Meanwhile, the Quad was filled with the soundtrack of laughter and high fives as bean bags flew through the air and a giant Connect Four game crowned another winner.

For Charity Kuchyt ’07, director of conferences and events, the Big Bobcat Welcome is the perfect time for families and alumni to relax and reconnect. In all, 1,100 people registered for the event, she said — and nearly 5,000 for the weekend.

“It’s the kickoff for the whole Bobcat Weekend,” Kuchyt said. “We know a lot of people are traveling long distances from out of state, so we want to give them a chance to get out of the car, meet up with their student and have some fun playing lawn games like cornhole.”

For Shanna Krizan, of North Salem, New York, the trip to Hamden was a chance to reconnect with her son, Oliver, a first-year student in the School of Computing and Engineering.

“It’s been a great experience so far. The drop off was way better than we expected. It was very smooth,” said Krizan, joined by her other son, Daniel. “The campus is really beautiful, especially this time of year.”

Oliver Krizan has already hiked to the top of Sleeping Giant — twice. In fact, he climbed the winding trails on back-to-back days earlier this fall.

“It was just something I wanted to do. It was fun,” he said, looking at his mom and smiling.

For Joseph Trippiedi, a first-year game design and development major from Staten Island, New York, the fall semester has been memorable and more.

“It’s going great so far,” Trippiedi said, adding that he’s already working with game design programs, Unity and Unreal Engine, in the College of Arts & Sciences. 

Trippiedi also said he’s enjoying life in The Grove, Quinnipiac’s newest residence hall. As for his parents, Joe and Kathy, they couldn’t be happier. 

“He’s having a great transition and meeting nice kids here,” she said. “The program he’s studying is just what he wants. And the school has sent so many emails to keep us up to date about support and what’s going on.”

Alyson Carter, a first-year occupational therapy major from West Islip, New York, enjoyed the Big Bobcat Welcome with her parents, Juanita and Anthony. All three were noticeably decked out in their Quinnipiac gear.

“Everyone is  friendly, and I’m really enjoying it here,” Carter said. “Things are going well.”

Along with attending a men’s ice hockey game, the Carter family planned to spend time walking around campus and making memories at this weekend’s other events.

For Kuchyt and her colleagues, who spent months planning Bobcat Weekend, that’s what this time together is all about.

“It’s an honor for me to help lead this and facilitate bringing everyone together,” she said. “My focus comes from the perspective of an alumna and a parent. I always think, ‘What would I want to do if I was coming to an event like this?’ That’s really important.

“I try to put on events that capture both the wonderful programs we have here and bring everyone together to socialize and have some fun,” Kuchyt said. “Whether you were just here to drop off your student or you haven’t been back in a while, we have something for everyone.” 

In Focus