photo credit: Valerie Szabo
Lauren Farrington’s TOMS (left) & Kayla Fairchild’s TOMS (right)
With each new school year for the past decade, the incoming freshman class has been participating in the Unified Theme Common Reading program. All freshmen were given a book during summer orientation that they were asked to read as part of the program, and, come Welcome Weekend, they partook in events related to the book.
This year, the novel, chosen by a group from the university, was Start Something That Matters, the inspirational autobiography of Blake Mycoskie, creator of TOMS shoe company. The book focuses on rousing readers to “start something that matters,” such as how Mycoskie created his company, which donates one pair of shoes to a child in need for every one pair sold. Similarly, Random House, the publisher, will donate a book to a child in need for each one purchased.
Deanna Wagner, the director of Student and Community Engagement, played a major role in the organization of Welcome Weekend and the events related to the book.
“We believe that a strong community is enhanced by common experiences and thus, reading this common text and participating in relevant co-curricular experiences will strengthen the sense of community for incoming students,” Wagner said. “The book’s focus of starting new endeavors was a perfect fit for students starting a new journey at Capital.”
A key part of Welcome Weekend was the Style Your Sole event in which Capital purchased TOMS for the entire freshman class and the Orientation Leaders. According to Wagner, 677 pairs of “natural canvas” TOMS shoes were provided for students and Orientation Leaders to decorate, meaning that 677 pairs of shoes will also be donated to children around the world that need them.
The Style Your Sole event allowed students to discuss concepts from the book while also using self-expression to create a unique pair of TOMS,” Wagner said. “[This event] is hosted nationwide by communities and schools to bring people together for a great cause.”
Prior to Welcome Weekend, students were emailed a link to a survey in which they were supposed to provide their shoe size, ensuring that they would be given a pair that would fit. Students who did not complete the survey were still able to participate in the event, but there was no guarantee that there would be enough shoes in their size.
While Orientation Leaders had previously decorated their shoes during their training sessions, incoming freshmen were given nearly two hours to have group discussions and to decorate the shoes with fabric markers and Sharpie permanent markers.
“The TOMS program was fun and the book was interesting,” said freshman Kayla Fairchild, who participated in the event.
Fairchild, like many others, chose to color block her shoes. Other students wrote quotes, drew pictures and designs, or chose to leave their shoes blank. Regardless of what designs the students chose, each pair represents their personal “sole.”
First-year Orientation Leader Tyler Campbell believes the event was “a fun activity that ties into the summer reading assignment.”
“I think it’s really cool to see everyone walking around campus in the same pair of shoes,” Campbell said, “yet they’re still unique because they got to add whatever they wanted to it.”
The event was similar to last year’s, in which students were asked to write their “Change Story” on the back of a t-shirt, which related to their novel Hunger of Memory by Richard Rodriguez. However, the goal this year, according to Wagner, was “to provide experiences around the book that would allow us to build on the theme throughout the academic year.”
“When I was a first-year,” said Campbell, currently a junior, “all we did with our book was discuss it in small groups.”
Wagner said that, since the beginning of the Unified Theme Common Reading program, the university is always “trying to develop and improve our programs and activities.”
Due to this year’s changes, much of the feedback on the program has been positive and, as Fairchild said, “It was a great way to bring in the first-year class.”
