UHV to welcome students’ families for weekend of fun
The families of University of Houston-Victoria students will get a firsthand look at life at the university this Friday and Saturday during Family Weekend.
The weekend of free fun will include magic performances, a picnic, games, morning yoga and trips to Bootfest.
“Family Weekend is a highlight of the fall because our students and their families get the opportunity to spend time together in the students’ learning environment,” UHV President Bob Glenn said. “These families have entrusted us with their students, and we are excited to let them see their students with their UHV family.”
UHV Family Weekend will begin Friday with Dine Like Your Student from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Jaguar Hall Dining, 2705 Houston Highway. Each student will be given two free meal passes for family members. Afterward, the university will host an Open House from 2 to 5 p.m. on the Victoria campus. Students can take their families on campus tours and show them different offices and departments as well as introduce their families to staff members.
Later Friday evening, the university will host a welcome reception inside UHV University North, 3007 N. Ben Wilson St. The event will begin at 7 with the opportunity to take photos with jaX, the university’s mascot, and enjoy refreshments catered by Vela Farms. A “mathemagic” show will be presented by Ricardo Teixeira, UHV associate professor of mathematics, at 7:30 in the Walker Auditorium inside University North, followed by a performance by Crescent Circus, a husband-and-wife duo who perform a unique combination of magic and circus arts.
After the Crescent Circus performance, shuttles will take students and their families to and from Bootfest in downtown Victoria until 11:30 p.m. Admission to Bootfest is free.
“Family involvement is important at UHV, and Family Weekend gives our students’ families the opportunity to share a fun college experience,” said Hilary Kofron, UHV Student Life director. “This event lets student show their families the campus through their eyes and experiences. A lot campus collaborations go into making this happen, and we’re proud of the efforts made to make this weekend possible.”
Saturday’s events will begin with Morning Yoga from 9 to 10 a.m. in the University North Multi-Purpose Room. Morning Yoga will be led by members of 911 Yoga, a UHV student organization.
From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., students, their families and UHV faculty and staff are invited to the President’s Picnic on UHV Pyramid Row, 3007 N. Ben Wilson St. The picnic will feature booths hosted by UHV student organizations and departments as well as free food, games with prizes, a dunking booth, a rock wall, cotton candy, a petting zoo and free snow cones from Kona Ice. After the picnic, the university once again will offer free shuttle rides to and from Bootfest until 11:15 p.m.
For Alexis Wallace, a UHV senior business management major, Family Weekend always is a special time. The Austin resident’s mother often is busy with work, but she always makes time to come to Victoria on Saturday to attend the picnic with her daughter and go to Bootfest, Wallace said.
“I love having this time to bring my mom to campus,” Wallace said. “Last year, we got our caricatures drawn during the picnic, and I’m looking forward to going to Bootfest with her again. It’s been great to create new memories together every year.”
Wallace is a student worker for UHV Student Life, and she’s looking forward to showing her mother the new University Commons building, which will be open during the Open House on Friday or at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
“Last year, I told her about the buildings under construction,” Wallace said. “Now I can take her through University Commons and show her all the great things I have access to, plus we have even more construction happening now.”
For more information about UHV Family Weekend, contact Kofron at kofronh@uhv.edu or 361-485-4409.
The University of Houston-Victoria, located in the heart of the Coastal Bend region since 1973 in Victoria, Texas, offers courses leading to more than 80 academic programs in the schools of Arts & Sciences; Business Administration; and Education, Health Professions & Human Development. UHV provides face-to-face classes at its Victoria campus, as well as an instructional site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that students can take from anywhere. UHV supports the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Opportunities for All initiative to increase awareness about state colleges and universities and the important role they have in providing a high-quality and accessible education to an increasingly diverse student population, as well as contributing to regional and state economic development.
