With fall semester’s beginning looming just around the corner, there were multitudes of freshmen, also known as the class of 2019, that were livening up NKU’s campus including the freshly renovated recreation center.

As part of the Victorfest II: Welcome Week, the Beach Party was held in the campus rec offering new ways of socializing with others, such as face painting, free food, a selfie-stick station with Victor the Viking, sports games and live music by Johnny Russler and the Beach Bum Band.

Rachel Prokopius, a freshman majoring in veterinary studies, is excited to get to know people from different places during her time here at NKU.

“This is the first time I have stepped foot in here, but I like that whenever I have turned a corner I found something to do,” Prokopius said. “I think you can definitely strike up a conversation here and I have seen a lot of faculty members so you can get to know them too.”

Mackenzie Davis, freshman biology major, and Inna Finkel, an undeclared major with an interest in criminal justice, weren’t afraid to step out of their comfort zones and try a little bit of everything the beach party had to offer, including meeting the upperclassman and faculty.

“We got to play corn hole, and obviously there are balloon hats,” Davis laughed as she pointed to her head. “And of course I had to have my face painted.”

Despite her love for the rec activities, Finkel appreciated the mingling of students and faculty more.

“I loved all the basketball courts,” Finkel said. “And everyone here is really helpful. They definitely tried to answer any questions we had.”

Angela Kaesheimer, a junior theater major and employee in the facilities department at the rec center, stayed to check out the reactions from the new students as they entered the building.

“Most of the freshmen in my orientation group here were most excited about coming to this [the beach party] at the rec because it [the rec] is state of the art,” Kaesheimer said.  “It’s one of the best in Kentucky now, and a lot of people are just excited about what it has to offer.”

According to Kaesheimer, the orientation party will bring much more than a one night itinerary for the freshmen; they can now fill their days with activities they may not have otherwise known existed.

“I’m just really happy to see people at the rec because it’s been really dead all summer and now there’s a lot of people and it’s really exciting because now that they see it they are going to know that they can come hang out at the rec in between classes,” Kaesheimer said.

Amanda Purdue, a junior biology major, agreed that the work put into the party and the rec were not going to go unnoticed.

“The band is great and very beachy,” Purdue said. “This is the first time that I have been in here since all the construction started, and I really loved that they renovated the pool and added the climbing wall; I think it [the renovations and the band] makes it more enticing for the students.”

Being a student faculty member herself, Kaesheimer can agree that incorporating the orientation with the latest reveal of the rec will continue to benefit the campus in more ways than one.

“I think without it [the beach party] people would be like ‘I can go to the rec, but I don’t really know how to get around,’ and this is an easy way to walk around and not feel awkward,” laughed Kaesheimer.

The party must always come to an end, but with the orientation under their belts, the class of 2019 are prepared to start the school year off by igniting the flame.