08/30/2018





Contact: Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu and Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944 or Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu









MEDIA ADVISORY









WHAT: UMass Lowell will welcome its largest-ever group of incoming students with events beginning tomorrow.





At more than 3,200 strong, this fall’s first-year and transfer students are the most culturally diverse and have the highest average high-school GPA and SAT scores of any incoming group in UMass Lowell history.





Once again, UMass Lowell’s total enrollment will top 18,000 students. UMass Lowell – which has been ranked for the last three years among the top 10 fastest-growing public doctoral universities in the nation by the Chronicle of Higher Education – has seen enrollment increase by more than 6,000 students over the last decade.





The River Hawk Scholars Academy – a unique program focused on the success of first-generation college students – will welcome more than 280 first-year students with a day of events on Friday, Aug. 31, including a panel at 1:15 p.m. featuring UMass Lowell students who are achieving in academics and all aspects of student life, thanks to their participation in the River Hawk Scholars Academy.





The program provides a wide range of support – including a living-learning community in university housing, academic advising and experiential learning opportunities, along with workshops and other events – throughout the students’ first year of college. Peer leaders are also assigned to each student. It is all with the goal of ensuring their success in all aspects of student life, inside and outside the classroom. Launched just last year with 95 participants, 286 first-year students will take part in the River Hawk Scholars Academy this year. The faculty and advisers leading the academy, as well as peer leaders, past participants and first-year students will be available for interviews at tomorrow’s event.





Convocation on Tuesday, Sept. 4 will officially welcome the entire Class of 2022. The ceremony at 10 a.m. at the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell features campus leaders, faculty and fellow students addressing first-year students and new transfers who are starting their UMass Lowell education this fall.





This year’s keynote speaker is YouTube sensation and peace activist Ken Nwadike Jr., also known as the “Free Hugs Guy,” who will talk about the power of positivity and how to overcome the differences that divide people.





Nwadike launched a worldwide movement to foster civility and understanding through his Free Hugs Project, which began in Massachusetts in 2014 when he hugged runners at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in a show of support the year after terrorist bombs killed three and injured more than 200 people. Since then, his free hugs have helped diffuse tensions at protests and political rallies around the country. As a speaker, he often draws on his past as a homeless teenager to inspire people to work to overcome challenges and embrace love.





Convocation will also feature a pitch contest between three teams in UMass Lowell’s DifferenceMaker program, which teaches students in all majors entrepreneurship skills they can apply in business and the community. Through DifferenceMaker, students develop concepts and products that are turning into real businesses. In just six years since the program was launched, students have formed 19 companies – including invisaWear, Nonspec and TopaCan – and filed for seven patents. At Convocation, three teams – Mass Heartbeat, ETRALock and Playtlist – will compete for $500 to $1,500 in seed funding for their ventures.





WHERE:

* River Hawk Scholars Academy – Ball Hall, UMass Lowell North Campus, 1 University Ave., Lowell

* Convocation – Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell, 300 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Lowell





Contact UMass Lowell media relations for directions and parking.



