Orientation to Bring Mix of Old and New Events

by Alan Goldsmith

This year’s Orientation will, as usual, offer a host of activities to provide a relaxed and entertaining atmosphere for incoming students, both freshmen and Israel returnees. Orientation events will be aimed at getting these new students acclimated to college life, as well as to life in the City.

One day after students move into their dorms on Sunday, August 25th, a scavenger hunt will be held in Midtown Manhattan.  Buses will provide transportation to the event for Wilf Campus students. “We want to enable freshmen to become familiar with midtown,” explained Yeshiva Student Union President Shai Barnea. “Once classes start, people will often be too busy to make the effort to explore the city.”

The next night, organizers will run the annual Orientation Circle Line cruise, allowing students to gain a taste for New York with a sea-view of the city’s landmarks and historic buildings.  An eight piece jazz band has been hired to play on-board, and food will be plentiful, including 41 three-foot hero sandwiches, twenty-five pounds of chicken wings and French fries, and 150 pounds of coleslaw, potato salad and pickles, as well as beverages, all courtesy of Dougie’s.

On Thursday night, August 29th, students from both campuses will have the opportunity to attend the Broadway show, “42nd Street.”  Assistant Dean of Students Andrew Leibowitz is enthusiastic about the new show and hopes other innovations will also take place.  “I’m happy to see that we’re doing a different Broadway show than ‘Stomp,’” said Leibowitz.  “Each year I’d like to see new, interesting events; that’s one of the goals of Orientation.  Next year I’m hoping to find an alternative to the cruise, because that’s been going on five years already and there are other ways to encourage social behavior.”

For students’ first Shabbos on campus – Orientation Shabbos – Yeshiva’s Shabbat Enhancement Program will provide two guest speakers at the traditional Friday night Cholent tish, Roshei HaYeshiva Rabbi Hershel Schachter and Rabbi Meir Goldwicht, both of who will deliver divrei Torah.  Additionally, undergraduate student leaders, including Barnea and Student Organization of Yeshiva President Josh Goldman, will make speeches throughout Shabbos.

On Tuesday evening, August 3rd, interested students will depart for the House that Ruth Built – Yankee Stadium – to cheer on the Bronx Bombers as they take on the Boston Red Sox.  Yeshiva has a large contingent of students from both cities, and with the two teams being bitter rivals, this game promises to be a high-impact, momentous affair.  There have been concerns regarding the possibility of a strike by the baseball players union, leading to the game’s cancellation, but in the event of such an occurrence, contingency plans are in the works to substitute a class-A, minor league Brooklyn Cyclones game in its stead.

All weekday events, with the exception of the free scavenger hunt, will cost five dollars each, while the three Shabbos meals will cost ten dollars.  Barnea is confident that the events will be well attended and will be beneficial to new students.  “These things are always a lot of fun, and they’ve always had a great turnout.  We expect the same this year,” he said.