Day one. Suddenly, you’re away from home. You have no idea what to do, what’s to come, or who all these strange people around you are. Everything’s a frenzy of moving, unpacking, new faces, and . You’ve never been more excited in your life.

Ultimately, students come to Guilford because we want a great education. For the class of 2009, college offers the opportunity to continue already successful school careers. Numerically, this year’s group of 418 traditional first-years is the most selective class at Guilford since 1987. These young men and women are the top sixty-three percent of the 2,491 students to apply.

But being smart doesn’t make the first week of college any easier.

“Chaos” perfectly describes the tumultuous days, full of activity and adjustment, which begin the first year.

We meet our roommates – “We might kill each other by the end of the year, but I like him,” says first-year Joe Cary.

We go to the planned events – Playfair had mixed emotions from the first years, though the general feelings on the hypnotist and open mic night were very positive – and we begin to shake the feeling that we’re being herded into a giant pen like cows.

“It was definitely a period of adjustment,” says Bjorn Goodwin, a first year from Virginia.

“I didn’t really know what to do with myself,” admits Christy Farmer of Asheville.

Still, as overwhelmed as we all may initially feel, therei the comforting reality that every one of our classmates is just as confused.

So, we begin to settle in. We move our things. We make a few friends and, though we still feel as if we may just explode at any moment, things start looking up.

“I was so lonely,” says Julia Fout of her first night on campus. “But later that night, I made an effort to play a game with a few people; I got to know some of them and started feeling better about being so far from home.”

Getting to know classmates can be an eye-opening experience. Diversity is obvious at Guilford: we represent 37 states and 6 countries. 68% of students are Caucasian, 10% African-Americans, 2.5%, are Hispanic, 1.5% are Asian/Pacific Islanders and .7% are American Indian/Alaskan Natives, not mention the 16 % of the student body from an unknown descent.

Diversity at Guilford can be more than racial and cultural differences. Look at how differently people dress, the quality of their bikes, how nice their cars are, and especially how they approach the people around them: some people introduce themselves to everyone and jump at any opportunity to share their stories, while others remain subdued, shy, and are content to simply sit back and observe.

The class of 2009 can look forward to a future full of improvement and building.

The sports department has high hopes for the first-years as well: with 206 students boasting a varsity letter in at least one sport in high school, our class will shape the future of Guilford sports. On the men’s soccer team, 21 of 30 players are first-years. Over half the tennis team is first-years; volleyball is all first years (except one) and football has large numbers of first-years as well.

The future for this class isn’t only in their hands, however. Most recently, administrators have tried to get teachers more dedicated to Guilford, resulting in 90% of the schools teachers now being full-time faculty members living on or near campus. This year’s first-years will experience some of the most profound changes in Quaker history: the new Strategic Plan that began last year. The plan, which administrators have worked on for several years, involves some major additions to Guilford. Over the next five years, Guilford will see the addition of 50 new teachers and 250 new courses, as well as a new fitness center and possibly a new office building. In short, there are big things for the immediate future of Guilford and for this year’s class of first-years.

We got into the swing of things, and, before we knew it, a week passed. Along with the joy of having a few days off came a different sort of elation: the joy of knowing we’re okay. We made it through the first week of this “college” thing, and we can make it through the rest. We may go clinically insane at some point, but.we can do it.