More than 4,600 students move into MU campus housing on Wednesday

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Thousands of University of Missouri students started moving in on campus ahead of the fall semester on Wednesday, and more are expected to throughout the rest of the week.

The move in process was delayed for 90 minutes due to rain in the morning, according to University spokesman Travis Zimpfer. Zimpfer said the delay happened around 9:50 a.m. and was caused by families waiting out the storm and deciding to move in in the afternoon instead.

In an email sent to ABC 17 News, Zimpfer said the university worked to move in as many students as it could following the delay.

"Both of these incidents led to some understandable traffic congestion, but our Residential Life staff and volunteers have been working hard to get as many students moved in as possible," the statement reads. "So far, we've moved in an estimated 4,611 students, and we'll continue moving students in for the rest of the week."

According to the University of Missouri, it is expecting almost 6,000 freshman moving in between Wednesday and Thursday. In the 2023 fall semester, the university reported 5,617 freshmen enrolling, with 5,140 being first-time college students.

Tom Finan is a freshman at MU who made the trip from St. Louis on Wednesday, along with his mom and dad to start a new chapter as a college student. Finan said while some of his friends have raised concerns over the growing student body, especially related to eating in the dining hall, it isn't something he's worried about.

"I just feel like there's too much time in the day for it (the dining hall) always to be crowded and there's going to be opportunities," Finan said. "Like, if I can get in at the right time it will probably be alright."

Grace Mills is a sophomore at the university and will begin her duties as a resident assistant at the Rollins Hall this semester. Mills said she believes having a year under her belt at the university has prepared her for the possibility of a more crowded campus.

"Our class previously was the largest class at Mizzou so we came in with very similar experiences," Mills said. "As for food, I think that it's nerve racking coming in but once you learn the system, ways to go around, it makes things a lot more easier."

The increase in enrollment led the university to have to build extra housing for students.

An agreement between the university and Tri Sigma shows the school is paying the on-campus sorority $545,160 for the school year to turn its house into the dorm 'Mizzou on Rollins.' Records show MU also signed an agreement with U-Centre, a housing complex on Turner Avenue.

Finan said the news that some students were being switched to the new hall came as a surprise. He said he's pleased with the dorm and doesn't foresee any issues living there.

"This was actually announced I think at the beginning of August and I, I had no idea this was an option at all," Finan said. "It doesn't really feel very different from a traditional dorm. Obviously, I don't have any experience in an actual dorm but I, I mean it feels natural."

Freshman Johnny Nguyen said the switch to the new hall worked in his favor.

"My original dorm was McDavid and it was just not ideal... since I got my application to my assignment really late," Nguyen said. "So like McDavid, it was not a good option it was just so far away from everything, a long walk to my classes."

Traffic impacts expected during move in week

Traffic issues are to be expected especially on College Avenue, Stadium Boulevard, North Providence Road along with any streets on campus.

According to the Move-In Day map, a majority of streets will have traffic flow one-way, and there will be area available for temporary parking such as Virginia Avenue Parking Garage and AV Lot 14A and 14B.

There will be select streets and areas where students and parents will be able to park and unload depending on the residence hall location.

Not only will campus be busy for Move-In Day, it will also be holding several activities for Welcome Week.

Welcome Week is a series of events for new students and happens every fall the week before classes start. There are several traditions and other activities that will be open to the public as well. Some traditions include Paint the "M", Midnight BBQ and the Tiger Walk.

Welcome Week runs through Sunday, while Monday is the first day of class.