Reunite on campus for a weekend of family fun

4:34 p.m., Aug. 6, 2004--Attention parents, grandparents and guardians: Buy your tickets, pack the goodies and make your reservations, because Freshman Family Weekend is just around the corner. Planned for Friday-Sunday, Sept. 17-19, the weekend promises ample entertainment and fun and provides a great opportunity to visit your favorite new freshman or transfer student and see campus life in full swing.

Presented by the Office of University Relations, the weekend is designed to give parents and family members of new freshmen and transfer students a chance to reunite and explore the University and Newark communities.

Below is a summary of some major activities. For more information about the weekend, including a complete schedule of events and instructions for ordering tickets, visit the Freshman Family Weekend web site [www.udel.edu/parents] or consult the Freshman Family Weekend brochure that was recently mailed to all parents and families of new students.

Ticket purchases must be made using the order form enclosed in the brochure or downloaded from the web site, and must be received at the Bob Carpenter Center box office no later than Wednesday, Sept. 8. Ticket orders received after this date will not be processed.

However, if available, tickets for Chicago Comedy Company and the Fightin’ Blue Hens Football Game may be purchased in person at University box offices on the days of the events. Tickets for the Lunch—University Style, Tailgate Dinner and Pep Rally, and Sunday brunch in the dining halls may be purchased at the door.

Friday, Sept. 17

Dinner at the Blue & Gold Club, with seatings at 5 p.m., 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m., kicks off the weekend with elegance and fine dining in an atmosphere reflective of University style. The buffet dinner features potato leek soup, tossed seasonal greens with balsamic vinaigrette, Nantucket-baked salmon with brandied shrimp sauce, coconut-crusted chicken with pineapple-mango-chutney sauce, penne pasta a la vodka with assorted grilled vegetables, lyonnaise potatoes, fresh vegetable medley and assorted desserts. Dinner is $18.50 per person for adults and $8.95 for children ages 5 to 11. For reservations and more information, call (302) 831-2582.

The Chicago Comedy Company, presented by the Student Center Programming Advisory Board, offers high-key entertainment later in the evening with two antic performances at 7:30 and 10 p.m. in Mitchell Hall. Known for its zany improvisational skits that mix slapstick with deadpan, the ensemble offers comedy appropriate for all ages. Tickets are $10 for UD students and $15 for all others. All seating is reserved.

Also offered from 11 a.m.-7 p.m. in the Mechanical Hall Gallery and the University Gallery is “A Century of African American Art: The Paul R. Jones Collection.” Considered the nation’s premiere collection of 20th-century African-American art, the collection includes an array of more than 1,000 works that showcase a wide range of subject matter, styles and techniques. The exhibit also will be open for viewing from 11 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 18-19. Admission is free.

For the sports-inclined, an open ice-skating session is offered from 8-10 p.m. at the Fred Rust Ice Arena. The event is open to students, parents and family members of all ages and abilities, and skates of all sizes are available for rental. Admission is free for UD students with ID, $5 per person for all others. Skate rental is $3 per pair. Public skating sessions also will be offered from 1-3 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 18-19. For more information, call the ice arena at (302) 831-2868.

Saturday, Sept. 18

Lunch—University Style, from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at Kent Dining Hall, offers families a chance to sample UD cuisine in a college dining facility. The meal includes butternut squash soup, spinach salad, vegetable and penne salad, French dip on a baguette, mango chutney chicken salad on a Kaiser roll, roasted garden vegetable wrap, desserts and assorted hot and cold beverages. Lunch is $12 per person, in advance.

Dessert with the Deans, from 12:30-2:30 p.m., on The Green outside Gore Hall, gives visitors the opportunity to stroll along the famed University Green and enjoy desserts and cold beverages with University administrators, faculty and staff. UD’s Faculty Jazz Ensemble and several student groups will provide live music throughout the event.

Information Sessions, offered from 12:30-1:15 p.m. and from 1:30-2:15 p.m., in Gore Hall, will advise parents and families about the many resources available to students in the areas of study abroad, career development and study skills.

“Back to Class—Faculty Lectures” are scheduled from 2:30-4:30 p.m. in Gore Hall. An opportunity for visitors to sample college education, the program provides parents and families with the chance to take part in thought-provoking mini-lectures presented by UD professors. Every 30 minutes, UD faculty members will lecture on a broad range of topics, including art conservation, politics, history and engineering. Information on specific lectures is available at [www.udel.edu/parents]. Admission to all mini-lectures is free.

A National Championship Tailgate Dinner and Pep Rally will be held from 5-7 p.m. in the Delaware Field House. The buffet features a tossed salad with mixed greens, an antipasta platter, green beans and baby carrots with blue cheese crumbles, macaroni and cheese with sun-dried tomatoes, barbecue pork, herb-roasted chicken, rolls, desserts and assorted cold beverages. The Royal Palm Steel Band will play throughout the meal, and at 6 p.m. the UD Marching Band, cheerleaders, dance team and YoUDee mascot will fill Tubby Raymond Field with UD spirit. Dinner is $16 per person for adults and $8 per person for children under age 8.

At 7 p.m., on Tubby Raymond Field in Delaware Stadium, the Fightin’ Blue Hens will take on West Chester University. Tickets are $18 per person, with all reserved seating in the West and East Grandstands. UD students with ID receive free admission in the South Endzone only. (Tickets for the South Endzone are not available for purchase, but parents and families who wish to have their students sit with them in the West and East Grandstands can purchase tickets for them.)

Sunday, Sept. 19

Brunch at the Blue & Gold Club, with seatings between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., offers a relaxing way to begin Sunday with a buffet that features assorted pastries, fruit, made-to-order omelets, waffles, bacon, sausage, home fries, quiche Lorraine, shrimp and scallop scampi, smoked salmon, baked ham and carved pecan-crusted turkey. Brunch is $18.50 per person for adults and $8.50 for children ages 5 to 11. For reservations and more information, call (302) 831-2582.

Brunch—University Style, from 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at Pencader Dining Hall, and from 11 a.m.-2 p.m., at Kent, Rodney and Russell dining halls, offers a chance for the entire family to sample a part of college life. The buffet-style meal at all locations includes cola-glazed ham, seafood crepes topped with hollandaise sauce, scrambled eggs, eggs made-to-order, turkey sausage, O’Brien potatoes, Caesar salad, citrus buttered green beans, French toast, pancakes, assorted pastries and a selection of hot and cold beverages. Brunch is $6.90 per person, with tickets issued for a specific dining hall, except for UD students using meal plans.

Newark Community Day (presented by the City of Newark, Newark Arts Alliance and the Downtown Newark Partnership) offers visiting families the opportunity to explore downtown Newark. The free event runs from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. along East Main Street from South College Avenue to the Newark Shopping Center, and at designated University sites, including The Green, the Academy Lawn and the Old College Lawn. Activities include live entertainment on four stages, mini-moto pocket bike racing, a sidewalk chalk festival, arts and crafts displays and retail and dining specials.

For a complete schedule and to check on event updates, visit the Freshman Family Weekend web site at [www.udel.edu/parents]. For answers to general questions about Freshman Family Weekend, send e-mail to [alumnet@udel.edu] or call (302) 831-8741. For ticket questions only, send e-mail to [ud-boxoffices@udel.edu] or call (302) 831-4012.

Article by Becca Hutchinson

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