Parents and families get a feel for the Bryant Experience
Annual Parents and Family Weekend features athletic events and student performances that showcase Bryant’s vibrant campus life.
It was a weekend that parents and families won’t soon forget. Borrowing from P.T. Barnum, the Annual Parents and Family Weekend adopted the circus theme “Bryant’s Biggest Show” to give the nearly 3,000 guests a peek at campus life. (Visit Bryant's Parents and Families Web Site.)
On Saturday night, “Under the Big Top” (the MAC) parents, family members, and friends enjoyed a “Three Ring Buffet” and a “Circus Side Show” featuring jugglers, magic, and stunts. Perhaps the highlight of the weekend was the appearance of Bryant’s Student Senators, who organized the event in conjunction with the Center for Student Involvement, dressed as clowns, lions, and ring leaders.
“The costumes put a smile on everyone’s face the minute they walked through the door,” says Stephanie Kirk ’10 (Pompton Lakes, NJ), a Parents and Family Weekend co-chair. “This is what makes all the hard work worth it because, after all, the weekend is for our families.”
The real crowd-pleaser was Student Senate President Robert Harvey ’10 (Mount Laurel, NJ) dressed as a clown, getting a pie in the face from a seven-year-old family member of one of his classmates.
“I hope parents enjoyed themselves and had an opportunity to bond with their daughters and sons,” says Deidre Fraser ’10 (St. Catherine, Jamaica), the second weekend co-chair.
Vibrant campus
The circus night was just part of a weekend jam-packed with activities. The field hockey, men’s soccer, and football teams all posted victories in front of the home crowd. The Bryant Players staged three productions of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” Bryant’s a capella group, The Bottom Line, performed, and the Multicultural Student Union sponsored the Latino Heritage Month Carnaval.
Parents and families also interacted with faculty, staff, and student leaders to learn about the limitless academic and co-curricular opportunities. Open houses were held in the Center for Teaching and Learning, the science labs, the Applied Psychology Research Center, and the Study Abroad Office.
Parents and families had the opportunity to get a taste of Bryant's vibrant campus life with their children.
The weekend also illustrated the wide range of programs students are involved in from pre-law programs and community service trips to Peru and the Dominican Republic to the Media Production Club and the campus radio station.
The 16th Annual Duck Race raised more than $1,500 for the Class of 2010. And people of all faiths had the opportunity to visit Bryant’s new Interfaith Center, an inspirational place for spirituality and contemplation.
“We wanted parents and family members to have fun and have a chance to see Bryant in a whole new light, while spending time with their children,” says Kirk.
State of the University
In his annual State of the University address on Saturday morning, President Ronald K. Machtley shared some University accomplishments. Among the highlights:
New Interfaith Center, Center for Teaching and Learning, 98-bed townhouse complex, as well as locker room renovations
Five new tenure-track faculty members
Nearly 30 percent of students on the Dean’s list (3.2 GPA)
A nearly .500 percent cumulative winning percentage against Northeast Conference competition in the first year of Division I athletics
Pilot Sophomore Business Cohort Program
Enhanced RIPTA service
Full slate of speakers and campus events
Machtley also welcomed members of Team PURO, a group of sophomores, on stage to speak about their experience defeating MBA candidates in a prestigious business plan competition that netted them more than $27,000 in seed money. The winnings will be used to launch the business idea they developed as first-year students in “Business 101.”
This accomplishment is a testament to committed faculty members like Management Lecturer Dave Greenan ’73, ’04 MBA who taught the students in “Business 101” and fueled their passion to succeed.
“An important indicator of success is if our students find and make connections with faculty members who can excite them to learn,” says Machtley. “Our faculty members are engaged with our students both inside and outside of the classroom.”
“Bryant is a very special place because of your sons and daughters,” Machtley continued. He commended the parents and family members for the important roles they have played in their children’s lives so far. “We have the chance,” Machtley said, “to continue the educational process that you began.”
On Saturday night, “Under the Big Top” (the MAC) parents, family members, and friends enjoyed a “Three Ring Buffet” and a “Circus Side Show” featuring jugglers, magic, and stunts. Perhaps the highlight of the weekend was the appearance of Bryant’s Student Senators, who organized the event in conjunction with the Center for Student Involvement, dressed as clowns, lions, and ring leaders.
“The costumes put a smile on everyone’s face the minute they walked through the door,” says Stephanie Kirk ’10 (Pompton Lakes, NJ), a Parents and Family Weekend co-chair. “This is what makes all the hard work worth it because, after all, the weekend is for our families.”
The real crowd-pleaser was Student Senate President Robert Harvey ’10 (Mount Laurel, NJ) dressed as a clown, getting a pie in the face from a seven-year-old family member of one of his classmates.
“I hope parents enjoyed themselves and had an opportunity to bond with their daughters and sons,” says Deidre Fraser ’10 (St. Catherine, Jamaica), the second weekend co-chair.
Vibrant campus
The circus night was just part of a weekend jam-packed with activities. The field hockey, men’s soccer, and football teams all posted victories in front of the home crowd. The Bryant Players staged three productions of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” Bryant’s a capella group, The Bottom Line, performed, and the Multicultural Student Union sponsored the Latino Heritage Month Carnaval.
Parents and families also interacted with faculty, staff, and student leaders to learn about the limitless academic and co-curricular opportunities. Open houses were held in the Center for Teaching and Learning, the science labs, the Applied Psychology Research Center, and the Study Abroad Office.
Parents and families had the opportunity to get a taste of Bryant's vibrant campus life with their children.
The weekend also illustrated the wide range of programs students are involved in from pre-law programs and community service trips to Peru and the Dominican Republic to the Media Production Club and the campus radio station.
The 16th Annual Duck Race raised more than $1,500 for the Class of 2010. And people of all faiths had the opportunity to visit Bryant’s new Interfaith Center, an inspirational place for spirituality and contemplation.
“We wanted parents and family members to have fun and have a chance to see Bryant in a whole new light, while spending time with their children,” says Kirk.
State of the University
In his annual State of the University address on Saturday morning, President Ronald K. Machtley shared some University accomplishments. Among the highlights:
New Interfaith Center, Center for Teaching and Learning, 98-bed townhouse complex, as well as locker room renovations
Five new tenure-track faculty members
Nearly 30 percent of students on the Dean’s list (3.2 GPA)
A nearly .500 percent cumulative winning percentage against Northeast Conference competition in the first year of Division I athletics
Pilot Sophomore Business Cohort Program
Enhanced RIPTA service
Full slate of speakers and campus events
Machtley also welcomed members of Team PURO, a group of sophomores, on stage to speak about their experience defeating MBA candidates in a prestigious business plan competition that netted them more than $27,000 in seed money. The winnings will be used to launch the business idea they developed as first-year students in “Business 101.”
This accomplishment is a testament to committed faculty members like Management Lecturer Dave Greenan ’73, ’04 MBA who taught the students in “Business 101” and fueled their passion to succeed.
“An important indicator of success is if our students find and make connections with faculty members who can excite them to learn,” says Machtley. “Our faculty members are engaged with our students both inside and outside of the classroom.”
“Bryant is a very special place because of your sons and daughters,” Machtley continued. He commended the parents and family members for the important roles they have played in their children’s lives so far. “We have the chance,” Machtley said, “to continue the educational process that you began.”
