Welcome Families!

This weekend we'll be welcoming nearly 1,000 family members of students to campus for Monarch Family Weekend at Old Dominion University!

While there is a full slate of activities, from planetarium shows, lab tours and academic workshops to a President's Brunch and football game, the biggest draw for parents is to spend time with their sons and daughters. For every parent who has ever lived the bittersweet moment of dropping your child off at college, let me assure you that students are equally as excited to spend time with their parents and families this weekend.

As president, it is so very rewarding to meet the mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers and grandparents of our students. Each year I gain a new appreciation for the rich diversity of backgrounds, experiences, cultures and lives that make up the ODU student body, one of the most multi-cultural in Virginia.

Old Dominion University began its Family Weekend in 2003, when we had about 2,000 students living on campus and a full-fledged residential university still consisted of drawings on a master plan.

In the intervening years, we have opened more than a dozen beautiful new residence hall buildings and significantly expanded our social, dining and activity offerings. The more than 6,000 students that now live on or around the campus enjoy one of the best academic and social environments in the state. The result: Old Dominion now boasts a lively and robust community, where a world of fun, sport, learning and growing is at your fingertips.

One of this year's registrants for Monarch Family Weekend wrote, "Thanks so much…we are thrilled to be an ODU family!"

We are, too!