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Prospective students bring enthusiasm to UHV Jaguar Day
By TimHudson in Hudson On Higher Learning
April 22, 2010

Last Saturday was an exciting day at the University of Houston-Victoria as we hosted the second UHV Jaguar Day for prospective freshmen, transfer students and their parents, families and supporters so they could learn more about the university and what we have to offer. They wanted to learn about our community, as well.

Despite the rain, which knocked out one of the centerpieces of the day’s activities – a softball game featuring our nationally ranked Jaguars – about 130 people attended, including 41 freshmen interested in being part of the FIRST 200 underclassmen attending UHV this fall. Families and wannabe students came from the Houston and San Antonio areas, Round Rock, Santa Rosa, Hallettsville, Cuero and even Mineral, all converging on Victoria.

Our guests were greeted with breakfast and were welcomed by UHV administrators including Provost Suzanne LaBrecque, now a dyed-in-the-wool Jaguar and a happy transplant from the University of North Texas in Denton ; Chari Norgard, associate vice president for Student Success and Enrollment Management; and community member Randy Vivian, president and chief executive officer of the Victoria Chamber of Commerce. Scenes of Victoria – the historic downtown buildings, the mall, HEB, our parks, the Victoria Symphony and the Victoria Bach Festival – played in the background. These are scenes of a good place to live, to study and to spend one’s university years.

Deans, faculty, staff and student leaders mingled with the crowd, staying all morning to meet and great our visitors, and to talk about UHV, life as a university student and Victoria. (I’ll bet they were remembering what it was like for them when they were looking for the right school in the right place, and the opportunities and issues they faced.) They answered many questions: Can I start a sorority? What sports are planned for the future? How can I become a student leader? What is the criminal justice program like? Is there a debate team? What will the dorm be like?

Steve Saur, UHV’s interim director of housing, and staff from American Campus Communities, our residence hall management company for the new Jaguar Hall, our new hotel-turned-residence hall opening in the fall for underclassmen, kept quite busy, as many prospects were eager to hear about dorm life, amenities and meals. Even some students planning to live with family members in Victoria became interested in residence hall life after hearing about the activities, student government and student support that will be available for those living there. A hotel converted to a dorm would certainly have been all the rage in my day! (Remember the drab cinder block rooms and bathrooms down the hall?)

The prospective students showed a lot of interest in business and education programs, biology, criminal justice, psychology, communications and computer science/digital gaming. Of course, a few were undecided about their major. Actually, we know that even those “decided” are really not since most students change majors three or so times before graduation. This is all the more reason to have an array of programs and options. All visitors had a tour of our campus. They were shown high-tech classrooms, computer and biology labs and, of course, jaX the Jaguar, our life-sized, plate steel, jaguar sculpture donated by Victoria artist Harold Nichols. It is an increasingly popular photo spot. I fully expect to see a bride in a wedding gown out by it one day.

Although no ballgames were possible because of the weather, our visitors still enjoyed a “ballgame lunch” of giant hamburgers, hotdogs and all the fixings.

For only our second UHV Jaguar Day, it was a big success. Our campus and community continue to attract significant interest from beyond our region. The students learn that here, our faculty and staff are dedicated to their progress. The city is fine and welcoming.

You can read more about some of these students who have visited our campus and are interested in making Victoria their home next school year by going to UHV's New to UHV Web page. You also can view some photos from Saturday’s Jaguar Day by going to our photo gallery.

So now we are planning future Jaguar Days. We have learned a great deal from the feedback from the first two and have lots of ideas about the next ones, but I’ll bet you do, too. Want to share them with us?

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