FEELS LIKE HOME: STFX WELCOMES THE CLASS OF ’26

One could feel the energy driving onto StFX campus on Friday, September 2 and Saturday, September 3 as StFX welcomed over 1,000 rst-year students who arrived for Welcome Days 2022, spread over two days again this year.

“As soon as I came to campus, I just felt so happy. I was ready to call this home,” says Braelyn Spencer, a rst-year Gerald Schwartz School of Business student from the Ottawa Valley, who made her rst trip to the east coast to attend StFX. She and her mom Jennifer arrived in Antigonish a few days early and had been visiting the StFX campus every day since.

“We’re just so excited for her, for this opportunity,” says Jennifer. “You can feel she’s in good hands. You can feel it on campus, the positivity. She’s not just a number here. It’s wonderful.”

Braelyn says she decided to attend StFX, sight unseen, as she had heard positive things about the school. “I liked that it was in a small town,” she says. “I knew I’d feel a part of it. I knew it had a good sense of community, and I knew there were small classes. I really liked that.”

TIGHT-KNIT COMMUNITY

Keisha Lambert, a rst-year human kinetics student from Halifax, NS, arrived on campus with her older sister, Mya, a third-year business student. “Overall, I’m looking forward to everything,” says Keisha, who read good things about her academic program—and heard good things from her sister. “I made a lot of close friends and also developed relationships with my professors,” says Mya. “I like how tight-knit it is here, you can form relationships.”

Abbey Dennis, a rst-year kinesiology student from Moncton, NB, says she is excited to be a member of the StFX community. Her mom, Kim, says their son, a fourth-year business student, has had a good experience at StFX, and that’s comforting. “Just how our son interacts with his professors, there’s an emphasis there that it’s important to feel connected,” says her dad, David. “Even a er StFX, there’s a real community, which the school really fosters.”

Welcome To Stfx

“Today for us is a very special day,” StFX President Dr. Andy Hakin told students and their supporters during the President’s Welcome. “ is is why we’re here. It’s you…We’re here to support you on your journey.” ere is something special about this place, something you feel when you come on this campus. It’s the way people support each other, Dr. Hakin said. He encouraged the incoming students to think about ways they too can give back and continue this Xaverian legacy.

Students’ Union president Brendan Roberts also le students with advice: get involved. “Your StFX experience will be what you make it. Take every opportunity to get out of your comfort zone.”