With everyone getting into gear and preparing for the fall semester, Welcome Week is back with lots of events to excite new students and allow them to get accustomed to Trinity. Welcome Week is run by the Student Programming Board (SPB), a university sponsored organization that plans events for students.

Some of the many activities of Welcome Week include laughing with comedian Samuel Conroe, enjoying a movie night and, of course, going to the Welcome Week concert. This year, Norwegian DJ Cashmere Cat will be performing.

Although it seems like Welcome Week is new, the Student Programming Board has been planning events even before first-years were admitted.

“We actually started booking, planning and budgeting for that starting in October of last year,” said Aroosa Ajani, director of SPB.

As far as the duties of SPB, they are responsible for nearly everything when it comes to preparing for the Welcome Week events.

“SPB does all of it, from start to finish. We first have to talk to the broker who will then get in touch with the artist, we talk about prices, we get some options based on the available dates and we choose the artist to the best of our abilities. Everything from setting and proposing the budget to managing the event the day of is actually entirely done by us,” Ajani said.

While the concert seems like the main event of the week, others are more excited for other events, like Samuel Conroe, who will be the visiting comedian.

“I am most looking forward to the comedian. I like funny movies such as Pineapple Express and stand up comedians such as Jim Gaffigan, so hopefully this guy is good and can make me laugh as much at those things do,” said Wyatt Allgood, a senior history major and SPB entertainment chair.

SPB chose four people to have the opportunity to meet Cashmere Cat in person following his performance on Friday. One of these winners, Natasha Sahu, a sophomore neuroscience major, is looking forward to interacting with the performer.

“SPB had a contest on Facebook where, if you were the one of the first four students  to name an artist he’s worked with, you get a free backstage pass. I commented with “˜Halsey’ because my friend mentioned the night before that she had collaborated on a song with him. I had vaguely heard of him before I learned he was performing, but otherwise I’m not really familiar with his music,” Sahu said.

The concert is Ajani’s favorite event, despite all of the hard work and responsibilities that go into making sure the Welcome Week event runs smoothly.

“The execution on the day of has to go smoothly, and it’s a full-day job. I love the challenge of it and, when it goes well, it’s crazy to think that all of that is happening with a group of 10 students that are committed to making that [happen] for the rest of the student body,” Ajani said.

Sahu also noted that Welcome Week for first-years is something that they’ll never forget.

“It was nice because it was the first event I went to with my new friends so it was definitely a bonding experience. I think the idea of the concerts is really great to pump up the students before classes start,” Sahu said.

Welcome Week is a staple at Trinity, and each year SPB will continue to help the school’s first week of the year start off right.

“I think that Trinity should definitely continue doing these kinds of concerts in the future and they should even get some more well-known artists, especially ones that a lot of students love or are familiar with and that are trending that year. It’s a cool event for all of the new students because they get a chill welcome and also get to be introduced to opportunities to interact with and meet other people who are at Trinity too,” Sahu said.

For those who have experienced Welcome Week multiple times, the event is one many look forward to attending year after year.

“I think Welcome Week does exactly what it says it does “” welcomes us all back to campus, starts the year off with a bang, gives the first-years a chance to get to know each other and sets the tone of how we go about things at Trinity. It’s a great way to come back and melt into the college environment before things get crazy,” Ajani said.