Chapman University welcomes new students for the 2026-27 academic year

Amy Mai, a third-year student at Chapman University, spent the better half of her Tuesday morning fielding questions from frazzled first-year students and their families. While it may seem tedious, it’s a job she’s well prepared for and one she takes immense pride in as a resident advisor.

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“Showing that we’re here as a staff to help students and families — it’s so rewarding,” Mai said.

The university kicked off its first-year and transfer student move-in day bright and early Tuesday morning. Along with the school’s mascot, Pete the Panther, administrators, cheerleaders and other student leaders welcomed students into their new home for the year.

Mai, who is studying public relations, advertising and entertainment marketing and originally hails from Atlanta, said she wanted to be a part of the special day, in large part, because of her own move-in experience as a first-year student. Being an out-of-state and first-generation student, Mai knows that others might be feeling nervous to move across the country as she had, so she set out to support them.

“I understand how hard and how different this change can be,” Mai said. “That really gives me my purpose and my ‘why’ — being that resource for these students who may feel scared or just need some help getting used to college.”

Hauling carts filled to the brim with their needs for the year, from piles of fresh sheets and mattress toppers to a closet’s worth of clothing, new students excitedly filed into each of the university’s five residence halls.

For first-year film and television production student Kalia Ratliff, move-in day to Henley Hall, the campus’s largest first-year dorm, was a full family affair. Accompanied by her parents and younger brother, who traveled with her from their home in Seattle, Ratliff said she looks forward to joining her campus community and that move-in day had been a positive start to her college experience.

For her father, Dan Ratliff, said the day evoked mixed emotions.

“As a parent, you know this day is coming … you think you have a lot of time (but) you don’t know how quickly it’s going to come up,” Dan Ratliff said. “It’s a little sad, for about a year, to have her gone … but she’ll be off doing incredible things.”

Iker Solloa, the father of first-year business student Philippe Solloa, was watching his first son move away.

“So it’s a big step for the whole family, but that’s the rite of passage that everybody has to go through,” Iker Solloa said.

As Philippe Solloa unpacked his belongings, his mother and father lingered nearby, impressed by their son’s efficiency.

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The family drove up from their home in San Diego earlier that morning. After only a couple of hours, Philippe Solloa had just about finished organizing his side of the room. From completing all of his packing the day before to transferring all of his items into his dorm, Philippe Solloa said he had a seamless move-in experience.

Down the hall, first-year roommates Amber Gee, Willow Boyd and Haily Bettermann were unpacking together. It was the first time they were all meeting in person, but already they had found things to bond over and had worked out a plan to move in without any complications.

Each roommate had her own strategy for unpacking — Gee began to place items as she found them, Boyd laid all of her clothes flat into a large suitcase to make more space, and Bettermann had pre-sorted all of her belongings into neatly labeled boxes based on where she planned to place them. All three students were eager to make their space feel like home.

“I’ve always wanted to branch out and move and have my own place,” Boyd said. “This is what I’ve been waiting for for a long time, so it’s really exciting.”

For administrators, move-in day is a highlight of the university experience, Vice President and Dean of Students Chris Hutchison said. 

“The energy — you can just feel it,” Hutchison said. “Just the smiles, the anticipation, the eagerness  — when you’re on campus and you actually get to see that personified in the people who are walking in and out of the residence halls — it’s just very contagious.”

Approximately 1,600 first-year students moved in Tuesday, university officials said. The incoming students represent a broad range of academic interests, particularly in Chapman University’s business administration, film and television production, psychology, political science, biological sciences and dance programs. University officials also noted an increase in enrollment in science and health-related fields of study.

In addition to the campus’s home state of California, a large percentage of students are from Washington, Colorado, Texas, Oregon and Hawaii, university officials said.

As students gear up for the start of classes on Monday, Aug. 24, Mai advises them to take their time and savor the move-in process.

“Enjoy these moments, especially (move-in day) with your family,” Mai said. “These four years go by fast.”

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