Students, faculty, and staff flooded the halls of Utah Valley University’s Orem Campus as fall semester began on August 23, 2021, culminating with Freshman Convocation, the biggest in-person event held at UVU since before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The evening also marked the first official event celebrating 80 years since the university’s inception in 1941.

Thousands of new UVU freshmen — young and slightly less young — packed into floor seats (every student was welcomed back by being told "We saved a seat for you") in the UCCU Center, overflowing into the stands, and their parents and families cheered them on as members of UVUSA, teams of student leaders, and President Astrid S. Tuminez welcomed them into the Wolverine family.

For more details and images from Freshman Convocation and the first day of fall semester, view the Exposure gallery below.