Brandeis Stories

By Julian Cardillo ’14
August 20, 2024

As incoming students get ready for Brandeis, a dream team of undergrads has spent the summer getting ready for them.

The Orientation Core Team is the dedicated trio in charge of designing a program that offers the newest Brandeisians a warm welcome, and prepares them to hit the ground running when the fall semester starts August 28.

Katelynn Quartson ’26, Esther Rubin ’26, and Eli Fighter ’25 are this year’s team, collaborating together and with others on the Brandeis campus to create a fun and informative orientation experience.

“Orientation is the first impression new students get as official Brandeis community members, so it’s really important to get things started on the right foot,” said Rubin, a psychology and education studies double-major from Atlanta. “I chose to join Core because I loved my Orientation experience, and wanted to see what it was like to plan it behind the scenes.”

A full summer of preparation

Rubin, Quartson, and Fighter have been living on campus throughout the summer as part of their Core duties.

Reporting to Laura Flynn, the director of orientation and first year experience, the Core team plans all New Student Orientation activities, trains this year’s crew of 54 Orientation Leaders (OLs), books vendors, and coordinates with departments on social and academic program elements.

The fulfilling yet demanding work takes place every day in the Office of Orientation and First Year Experience inside the Shapiro Campus Center.

“All our hands are in the pie — we all focus on design elements, logistics, and overall coordination,” Rubin said. “But we do try to take advantage of our different strengths when we assign tasks and make sure everything is in place.”

Creating a welcoming environment

The Core team is instrumental in shaping the orientation experience, and this year’s team is passionate about creating a welcoming atmosphere for students.

For Quartson, an African and African American Studies and Health: Science, Society, and Policy double-major from the Bronx, New York, this particular aspect has been personal.

“As the only Black OL last year, I saw the importance of representation and the impact it had on new students,” Quartson said. “I like to take up more space when I can. I think students of color feel a sense of connection when they see someone who looks like them, so it’s important for me to be there, to make a difference.”

Quartson said she was first drawn toward being an OL as a way to make new friends while helping new students adjust to life at Brandeis.

“Orientation is a reminder of all the amazing things this school has to offer,” Quartson added. “Brandeis is like a big pool of amazing people and opportunities. Orientation needs to welcome the first years so they’re set up to be themselves and thrive.”

A top secret program?

Some orientation activities are carefully-guarded secrets — at least until new students arrive.

Everything from the orientation theme to the official colors are currently under lock and key.

So too are this year’s version of the dance numbers that the Core team and OLs traditionally perform each year.

But certain events are a matter of tradition.

“Light the Night” has been an annual rite of passage during orientation since the “Light of Reason” was installed in front of the Rose Art Museum in 2015. The Core team is looking forward to members of the Class of 2028 experiencing a seminal moment so soon after starting their Brandeis journeys.

“We can’t say too much,” Quartson said. “But it’s a chance to think about dreams, ambitions, and goals.”

The whole Core team agreed to stay mum.

“I’m excited about the whole experience,” Rubin said. “Our whole summer has led up to this moment, of welcoming the OLs for training and then the first-years. It’s really exciting. I can’t wait to see the looks on everyone’s faces when they see some of what we have planned.”