Eastern's 'Largest Incoming Class In Years' Moving In This Weekend

WILLIMANTIC, CT — Eastern Connecticut State University this weekend will be welcoming its largest class of first-year students since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

More than 700 students are expected to move into campus residence halls on Saturday.

Overall, the Class of 2028 is 812 strong, and many of them will be greeted on move-in day by Eastern's new president, Karim Ismaili, and Terrence Cheng, the chancellor of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system.

They will mingle with students and families from 12 to 2 p.m.

The first-year, full-time students will move into residence halls that include Mead, Crandall, Burnap, Winthrop, Constitution and Burr halls. Burr, built in 1921, is being reopened after several years due to the surge in enrollment. First-year enrollment grew 32 percent this year from the 2023 incoming class, school officials said.

At 4 p.m., the Class of 2028 will gather for the University's annual "E" photo in the Fine Arts Instructional Center amphitheater, where the students will arrange in a giant group photo alongside Ismaili to commemorate the start of their Eastern careers.

The remaining campus population, consisting of more than 1,400 residents who are either returning or transfer students, will move into residence halls on Monday.

.