With the New London Big Band filling Palmer Auditorium with brassy standards, the newest Connecticut College students, including 462 first-years and 21 transfers, formally took their places as members of the Camel community.

Convocation, which marks the official opening of the academic year, began with a procession into the Athey Center for Performance and Research at Palmer Auditorium on Monday, Aug. 25. Earlier in the day, the newest Camels signed the Honor Code Pledge and rang the Castle Court Gong, a tradition that marks the beginning of their collegiate careers. In four years, they will draw their Connecticut College experience to a close by again ringing the gong on the morning of their Commencement.

In her keynote address, “Find Four-Leaf Clovers,” Hans and Ella McCollum ’21 Vahlteich Associate Professor of Chemistry Tanya L. Schneider told the new Camels that the four leaves of the clover are said to represent “faith, hope, love and luck.” Declaring the Class of 2029 to be a “reasonably lucky bunch,” she went on to encourage them to take advantage of every opportunity Conn presents while keeping an open mind and rejecting attitudes that move us backward. The professor concluded by guiding the students into their first semester with “a generous measure of hope and a little bit of love, too.”

The Rev. Stephanie Haskins, director of religious and spiritual programs, struck a similar note, urging members of the Conn community to “Commit to freedom of thought, to hold ourselves and each other to a code of honor, and to embrace the joy and the pain of difference without questioning someone else’s right to belong.”

In her remarks, President Andrea E. Chapdelaine told the members of the Class of 2029 that they have “joined a long tradition of students who through curiosity, creativity and compassion.”

“I not only invite you, but I expect you to do the same as we begin this new academic year together. Today we welcome you not just into our College but into a community grounded in scholarship, honor and shared responsibility.”

As part of the ceremony, students recite the Matriculation Pledge, in which they accept membership into the community and pledge to conduct themselves according to Conn’s Honor Code and “with integrity, civility and the utmost respect for the dignity of all human beings.”

Board of Trustees Chair Seth Alvord ’93 told the students the Honor Code is "more than just a document, it's a daily practice. It's about choosing integrity when no one's watching, and about supporting each other as part of a community built on trust. These fundamental values will not only serve you while you're here at common over the next four years, but they will be foundational to you as your success after you graduate.”

The ceremony concluded with the signing of the Shared Governance Covenant by Chapdelaine, Alvord, Chair of the Faculty Steering and Conference Committee Professor Priya Kohli, Staff Council Chair Lynne Crider and Student Government Association President Adriana Manzano ’28, followed by the singing of the Alma Mater, led by Persephone Hall, Hale Family Executive Director of the Hale Center for Career Development.