PICNIC DRAWS NEW STUDENTS: UNIVERSITY, BUSINESSES WELCOME FRESHMEN

New students at Southeast Missouri State University need to find their way around campus but also to find their way around town.

The university and Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce sponsored a picnic Sunday afternoon at Capaha Park to welcome back the students and introduce them to the community.

About 3,000 students attended the annual picnic, university officials estimated. Tents were set up at the park on a hill near the band shell overlooking the lagoon.

Students returning to Southeast Missouri State University have a big impact on the community, said John Mehner, the chamber's president and chief executive officer.

The picnic gives students a chance to socialize and get to know the community, said Dr. Kenneth Dobbins, university president.

"The community has always welcomed the students but this makes a special effort," he said. Cape Girardeau gives its students a taste of "southern hospitality with Midwestern values."

A record number of students are expected to begin classes today, Dobbins said.

The picnic serves as a way to "really make them welcome and bring the community together," said Suzanne Vaughn, coordinator of new student programs at the university.

Angie Rink, a sophomore from Rolla, Mo., said the picnic is a great event for first-time students.

"It's good to see everything the first time you're coming here," she said. However, she would liked to have seen more community organizations with booths.

Twenty businesses set up booths, as did campus groups, each offering pamphlets and information about their organization. Students threw footballs through tires and tossed darts at balloons to win prizes and registered for as many freebies as possible.

Liz Stewart, Emily Hoerner and Andy Hayes, all of St. Louis, are new students at Southeast this year. They attended the picnic to get a better grip on the campus community.

"There was lots of information and a lot that was free," said Stewart.

While much of the day was planned as fun, it was also a way to show that businesses support the university, said Kathy Swan of JCS Tel-Link.

Swan said the university students bring an excitement and energy to the community that isn't visible when they are gone.

"Students mean customers at our businesses but they also mean workers," she said. Businesses that hire part-time workers are delighted to see students return to campus.

"They are good for a lot of us," Swan said.