Hood College to Welcome 401 New Students During Move-In and Orientation Weekend

Hood College will say “Hello!” to 401 new Blazers this weekend as the class of 2028 and new transfer students join the Hood community. Move-In for new students will begin on Thursday, August 15 at 10 a.m.

Following Move-In, students will begin their first day of new student orientation, which introduces students to life at Hood and the surrounding Frederick community. As part of Orientation, students will receive their traditional “Dink” headwear on Saturday and participate in a Convocation ceremony on Sunday to formally begin the new academic year.

The Incoming Class

The incoming class of new students hail from 24 different states as well as Washington D.C., and 9 different countries. The class includes 14 students utilizing the Hood Advantage Program, in which Hood fully covers the cost of tuition for high-achieving Maryland students from low-income households. Additionally, 4 students were selected for Chair of the Board Scholarships, a highly prestigious scholarship that provides full-tuition awards to the most academically exceptional students in a given class.

The class of 2028 includes 150 athletic recruits, among them 25 members of the new Blazer women's ice hockey program, which will play its inaugural season this year. The program’s recruits represent 16 states and two Canadian providences. 

The Hood College Graduate School expects to welcome nearly 200 new students from 15 different countries. 34 members of the incoming Graduate School class are returning Hood alumni, and 87 students are enrolled in online programs such as education, business, thanatology and cybersecurity. 

Notable Move-In Weekend Events

Dinking Ceremony – Saturday, Aug. 17

Each year, new Hood students are “dinked” by current students, a process in which current students place a piece of headwear, called a “dink” on the heads of new students, signifying entry to the current cohort. The dink is unique to Hood and is to be worn at special Hood occasions such as Commencement and Baccalaureate. Dinks come in four colors, each unique to a class in the current cohort. The class of 2028 will wear the blue dink.

The class of 2028 will receive their dinks during the annual Dinking Ceremony held on Saturday, Aug. 17 at 10:30 a.m. in the Hodson Outdoor Theatre. 

Convocation – Sunday, Aug. 18 

Convocation will be held on Sunday, August 18 at 5 p.m. in the Coffman Chapel.

Convocation is held annually to celebrate and formally commence the opening of the academic year. Students from all classes are invited to wear their traditional dinks and participate in the ceremony. Speakers at the ceremony include:

• Vice President for Enrollment Management Bill Brown

• Hood College Interim President Debbie Ricker, Ph.D.

• Student Government Association President Katie Stang ’25

• Interim Provost Paige Eager, Ph.D.

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