As college students nationwide return to campus, Howard University honored its newest Bison with Move-In Week, the beloved tradition for the newest members of the University.
The Class of 2028 marks the largest incoming undergraduate class in Howard University’s history for the second consecutive academic year. The Yard welcomed approximately 2,700 students from a record 37,000 applications for the 2024-2025 academic year.
“I’m very interested in politics and law, so I thought that DC would be a wonderful place to be able to leverage connections,” said Jazz Miles, a freshman legal communications major who moved into Drew Hall the Tuesday of Move-In Week. “I know Howard was the perfect place to set me up to do that.”
To look into these girls’ faces and see excitement, a little bit of fear, knowing they’re on the turning point of something new, it’s a surreal moment,”
President Vinson does The Bison Bump with parents awaiting to move students in. (Photographer: Justin D. Knight)
Cars packed with first-year students and their families lined 4th Street to move into College Hall North, the Harriet Tubman Quadrangle, and College Hall South. Outside of Howard’s dormitories, full body mirrors rested on pick-up trucks packed to the brim with belongings. Small, steel wastebaskets were hauled up to dorms by the youngest and tiniest family members.
Families traveled through August’s hurricane season to ensure their Bison made it safely to The Yard before the start of classes August 19; Friday’s gloomy weather and occasional sprinkles were the byproduct of Hurricane Debby’s winds and rainfall throughout the South.
But the elements did not dampen the campus buzz for parents like Dwayne Fryer, who drove 10 hours from Atlanta to move his daughter Kye into College Hall North.
The Fryers maintained a longstanding goal of picking a Black institution with a top-of-the-line biology program. Howard University and its biology department checked their list perfectly. “[Kye] did her research and this is one of the top rated HBCUs,” said Fryer, as senior nursing student Jourdyn Owens helped with Kye’s belongings.
Fryer said his daughter matriculating at a historically Black university was an important facet in the next steps of higher education. “She’s been to a private Christian school all her life, and she said, ‘Well Dad, I think if I don’t go to an HBCU, I’ll be missing something,’” Fryer recalled. “Once she walked the campus, got a feel for Howard culture, that was the lightbulb moment for her.”
Families traveled through August’s hurricane season to ensure their Bison made it safely to The Yard before the start of classes August 19; Friday’s gloomy weather and occasional sprinkles were the byproduct of Hurricane Debby’s winds and rainfall throughout the South.
But the elements did not dampen the campus buzz for parents like Dwayne Fryer, who drove 10 hours from Atlanta to move his daughter Kye into College Hall North.
The Fryers maintained a longstanding goal of picking a Black institution with a top-of-the-line biology program. Howard University and its biology department checked their list perfectly. “[Kye] did her research and this is one of the top rated HBCUs,” said Fryer, as senior nursing student Jourdyn Owens helped with Kye’s belongings.
Fryer said his daughter matriculating at a historically Black university was an important facet in the next steps of higher education. “She’s been to a private Christian school all her life, and she said, ‘Well Dad, I think if I don’t go to an HBCU, I’ll be missing something,’” Fryer recalled. “Once she walked the campus, got a feel for Howard culture, that was the lightbulb moment for her.”
As the students begin their college experiences during an election year, Kinslow and Fuller said it was important to introduce the importance of civic engagement and education outside of the classroom. “Being in the nation’s capital, you meet a lot of different people with different views with personal stories that tie them to their views and policies they support,” Kinslow explained. “I’d say to have those conversations with everyone, have healthy debates, and educate yourself.”
The sorors, both entering their final year at Howard, called move-in day both “bittersweet” and “refreshing” as they recalled their first steps on The Yard. “We’re helping girls move into College Hall North, and that was my dorm when I was a freshman, so to look into these girls’ faces and see excitement, a little bit of fear, knowing they’re on the turning point of something new, it’s a surreal moment,” Fuller said.
The pair advised new students to get to know everyone they encounter to understand the ways of the Howard world. “I think what helps new students get acclimated is finding that mentorship and older friends that they can call on to reach out to,” said Fuller, who transferred into Howard her sophomore year.
For this year’s new students, Miles said he’s enjoyed the full festivities including Rez Wars, a field day for new residents to meet students in different dorms. Representing Drew Hall, Miles sported green apparel while competing. “We had tug-of-war, kickball, a bunch of fun events on The Yard to represent our dorm,” Miles said. “It was awesome.”
Other Move-In Week events included the Legacy Reception, which Miles attended with his mother Otesa Middleton Miles, a 1994 School of Communications graduate.
“I come from a long range of Howard graduates,” Miles said of his multi-generational legacy. His aunt and great uncle also attended Howard. “They’ve all said nothing but great things about the school.”
At the reception, Howard University President Ben Vinson III welcomed the new students who would be extending their families’ Bison legacies while also beginning their own.
“You are the continuation of this remarkable story, carrying forward the torch that has been passed down through generations,” President Vinson said. “Your presence here strengthens the unique bond that ties us all together, creating a sense of continuity that is at the heart of our community.”
