who oversees the organization of new student orientations. “It’s an important part of our orientation sessions and students inevitably love taking part.”

As part of their orientation, new students were also treated to a night out bowling, dinner and game night, and a trip to the skating rink in downtown Worcester.   The incredibly popular “Welcome Back Party,” hosted by the School of Management’s Student Council group, capped off the weekend.

New MS-business analytics student, Sharmila Pentapalli, had a wonderful few days.

“The orientation week had me feeling absolutely fulfilled for having made the right choice,” she said.  “The people, the environment and the resources with whom we touched base made it all worth it to have journeyed this far from home. Plus the efficiency, warmth and the responsiveness of the Clark community throughout my interaction with them was amazing.”

Pentapalli added, “I’m grateful to be a part of this, and I’m all set to make the best out of my time here!”

Special thank you to Domenica Perrone, Clark University’s director for community engagement and volunteering, for assisting our students at the YMCA, and to the Student Orientation Leaders and Peer Mentor teams for all of their work during orientation week.