Welcome back! The spring semester is officially upon us, which means that no matter what year you are, you already have a foundation at Le Moyne and are probably at least a little excited to get back into the groove of things. With it also being the start of my last semester at Le Moyne, I was recently thinking back to the beginning of my first semester and wondering what I would have liked to know if I could go back and do it over. So, here are just a couple things that I think every Le Moyne student should know by their second semester.

1. You can, and should, go sledding on the “Jez Rez” hill: Despite being an insanely snowy city, most places in the Syracuse area have actually banned sledding. I know, it’s tragic. Thankfully, Le Moyne is not one of those places. Professors and other faculty members actually encourage students to go sledding on the largest hill on campus. The hill behind Le Moyne’s Jesuit Priest Residence building, or “Jez Rez” for short, is amazingly steep and fun for you to relive those childhood memories. My friends and I have already gone this year on our electric-pink sled. Yes, it was the most childhood like fun I had in a while and yes, I now realize why my mom never wanted to go when I had to drag that sled back up the hill. Don’t have an actual sled? That’s usually not a problem. It’s Syracuse after all, so if you don’t have a sled, odds are someone you know probably does. If not, it is also common for people to bring out dorm mattresses.
2. There’s a lot of stuff you can get for free, or super discounted, with your Le Moyne ID: Being in a college-themed area, with SU just around the corner, encourages a lot of new businesses to pop up and old businesses to give out college discounts. All you need to achieve these deals is your Le Moyne ID. Most know that there are student discounts at a lot of places, but people either don’t use them or they don’t always remember they have them. Which is a shame because you can get discounts at fast food places like Chipotle and McDonalds with your ID. With how much I eat out, I could’ve saved a lot of money. The Performing Arts Center gives out student show tickets for free or only 5 bucks. I’d say that is the discount I use most often. Campus Life office also has movie tickets and occasionally day trips to Philadelphia, Boston, Washington D.C, and NYC for insanely cheap, like 10 dollars to secure your seat on the bus cheap, or sometimes even for free. They also partner with Destiny mall a couple times a year to offer students with a Le Moyne ID massive discounts on business and professional attire from certain stores. As a Le Moyne student, you have your ID on you at all times because it’s your master key to literally everything on campus. So, next time you feel like you want a discount someplace, just bust out your ID and ask.
3. Dolphy Day: I feel like every student that comes into Le Moyne knows nothing about Dolphy Day until the month before. Or maybe that was just me. Dolphy day started in 1971, rather nonchalantly, when a group of friends decided to skip class on the first sunny day of spring. Throughout the day, the group convinced other students to leave class and enjoy the day as well. By nightfall, they had most of the student body celebrating the end of the year. Now, Dolphy Day is a planned, campus-wide event that’s viewed as an all-out bash to end the academic year on a high note. My favorite thing about Dolphy Day is taking my towel out to the library field and relaxing in the sun. Nearly everyone is out on the field at some point, so it’s also a great day to feel the camaraderie between Le Moyne students.