MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — If traffic through downtown Milledgeville is backed up, it's for a good reason. Georgia College & State University's class of 2027 just moved into their dorms.
As the largest freshman class in the university's history enters the next chapter of their lives, there were more boxes and cars than you can count at this historic move-in day.
There are a lot of words to describe a move-in day at college, but bittersweet is a good one.
For some, it is sweet because you get to meet new people.
“I wanna break barriers,” grad student Jacob Carter said.
It’s his fifth year on the Cat Crew; they're volunteers who help new bobcats move in. There were up to 400 this year.
“Being able to talk to new students and move their fridge and sweating together, like, yeah, it bonds you,” Carter laughed.
However, it does make you a little tired, because it's hard work.
“We're just moving in freshmen,” said Georgia College senior Bruce Smith.
Smith is on the Cat Crew, lending a hand and getting everyone settled in Wells Hall. It is one out of seven dorms on campus. There's also Bell Hall– the honors dorm on Wilkinson Street– Naipier Hall, Sanford Hall, ParkHurst Hall, Foundation Hall and Adams Hall.
“We’re just having some fun,” Smith said. “Lifting some heavy stuff. Some futons, fridges, everything."
However, it's sweet to make parents' lives easier.
This is Lisa McKinney's second time moving a kid into a college dorm.
"Jack is moving in! He is our middle child,” McKinney explained. “We pulled up and they emptied everything right away. It was amazing. It's organized chaos!”
It's also sweet to discover yourself.
“I’m excited to just walk around campus, see where my classes are. Maybe join like a club or something,” laughed freshmen Nicole Vickery.
She just moved into her room in Wells Hall and says she's excited to decorate the dorm with her new roommate.
“We're going with, I guess, pink and like a burnt-orangey kind of color," Vickery said.
However, it's always a little sad to see the kids go.
Cathy Grasof will be an empty nester after her second daughter moves into the dorms.
“She's our baby and she's such a good kid, and we know that we're going to miss her a lot,” Grasof says.
Georgia College says they moved in around 1,830 freshmen over three days. They come from 112 counties in Georgia, with the largest concentration coming from Gwinnett and Forsyth counties.
The fun doesn’t stop there for first-years.
Saturday is the university’s GCSU Gives Day where freshmen will go out and volunteer around town, getting to know the community they'll call home for the next four years.
They'll be cleaning up trash at the Oconee River Greenway, painting murals, will pack food items for the Milly Free Fridge, or will be hanging out with some seniors at the Georgia War Veterans home.