Foam, food and Funk: Incoming freshmen kick off Boston Welcome Week
The Monday holiday marked the official start to Northeastern University’s fall Welcome Week, an event-filled week designed to help new students acclimate to campus and Boston.
Incoming freshman Shaunak Bose emerged from a shapeless mass of white spume with bits of foam stuck to his face, hand and legs.
“I just walked into a giant pit of bubbles,” the 18-year-old said on Boston’s Centennial Common, where hundreds of new Northeastern University students gathered on Labor Day to socialize, break bread and play games during the BBQ, Bubbles & Beats event.
He, along with at least seven other students, were frolicking in the sudsy but “surprisingly dry” pile of foam, which several volunteers replenished with the aid of a “FoamDaddy” pump. Nearby, a disc jockey spun tracks and swayed to the beats.
“It kind of feels like you’re swimming in air,” Bose said, patting the foam out of his jeans.
The annual social spread between Shillman Hall, Ruggles Station and the West Village dormitories — and took place under a cloudless September sky.
The Monday holiday marked the official start to Northeastern University’s fall Welcome Week, an event packed with activities designed to help new students acclimate to campus and Boston, connect with classmates, and explore the university’s resources and student organizations.
The move onto campus that began on September 1 continued apace with parents and students helping haul belongings in large rolling storage crates, while volunteer staff directed them from Columbus Garage on Columbus Avenue.
In addition to the foam pit, Centennial Common featured airbrush tattooing, games of cornhole, tie-dying, ice cream, hamburgers and hotdogs and a steady stream of bubbles. Northeastern community resource dogs Cooper and Sarge were whisked to and fro on leashes.
Catching some shade on the common was 18-year-old Dion Lushaj. He had moved into Smith Hall from North Reading, Massachusetts, days earlier and has been counting down the days until classes begin.
“Northeastern has a great pharmacy program and it has the co-ops as well,” Lushaj said, referring to the university’s popular experiential learning program. “The people are great, the vibes are good and it’s in the center of the city, which I like.”
That was also what drew 19-year-old transfer student Sebastian Suarez, who is joining as a sophomore after a year at Brandeis University.
“I felt that what I was really craving for my college experience was a more lively, urban campus feel,” Suarez said.
For Suarez, acclimating to a new campus can be a bit intimidating. He said he wants to make the most of his fresh start at Northeastern, becoming completely immersed in student life and meeting new people.
Editor’s Picks
“I’m just very glad to be at Northeastern,” Suarez said. “I want to focus on getting everything set up for my classes, buying all the materials that I need, setting up my Google Drive and my calendar, and then really getting involved with clubs on campus and different student organizations.”
Dhairya Joshi and Nandini Ollalwar were getting to know each other as they waited in line for tattoos. They’d only met at orientation but said they felt a kinship.
Joshi, who is from Kentucky, is planning to study health sciences and psychology. Packed to the windshield with her belongings, Joshi and family members made the trip from Kentucky by car.
“I chose Northeastern mainly because of co-op and the community,” the 18-year-old said. She said she is trying to take advantage of everything that Welcome Week has to offer.
Ollalwar’s journey, by contrast, was about 45 minutes from her home in Central Massachusetts.
“I’m more introverted, so I want to get out there,” said Ollalwar, 18, who is planning to study cell and molecular biology.
This year, in addition to start-of-the-semester convocations planned for Northeastern’s 13 longstanding campuses, celebrations will for the first time take place in New York City. Northeastern University — New York City is the 14th campus in the university’s global university system, which also includes locations in the U.S., Canada and the U.K.
Northeastern Global News, in your inbox.
Sign up for NGN’s daily newsletter for news, discovery and analysis from around the world.
