August 22, 2025
Following summer experiences around the globe, new and returning East Texas Baptist University students arrived on campus for the August Mini-Term, Move-In Day, Tiger Camp, and the start of the 2025-2026 academic year on August 18.
Each year, ETBU faculty, staff, and students come together to welcome incoming freshmen and transfer students by lending a helping hand on Move-In Day. This year was no different, as they gathered at each residence hall, greeted new students and their families, and helped lift moving boxes, big and small, up to each student's room.
"Moving into ETBU has been easy and very seamless," freshman nursing major Olivia Thurston said. "I'm excited to meet new people from different areas and make new friends."
After students settled into their new homes on campus, they were introduced to ETBU's rich campus life through Tiger Camp. Students have the opportunity to engage in a variety of experiences, from spirited traditions like Tiger Games to informative sessions such as Experiencing Life on the Hill and meaningful moments of corporate worship, including the Lampsato Lighting Ceremony. These events ensure that new students have everything they need to be successful students academically, spiritually, and spiritually.
"Being a leader at Tiger Camp has been amazing," sophomore behavioral sciences major Ella Brouillette said. "Last year, this was such a great way for me to branch out, and now I'm helping other people make connections exactly how my leaders did a year ago for me. It's awesome because this is a ministry, it's not just camp. It's a way to reach out and set people up for a great community."
The Lampsato Lighting Ceremony is an opportunity to pause and reflect on the mission of ETBU before the start of the semester. At the ceremony, students are presented with a keychain that resembles the class ring they will receive upon their graduation from the University. Students join together in a time of worship before hearing a message from President Dr. J. Blair Blackburn. Tiger Camp leaders light the students' candles, and they join together in prayer.
"It was really cool to do Lampsato Lighting Ceremony again because last year it was the leaders sharing the light with us, and now I'm a leader sharing the light," Brouillette said. "That's such an example because the upperclassmen on our campus do a really great job of taking in new freshmen and making sure they plug in somewhere they feel wanted and meant to be."
The campus community gathered Sunday evening for fellowship in the quad at the annual tradition, "Chill on the Hill," where President Blackburn and the Vice Presidents served the students ice cream. On Monday morning, Reverend James E. Webb of St. Violet Baptist Church in Tyler, Texas, encouraged the faculty, staff, and students at the first chapel service of the semester.
"When you leave Chapel today, you need to understand that Jesus is the real deal," Webb said. "You need to know Him as the real deal in your life. In the classroom, you need to be thinking: how can I make an impact with the righteousness of Jesus? We need more young people, more faculty, more staff, and more churches who will exemplify the example of Jesus."