George Mason University is a large and diverse school with more than 39,000 students. For incoming freshmen, that can be overwhelming.
Quill Camp is an extended Orientation program that helps them navigate their transition to their new home at Mason.
“Coming into Mason, I did Quill Camp, and that’s where I found my major,” said Angele Cipriotti, a Quill Camp student leader. “That’s where I found some of my best friends today.”
For new students, just being able to see a friendly face around campus can make a big difference, said Samantha Greenberg, associate director of New Student Programs at Mason.
Maliah Peters, an incoming government and international politics major, said that through Quill Camp, she has “probably made lifelong friends in the span of three days.”
It is an immersive experience, Greenberg said.
Students can tour the university in person. They can build connections with other students, Mason faculty and staff, and community members and gain confidence before coming to campus for the start of the academic year.
Trysten Jackson, an incoming forensic psychology major, said she and her roommate came to Quill Camp as a bonding experience.
For Jensen Huey, an incoming forensic science major, the camp was “something I wanted to look at not only as an educational experience, but also to get to know the kids that are interested in the same things as me.”
There are six different Quill Camp programs, each offering its own unique focus, that are open to all majors.
Quill Camp: Republic, centered around government and politics, hosted 14 students. Quill Camp: True Crime, focused on criminal justice, hosted 20 students.
The Quill Camp program is especially useful for students not familiar with the Fairfax and greater Washington, D.C., area. More than half the students at this year’s Quill Camp: Republic and Quill Camp: True Crime were from out of state.
Those in Quill Camp: Republic met virtually with Ellie Quinlan, manager of public visitor programs at the United States Institute of Peace. Quill Camp: True Crime attendees had an in-person panel with probation officers and other members of the Fairfax County Courts.
These educational presentations, the students said, offered valuable information about internships and how to get jump-started in their fields of interest.
Fun activities, such as Quill Camp: Republic’s monument tour around Washington, D.C., and Quill Camp: True Crime’s Escape Room experience, fostered camaraderie that prepared the students for more serious workshops around strengths, career readiness and identity.
The identity workshop, Greenberg said, is “an opportunity to learn a little more about themselves but also the community that they’re joining and the rich diversity that Mason has.”
“[Quill Camp] drops resources in their laps that they would otherwise have to seek out,” including University Career Services, said Rebecca Boyd, a Quill Camp student leader.
For Peters, attending the earlier leadership-focused Quill Camp: Vision allowed her to “see the different activities I could do to become a leader here at Mason,” she said.