Bonding in the Summer

One of the common stories we hear from Georgetown graduates consists of memories of how they met lifelong friends in the early days of their first year on the Hilltop. They remember long talks in residence halls among roommates and others in the same dormitory. They remember exploring Washington, D.C., together. It’s clear that much of the bonding of a class takes place early in their lives on campus.

One damage inflicted by COVID at Georgetown is that it deprived the Class of 2024 and transfer students from having those informal bonding experiences. They have experienced Georgetown academics totally in a remote learning environment. Most of them continued to live with their families, probably occupying the same spaces they did as a high schooler. They were, by and large, experiencing Georgetown in physical isolation. Of course, many have a rich set of internet mediated connections with other students. But they missed the late-night talks that are the common source of shared memories and deep friendships. It’s also likely their families expected a very different experience for the academic year. Many missed the experience of dropping off their new first-year student at their residence hall, of participating in convocation exercises, and experiencing all the bittersweet emotions that those events evoke.

In an effort to fill in this gap, President DeGioia announced before the turn of the year an exciting new program that today was further explained to students. We plan a summer session for the Class of 2024 and new transfer students. The Summer Hilltop Immersion Program to be a five-week program focused on the Class of 2024 and other new Hoyas that will take place from June 4 to July 9, 2021. Based on a survey of the Class, we plan both academic courses and co-curricular activities. Of course, all in-person and residential plans are dependent on the course of the pandemic, but our planning for the session is racing ahead.

Faculty have stepped forward to be part of this event. The courses planned are those commonly taken by first- and second-year students. Just a selection of those candidate courses, subject to enrollment:

Intro to Computer Science: Python, COSC-010
Computer Science I, COSC-051
Computer Science II, COSC-052
Econ Principles Micro, ECON-001
Econ Principles Macro, ECON-002
Intro to Film Studies, FMST-181
International Trade, ECON-243
Comparative Political Systems, GOVT-040
International Relations, GOVT-060
History in Focus, HIST-099
Middle East II, HIST-161
Introduction to Ethics, PHIL-010
Introduction to Philosophy, PHIL-020
Introduction to Sociology, SOCI-001
Writing and Culture, WRIT-015
Painting I: Oil, ARTS-150
Science courses: Organic Chemistry, General Chemistry, Foundations of Biology, Principles of Physics
Language courses:  Chinese, French, German, Italian, Spanish – levels vary by department
Introduction to Epidemiology, HESY 184
HealthCare in America I, HESY 010)
Nutrition and Disease Prevention, HEST 112
Probability and Statistics, Math 040
Health, Equity, and Justice: Understanding Factors, Creating Change
Anatomy & Physiology I, HSCO 113 (online)
Anatomy & Physiology II, HSCO 114 (online)
Accounting II, ACCT 102
Principles of Marketing, MARK 220
International Business, STRT 261

One can easily see that there was an attempt to offer courses throughout the schools of the main campus. In addition, there will be a series of one-credit hour courses that are built around experiential opportunities and programs to help students learn some of the Jesuit values that animate Georgetown, like “women and men for others,” “community in diversity,” “cura personalis,” and other core aspects of who we are.
On the co-curricular front, we are attempting to maximize the opportunities for the students to:

• Interact with classmates in a residential experience on the Hilltop;
• Explore Washington, DC and engage in one of the most vibrant cities in the world that is also a great laboratory for learning;
• Learn from upperclass student leaders in an immersive orientation experience;
• Explore  co-curricular opportunities that are available to students when they return in the Fall to help in their formation as developing Hoyas;
• Begin career planning with services at the Cawley Career Education Center; and,
• Learn about the many student supportive offices on campus including Health Education Services, the Writing Center, the Academic Resource Center, the Student Ombuds Office, Center for Social Justice, Campus Ministry and Counseling and Psychiatric Services.

To make sure all members of the Class of 2024 and transfer students can participate, we plan to extend the financial aid procedures that fulfill our commitment to meet the full financial need of students. That is, we will apply the same financial aid support that is traditional to the August-May academic year.

We can’t replace the on-campus experiences that the students would have had between August and May. We do believe that this immersive experience may help to form some of the important bonds among classmates.