UIW Welcome Center Grand Opening
The University of the Incarnate Word’s vibrant energy can be felt the moment one steps onto any of its campuses where it radiates from every corridor. UIW’s positive and optimistic energy now also beams from the newly opened UIW Welcome Center, located in the Student Engagement Center (SEC), which celebrated its grand opening on Tuesday.
The UIW Welcome Center will now serve as one of the first touchpoints that future Cardinals have with the University and is now the home of the Student Ambassador program, campus tours and a wealth of information for prospective students. With all of this in mind, UIW leaders, faculty, students, administrators and special guests gathered to celebrate the grand opening.
Dr. Brandy Finck, the associate vice president for Enrollment Management and Student Experience, welcomed the crowd to the festive occasion. In her remarks, she spoke with gratitude of the many people who played a role in the creation of the Welcome Center, from the construction workers who executed the renovation, to the partners who added the finishing touches.
Her bright and affirmational tone was echoed by Sr. Walter Maher, CCVI, who blessed the space and called for the spirit of the University Mission to be present in the Center and all its endeavors, citing the Book of Hebrews, “Let mutual love continue... Pray for us, for we are confident that we have a clear conscience, wishing to act rightly in every respect.”
UIW’s President, Dr. Thomas M. Evans, spoke about the future impact of the Welcome Center. “We open at an ideal time – our campus is vibrant…and we want our spring applicants to feel welcome and set a positive tone for their arrival as students in the fall,” he said. “We want to provide the very best visitor experience, so they leave knowing that we are the very best.”
After a celebratory ribbon cutting, the Student Ambassadors officially opened the doors to the Center and welcomed all those present to come in and enjoy the new space. Guests roamed throughout the Center, taking in the newly installed and generously proportioned digital screens, the social media selfie wall, and the meeting spaces. Attendees were also welcome to collect handfuls of Cardinal stickers and cookies before departing.
Finck conveyed the impact of the UIW Welcome Center, reflecting, “I am confident that the experiences and relationships built by prospective students and their families who visit the UIW Welcome Center will lead them to calling UIW home and choosing to become Cardinals.”
The students and staff of the UIW Welcome Center are eager to showcase the University with a spirit of warmth and hospitality appropriate of the very best choice for these future Cardinals.