ITHACA, NY — Ithaca College will officially welcome some 1,550 incoming students to campus on Monday, Aug. 25, with the annual Convocation ceremony and community picnic. Convocation is slated to begin at 11 a.m. in Ben Light Gymnasium. For the 11th year, the ceremony will be followed by a picnic lunch designed to bring first-year students closer together with faculty, staff and administrators.

It will be the first Convocation for President Thomas R. Rochon, who will deliver the main address. Also offering remarks to the members of the freshman class will be Kathleen Rountree, provost and vice president for academic affairs; Susan J. Scanlon ’71, member of the Ithaca College Board of Trustees; and Cornell Woodson ’09, president of the Student Government Association.

The community picnic will take place after Convocation on the academic quad (rain location: Terrace Dining Hall). The event is intended to familiarize the members of the class of 2012 with their new surroundings and to help build a sense of connection and commitment to the college among all its constituencies.

The picnic will have a distinctly sustainable twist this year. In addition to being a “zero waste” event, it will feature local seasonal foods, examples of solar- and bicycle-powered activities, and the distribution of reusable mugs made from 100% recycled plastic. Participants will be asked to sign a “commitment to change” pledge to make more sustainable choices.

President Rochon will also use the occasion to announce a new initiative by the Environmental Studies Program that will further enhance Ithaca College’s standing as a national leader in campus sustainability.