Machala-Catherine Nesler will be among more than 3,000 MTSU freshmen taking part in the annual summer CUSTOMS new student orientation.

Nesler, who recently graduated from the Nashville School for the Arts, was among a large number of major scholarship recipients attending the first CUSTOMS session for freshmen in late May.

Coordinated by the Office of New Students and Family Programs, CUSTOMS shows freshmen the ropes of being an MTSU student. It helps new undergraduate students make the transition into the university; it prepares them for educational opportunities; and it propels them into the intellectual, cultural and social climate of the university.

Three hours into the CUSTOMS process on the first day of the two-day event, Nesler still had her wits about her.

“It’s kind of overwhelming,” she said. “I kind of know so far what major I want to do. It’s nice being with other freshmen who are figuring it out, too. It seems pretty organized. I know I won’t get lost on this huge campus.”

Gina Poff, director of MTSU’s New Student and Family Programs, said all the various departments involved with CUSTOMS are glad to get them underway.

“We’re really excited about starting off with them and getting them ready for school in the fall,” Poff said during the first of 10 orientation sessions that will continue through the end of July.

More than 300 freshmen, plus family members, attended the first CUSTOMS orientation in late May. This informational session occurred in Tucker Theatre. (MTSU photo by Randy Weiler)

An average of 275 to 325 freshmen will attend the sessions. Family members will join them.

While on campus, they will learn about …

• Convocation, scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 23, in Murphy Center.

• The Summer Reading Program featuring “This I Believe II” by author Jay Allison, who will be the Convocation speaker.

• The MT One Stop, a one-stop clearinghouse for conducting a variety of business.

• Connection Point to help students “connect” with all facets of the university.

Poff and her staff are excited about a new format allowing for advising and registration to take place simultaneously.

Throughout all sessions, the first day of CUSTOMS will be “what I consider how to be a successful student on campus,” Poff said. “It will be the functions of the university: how to be involved, how to register, where to park and where to eat.”

The second day will be about how to be a successful student academically and incorporate the advising and registration aspects, Poff added.

Learn more about CUSTOMS by visiting www.mtsu.edu/CUSTOMS or call 615-898-5533.

— Randy Weiler (Randy.Weiler@mtsu.edu)