Starting Off Right

• The sound of a lone brass player practicing under the hot Nebraska sun, perfecting a new song for Friday’s performance.
• The steady rhythm of the UNL Marching Band percussion in the background.
• A parent circling R Street, trying to find parking while moving their daughter—now a sophomore—into her sorority house.
• The midday rush at Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, and Steak 'n Shake, with lines ten deep for mobile orders.

What does all this mean? It’s the start of the school year.

For Student Life, that begins with moving over 5,000 residents into campus housing. Picture relocating a population the size of Wahoo, Nebraska—5,475 people—in just five days. The logistics behind this are staggering, yet it’s what our University Housing team does every year. Every detail is orchestrated flawlessly, and parents aren’t expected to carry a single box, thanks to our curbside move-in teams stationed at each residence hall.

We focus on the experience because, for many, this is their first impression of UNL. We want our students to feel like they belong from day one—to find their communities, make new friends, and start building connections.

That’s where Big Red Welcome comes in.

Big Red Welcome is a weeklong series of 95 events organized by 27 departments, designed to help students engage with each other, explore new spaces, and get familiar with the campus resources that will support them throughout their journey to graduation.

Everyone pitches in. We all volunteer, working late into the night so that every student has the chance to form lasting friendships and meaningful connections. Because, at all 95 events, every student and every interaction matters.