Campus packed as freshmen move in dorms

As the sounds of Dave Matthews Band blared loudly from a window on an upper floor of Read Center, cars and vans loaded with clothes, cleaning supplies, storage boxes and posters pulled into the circle drive around the side of the building.\nBeginning early Wednesday, the majority of IU's new freshman class arrived on campus, moved into residence halls and said goodbye to parents, grandparents and friends.\nAt Read and all throughout campus, cars parked bumper to bumper on the street and in parking lots, students and parents became sweaty and red-faced from moving heavy boxes in the blazing heat and orientation assistants attempted to answer questions and maintain a welcoming atmosphere.\nAs orientation assistants and parents loaded luggage onto the sidewalk, freshmen entered the residence hall to check-in, where they received their keys and water bottles filled with free goodies.\nAlthough freshman Katie Renze and her father Paul Renze got lost searching for a place at Read to get started unpacking, Renze said she is excited to begin her first year at IU.\n"I wanted a big school," said Renze, who is originally from Barrington, Ill. "And this was the best one I looked at. It was my favorite all around."\nRenze's move into a room on Read's 5th floor was her father's first college move-in experience since his own.\n"I'm focusing on practical things like what she's going to need and what she should leave home, but also on emotional things like growing up too fast and an empty house," he said.\nFreshman Mara Filler and her mother Leslie Berman were going to leave their home in Skokie, Ill. at 4 a.m. Wednesday to arrive bright and early at Forest Quad. But because they thought others would also arrive early, they scrapped their plans and left later. The pair began unloading suitcases, posters and cleaning supplies onto the sidewalk at about 4 p.m.\nFiller dragged a large olive green suitcase inside and waited with other incoming freshman and their parents for an elevator to take her to her new home on the 11th floor. Her mother stayed downstairs and searched for a cart to wheel her daughter's belongings upstairs.\n"I'm so excited about living up high," Filler said. "I'm not looking forward to unpacking. I just packed."\nFiller was also excited to meet her new roommate whom she talked to on the phone before arriving to campus. The elevator stopped several times to let others out, revealing boxes and packing materials covering the carpet on each floor. When the elevator reached the top, Filler began searching for her new room.\n"Wow this is great," Filler said as she stepped inside and greeted her roommate, freshman Leslie Coss, who was flipping through cable stations on her television.\nAfter exploring her closet and storage space, Filler went downstairs for more belongings and Coss excitedly discovered Cartoon Network on the TV. \n"I'm not worried about missing my parents but I'm missing my puppy already," joked Coss as she went over and gave her dad a hug. She is originally from Carmel, Ind.\nBack at Read Center, sophomore Brooke Donaldson, working behind the check-in table, sat back and enjoyed a break from helping newcomers.\n"It hasn't been crazy," she said. "It seems like everyone likes to come at the same time. There's a lull and then lots of people come in."\nHaving gone through her own freshmen move-in day, Donaldson said she learned the importance of bringing along a cart to carry things from floor to floor, packing lots of fans and not being afraid to ask questions.\n"It's a long day," she said.