Graduates receive a sweet reward

Senior Experience's last event offers "Sundaes on Monday"

By Benjamin Baxter
The Collegian

Chocolate or strawberry?

That’s the question graduating seniors were asked during Monday’s ice cream sundae event, the third and final Senior Experience event in the spring semester.

The event, “Free Ice Cream Sundaes on Monday,” gave graduating seniors complimentary ice cream, courtesy of the Division of Student Affairs. President John Welty, Dean of Students Paul Oliaro and Provost Jeronima Echeverria made many of the sundaes.

This was the last of a series of events that were part of the Senior Experience. Other events included free donuts and coffee given out while applying for graduation, and a free lunch and raffle prizes during the mid-March Grad Fair.

Oliaro said the Senior Experience was created to help graduating seniors.

“It’s to help students make the transition to the rest of the world,” Oliaro said. “Getting an apartment, getting insured, we’re helping students do all the nitty-gritty things they need to successfully make the transition.

The ice cream is just a fun thing we’re doing.”

Senior Candace Caldwell, who chose chocolate ice cream, graduates this semester with her bachelor’s degree in communicative disorders. She said she spent six years in college, including four years at Fresno City College.

“I wasn’t doing the full-time thing all that time,” she said. “One class here, three there, two here.”

After those six long years, is it worth it?

“No,” Caldwell said jokingly. “Yes, of course it’s worth it.”

Previous events were a success, organizers said.

“The last two [events] were held where seniors were going to be anyway,” said Kimra Aquino Garcia, a member of the committee that planned the event.

Garcia said the past events helped the organizers plan for this one.

“We did a survey of the seniors asking who was going to be there, and we got 200 responses. So we doubled that and got that many sundaes, just in case,” Garcia said.

Garcia said there are even plans to continue the Senior Experience.

“We’ll be doing this again next year,” Garcia said. “For the first time we’re doing this, it’s definitely a success.”

She said while the events were a success, she can think of another success as well.

“I consider it a success that students are graduating,” Garcia said.

More information about the Senior Experience and related activities can be found at http://seniors.csufresno.edu.

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