As new high school graduates say goodbye to old friends, or favorite teachers, the next step for many students is college.

Although starting a new journey can be exciting, it can also be intimidating when attending a college that may be away from home. MTSU has an event put in place that will help the transition from high school to college a little easier — and a lot of fun!

Crash the Commons is an event that takes place each fall on the green space in front of the Student Union Building. It was started in 2013 and is put together by the community of fraternities and sororities on the Blue Raider campus.

In this fall 2017 file photo, a group of MTSU students, along with an MTSU police officer, play Human Foosball at the Crash the Commons event held on the Student Union Commons. The event includes live music, free food and host of other activities to welcome new students to campus. (MTSU file photo by Eric Sutton)

This year’s will take place from 6 to 10 p.m. Sept. 6 in the Student Union Commons area.

During some of the CUSTOMS student orientation sessions throughout the summer, organizers will set up a Crash the Commons information table to give incoming students an early heads-up about a signature campus activity.

“We table at all CUSTOMS sessions to welcome incoming freshmen and to get them excited about the event and attending MTSU in the fall,” said Leslie Merritt, director of Fraternity and Sorority Life.

The event started out small, but has grown each year and includes games, music, free food, dancing, and all sorts of fun activities.

In this fall 2017 file photo, a group of students give their all in a friendly tug of war competition at the Crash the Commons event held on the Student Union Commons. The event includes live music, free food and host of other activities to welcome new students to campus. (MTSU file photo by Eric Sutton)

“We project that over 2,000 students attend annually,” said Merritt. “The main goal of Crash the Commons is to involve residential students on campus with our FSL students in a team-sports atmosphere.”

Leslie Merritt

During the event, students can compete in different games such as giant twister, balloon toss, and hula-hoop pass. They can create teams within their residence hall on campus, or students who live off campus can team up with students from their own apartment complexes. The winners of the games are eligible to win a pizza party for their entire team. If anyone wishes to not participate in the games, they can still get free food and enjoy the fun.

“FSL wants to provide a fun, safe social space for students (especially new freshmen and transfers) during their first weeks of the academic year,” Merritt said.

Crash the Commons is a part of MTSU’s Week of Welcome for incoming freshmen. Week of Welcome includes a range of different activities during the first few weeks of fall classes to get students acclimated to and engaged in campus life.

— KeWana McCallum, student intern (news@mtsu.edu)

In this fall 2017 file photo, a DJ entertains the crowd of MTSU students attending the Crash the Commons event held on the Student Union Commons. The event includes live music, free food and host of other activities to welcome new students to campus. (MTSU file photo by Eric Sutton)

In this fall 2017 file photo, a student takes a leap inside an inflatable apparatus at the Crash the Commons event held on the Student Union Commons. The event includes live music, free food and host of other activities to welcome new students to campus. (MTSU file photo by Eric Sutton)