Selected from nearly 11,500 applicants, a Trinity admissions record, the class of 2026 is an extremely diverse, motivated and well-rounded student body.

The incoming class of 2026 has officially moved in with lots of excitement in the air. The Orientation Team, also known as “O-Team,” and Residential Assistants (RAs) have put a tremendous effort into preparing for the official move-in. Both active members of O-Team and RAs were expected to arrive on campus weeks prior to move-in. Once first-years arrived, O-Team, alongside many alumni and faculty, jammed out to loud music while getting each other excited for move-in.

Before students arrived, members of the O-Team had three days of orientation training, which allowed them to get to know each other. O-Team members were later broken up into small groups to participate in icebreaker activities, group activities such as relay races and more. They also attended important information sessions such as DEI training, meetings with the dean of students to discuss how to handle situations with new students relating to mental health, and family emergencies.

One of the members of O-Team, sophomore Allison Waters, looks back on her time and shares what she took away from this experience, before and even after first-years arrived,

“The three days of bonding before students came with just other O-Team members was extremely beneficial and allowed me to feel more comfortable with everyone else. I would love to be a part of the O-Team next year as well because of how special this experience was.”

Later on, first-years were given Trinity T-shirts and instructed to create a formation on Trinity’s soccer field to spell out ‘TU.’ Hall socials, icebreaker games, snow cone stands, bouncy houses and additional bonding exercises kept the new students engaged and motivated for the start of the new school year.

One of the captains of O-Team, junior Jordan Meacham, described her time as one of the best experiences she has ever had on Trinity’s campus.

“The bonding experience and experiences within the team made this process extremely enjoyable and motivating,” Meacham said. “Being able to create such a welcoming environment for the first-years really made me happy.”

Waters shares that many first-years were receptive with O-Team members and eager to move in and meet each other.

“I got to meet so many new people, reach out to the freshmen and make their experience even better and more meaningful than my orientation experience,” Waters said. “My drive for being on O-Team was because I wanted to be more involved on campus and wanted to give back to the school.”

While O-Team finished up enthusiastically welcoming the class of 2026, RAs were also looking forward to meeting their new residents. RAs spent their time bonding on a retreat trip to Mo Ranch in Kerr County, Texas where they learned about building a strong and accepting community for their residents. Junior Alejandra Caballero, a RA for first-years, said she was thrilled for the new year.

“I think my experience as an RA has been characterized by strengthening my community building skills,” Caballero said. “Last year, I truly enjoyed seeing how each one of my residents found their niche on campus, how they grew into their identities and how they became more comfortable with me. Seeing my residents engaged on campus is one of the most rewarding parts of being an RA.”