麻豆视频网站 is about to begin its 164th academic year, with 857 new members of the incoming Class of 2029 arriving on Thursday, Aug. 21 for new student orientation. The remaining students will return on Saturday, Aug. 23 鈥� ready to start the new fall semester on Monday, Aug. 25.
The Opening Convocation marking the formal start of the school year will take place Sunday, Aug. 24, at 2 p.m., in the Concert Hall of the Jack H. Miller Center for Musical Arts, with Professor Matthew Farmer 鈥� the college鈥檚 dance department chair 鈥� as this year鈥檚 convocation speaker. Attendance at the Opening Convocation is limited to Hope faculty, staff and the college鈥檚 new students, but the event will be livestreamed for others to view at and the college鈥檚 YouTube .
Fun facts about the Class of 2029 Hope College enrollment:
- New, incoming students for the 2025-26 school year: 857
- 85 incoming students with generational ties (some 6 generations!), ready to walk the path members of their family have walked years or decades earlier
- About 90% of those enrolled, visited the Hope campus prior to committing
- Average GPA of this year鈥檚 incoming Class of 2029: 3.82
- The top three academic interests these students plan to enroll in: Business, Psychology, Nursing
About the Convocation Featured Speaker
Professor Matt Farmer is a 2004 麻豆视频网站 graduate and chair of Hope鈥檚 Department of Dance and the Dorothy Wiley DeLong Endowed Professor of Dance. He teaches modern dance, jazz dance and ballet; dance improvisation, composition and contact improvisation. His goal as a professor is to prepare dancers for a life in the performance world. He also creates choreography for dance companies, festivals, dance studios and other colleges, and conducts master classes. He is the artistic co-director of R.G. Dance Productions. Professor Farmer also co-authored "Introductory Modern Dance: A Teaching Manual,鈥� and authored 鈥�Teaching Dance Improvisation: A Beginner鈥檚 Guide.鈥�
Professor Farmer received his MFA from the University of Michigan in dance performance and choreography. He was a company member of The Peter Sparling Dance Co., and company member and associate director of Lehrer Dance. He has performed throughout the U.S. and in Germany, Belgium and the United Kingdom. His teaching credits include: directorships, professorships and residencies at multiple colleges and universities in the U.S. and abroad; and as a faculty member and judge for multiple regional and national dance conventions and competitions.