New students come from near and far to begin on-campus life at USC

USC is a long way from Stuttgart, Germany, but freshman Ryan Stevenson was feeling nothing but excitement as his family helped him move from his European home into Parkside Arts & Humanities Residential College this week.

“The first minute I came on campus, I loved it,” said Stevenson, a biochemistry major entering the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. “Maybe it’s the sunshine, but I just feel like the vibes around campus are pretty nice. I’m excited to meet new people and to just take in the whole city in general.”

Stevenson’s parents, Mike and Lisa Stevenson, are retired U.S. Air Force veterans who accompanied their youngest son on the trans-Atlantic move.

“This is what he wanted, and he has been excited since the moment he got notified that he’d been admitted to USC,” Mike Stevenson said. “He was excited the whole journey over here and didn’t get a lot of sleep because of it. We think it’s going to be great for him.”

Stevenson is among the more than 8,000 first-year, returning, transfer and graduate students settling into USC’s residential colleges during move-in week, which began on Sunday and concludes today. While visiting with some of the new arrivals over the weekend, USC President Carol Folt said, “I always look forward to meeting our new students. I have no doubt I’m seeing people who will go out and change the world.”

College becomes a reality for new Trojans

Freshman Kayla Jeong, who will major in human security and geospatial intelligence at USC Dornsife, is thrilled to be a Trojan and to be living on campus.

“It feels like it’s fake; it doesn’t feel real yet,” she said, laughing.

But it felt very real to her father, Andy Jeong, who could not hold back tears outside Birnkrant Residential College when talking about how it feels to have his daughter starting her new life as a Trojan.

“I’m the crier,” he managed to say.

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Jeong had encouraged his daughter to attend a university somewhere far away from their home in Gardena because he had commuted during his own time in college. Nevertheless, he’s pleased she will not be far away.

“I want her to have a good experience and just have a blast — especially this first year,” he said.

Also living close to home will be Samantha Duran, one of 60 USC Leslie and William McMorrow Neighborhood Academic Initiative scholars beginning their freshman year this fall. The program provides opportunities for success in higher education and beyond for students living in the neighborhoods near USC’s University Park and Health Sciences campuses.

“I want to be able to have my own independence as well as make connections and meet new people,” the USC Dornsife anthropology major said as she prepared to move into Parkside. “Being Latina pushes me forward because I want to represent my community and grow as a person.”

Duran’s mother, Martha Vasquez, is a lifelong Angeleno who beamed with pride as her daughter spoke.

“She’s been at it since she was in the sixth grade, and it’s been a nonstop journey to get here,” Vasquez said. “It’s thrilling to finally have someone from our family come into USC. For my daughter to be the first one, it’s very exciting.”

Parkside will also be home for freshman Jamie Choe, whose family accompanied her this week from their home in Chicago.

“I wanted to go far from home, and I’m excited to be more independent,” said Choe, a chemistry major also entering USC Dornsife.

While she’s ready for more independence, Choe was heartbroken when her giant, stuffed bear — a Djungelskog from Ikea — did not fit into a suitcase for the flight from Chicago.

“I promised her we would buy another one, so we went shopping yesterday,” said her mom, Jenny Choe. “I’m just thrilled that she got into her school of first choice. She really wanted to come here.”

Marcus Choe chuckled over his daughter’s bear dilemma but could not hide his immense pride in her.

“She put in so much effort all through high school to get here, and she did this all on her own,” he said. “She saw something in USC and saw what she wanted to do. I’m just so proud of her.”

USC wins out over many options

Freshman Rylan Hedges of the USC Viterbi School of Engineering visited 17 universities, choosing USC because it was the highest-ranking engineering school that offered him admission. His parents, Mark and Denise Hedges, traveled with their son to USC from their home in Nevada, Mo., just a day after moving his twin sister into the University of Missouri.

“It’s a little scary sending someone off so far to school,” Mark Hedges said. “He had lots of options but once he got accepted to USC, he said: ‘That’s the place.’”

Rylan said his goals at USC are simple: “Be involved, be prepared for my career, and make memories.”

USC Dornsife freshman Sean Byrne, a narrative studies major from Norwalk, Conn., surprised his parents when he chose a school across the country.

“USC wasn’t initially on my radar because it’s so far away, but I toured the campus and fell in love with it,” Byrne said. “Throughout the entire process as I was getting news from other schools, USC just kind of stayed at the forefront of my mind. This is a great place in one of the greatest cities in the world.”

His mother, Karen Byrne, grew up in England and went away to college, too. But as a mother, she’s nervous.

“He made the leap and chose to come out here,” Karen Byrne said after moving her son into Birnkrant. “But I think it will make him grow up a lot and teach him some independence.”

Dad Michael Byrne said: “It’s a lot of miles, but we’re never far away. I think he’s going to just flourish here.”