As the first week of school gets underway, Raider Welcome events continue to help introduce new students to one another, Texas Tech and the Lubbock community.

Rachel Jackson, associate director of Tech’s department of Transition & Engagement, said what was previously known as Welcome Week is now called Raider Welcome because it continues past the week prior to the start of classes.

"Raider Welcome is an opportunity for us to really come together as a campus to welcome these students back to this place that they're going to call home for the next several years," Jackson said.

She said her department considers the fact that there are many students returning or moving to Lubbock. Raider Welcome serves nontraditional students, veterans who are pursuing a college degree and transfer students.

While the Transition & Engagement department has a diverse body of students to consider, Jackson said its goal for Raider Welcome is consistent.

"We wanted to reintroduce them to a lot of the services and programs that they maybe got a taste of during orientation,” she said, “but now that they're here, moved back in, they can really get the opportunity to start experiencing it and experiencing life as a Red Raider."

Jackson also said one of Transition & Engagement’s initiatives for this year’s Raider Welcome was to introduce “tracks.” The purpose of these tracks is to help students efficiently identify which events best suit their interests.

Tracks can be classified as anything from Social Connections to Community Involvement and are specified in most of the Raider Welcome event descriptions. This track system makes it easier for students to decide which events to go to, she said.

"Raider Welcome has grown over the last several years,” Jackson said. “This year, we have more than 125 different events. (The events are) just different ways for students to get involved, so there is really something for everyone, no matter what their interests are."

Danielle Marshall, a museum science and heritage management graduate student from Arlington who helped organize a Raider Welcome event, said some of the events focus on acquainting new students with the Lubbock area.

The event Marshall helped organize was called Hack the Museum. It took place at the Museum of Texas Tech University on Friday and was a collaborative effort from museums throughout Lubbock. By doing this, the planning committee hoped to introduce new students to the various museums in the Lubbock area.

"I come from the DFW area,” Marshall said. “So, moving (to Lubbock) I had people say, 'What're you going to do out there? You're getting a museum degree and then moving to West Texas.'”

Having just moved to Lubbock from Arlington, Marshall said Lubbock has more museums close to her than did Arlington.

While the event was hosted in the Museum of Texas Tech, it is not the only museum in Lubbock.

"A lot of students and people, in general, find it really surprising, actually,” Marshall said. “A lot of them, too, would assume that all of the museums out here are going to be some kind of West Texas, farm-based (museum). They're far from it."

In order to showcase the various museums that can be found in Lubbock, Marshall said she invited the Science Spectrum, the Bayer Museum of Agriculture, the Windmill Museum, the Silent Wings Museum and the National Ranching Heritage Center to the event.

Both Marshall and Jackson said prospective students often wonder what activities and adventures await them in Lubbock. Therefore, part of Raider Welcome’s mission is to show what all can be done for fun in Lubbock. This particular event was an extensive showcase of places that students can explore.

"(Hack the Museum) is definitely an opportunity for students to get outside of the classroom and find those outside-of-the-classroom learning experiences that we have with our Texas Tech Museum and all the museums in Lubbock,” Jackson said. “Helping students find those opportunities to really enrich their education outside of the classroom through those museums. So, it’s a great way to get introduced to it right from the start."

Two Tech students who attended this event and other Raider Welcome events provided their perspectives on the two-week marathon of activities.

Brianna Mares, a freshman mechanical engineering major from Dallas, said going to Raider Welcome events has helped her meet new people and become more familiar with campus and with Lubbock.

“My roommate is a sophomore, so she's showing me everything,” Mares said. “If she can't go (to an event), she's like, 'You need to go. You'll meet people.'"

Another student, Anthony Veserra, a freshman civil engineering major from Houston, said he is thankful for the opportunity Raider Welcome provides to make friends.

He said it can be difficult to meet people and get to know the area when one first moves to Lubbock, but Raider Welcome helps new students adjust to their temporary homes.

“I feel like the Raider Welcome events kind of force you to meet new people, rather than just, you know, (waiting for) the random chance that you'll (see) someone you know,” Veserra said.

In fact, Veserra said he met Mares at a Raider Welcome event just a few hours prior to the Hack the Museum event. Their friendship is just one of the many that Raider Welcome helps form.