Bartholomew, of Frankfort, and her father unloaded clothes, bedding and other campus-life necessities from their car parked outside Threkheld Hall Wednesday morning.
It’s alright, she said about her first few minutes at the University of Louisville. Then she broke into a big smile and a laugh. It’s a day every freshman looks forward to. But I’m also a little anxious.
Bartholomew and the rest of the incoming freshman class began moving into residence halls Aug. 17, marking a rite of passage and the beginning of a new chapter in their lives.
They arrived with parents, who bought out local stores stocking up on such essentials as bedding, refrigerators, lamps, computers and printers. A few students even arrived with new – rather large – flat-screen televisions.
About 5,100 students will live on campus this year, including a little more than 60 percent of this year’s 2,575 incoming freshman class. An estimated 96 percent of rooms on campus and 88 percent of affiliated UofL housing are full.
As a steady stream of cars with plates from Kentucky and beyond arrived, volunteers from UPS and various campus groups helped the families unload their cars and carry in items.
Marianne Kremer of Fort Thomas waited outside Threkheld watching over her son Troy’s belongings while he signed in his dorm.
Exactly 10 years ago, she said, she moved Troy’s older brother into a UofL residence hall.
Not only did move-in day mark a change in her son’s life, she said, but it also marked a change in her life.
This will be my first time ever as an empty nester, Kremer said.
Not far away, Todd and Jan Hannan of Florence unloaded their daughter Sarah’s goods.
They consider themselves experienced at the move to UofL, having moved a son to campus a fews ago.
She’s been packing for weeks and we’ve been adding to it every time we go shopping, Jan Hannan said. She’s so ready for this
Returning a few minutes later from carrying a load of belongings to her room, Sarah said she was thankful that both of her parents were there to help carry her stuff up four flights of stairs.
Noting that everything seemed to be going well and that she’d start Welcome Week activities in the evening, for the coming day, she still was a little uncertain:
We’ll see, she said.