More than 4,000 Cardinals will call the UofL campus home, including over 2,100 first-year students who arrived this week and nearly 1,900 upper-level and transfer students moving in over the weekend. This year brings a record-breaking number of students living on campus with  at full capacity.  

“I’m more excited than nervous for the school year to start,” said first-year student Stella Huber, of Floyd Knobs, Ind.

Huber will be a part of , an early admission program the offers to exceptional high school seniors who demonstrate a commitment to pursue a career in dentistry.

“ULEAD was the deciding factor for me coming to UofL since dental school is hard to get into,” Huber said. “We’ve spent some time getting to know each other this week and I’ve really enjoyed it so far.”

Huber’s move-in was made easier thanks to volunteer Isabella Spencer, a third-year student volunteering with the faith-based RSO , who helped wheel items from Huber’s car across campus to the residence hall. This was Spencer’s first time volunteering with , a (UHRE) program that provides various volunteer services from traffic flow to hands-on moving of items.

“It went smoothly today,” said Spencer. “I was happy to help new students get settled in and pay it forward.”  

A record-breaking Move-in Day required a record-breaking number of volunteers. Nearly 700 volunteers— including current students, student organization members, faculty, staff and alumni— assisted students as they moved in. They joined UHRE staff, who provide year-round support to residents through area coordinators and resident assistants.

Renelleda Saint-Hilaire, a second-year student, will serve as a resident assistant in . She said the best way staff can support families and students on Move-in Day is by offering directions and guidance during what can be an overwhelming experience. This is Saint-Hilaire’s first year on the UHRE student staff.

“My residents will be first-year students, and I am only a year older than them,” she said. “It’ll be interesting to be both a peer and mentor to them.”

UofL President Gerry Bradley was also on hand throughout the day to greet students and families on  extending a warm welcome to the newest Cardinals.

The fun doesn’t stop with Move-in Day. More than 100  have been planned for incoming students and returning students.��Some of the activities include a Cardinal Kickoff Picnic with Bradley and other UofL leaders; yard games and Bingo Like Never B-4; UofL night at Kentucky Kingdom; After Hours event at the Speed Art Museum; and a Student Government Association welcome lunch.

Classes begin on Monday, Aug. 18.��

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The traditional-style hall is the second to open in two years on Belknap Campus, providing modern, affordable housing that goes to the heart of student success.

Called New Residence Hall (NRH), the building will accommodate 450 primarily first-year students in one- and two-bedroom units on five floors. It will also be home to UofL’s new, where  students can find hands-on job and research opportunities.

“We know students, especially in their first year, thrive when they are immersed in the college experience,” said Lori Stewart Gonzalez, interim president. “This new hall and its twin neighbor place 900 first-year students as close as they can be to the Swain Student Activities Center, the Interfaith Center, Ekstrom Library, numerous classroom buildings and our beautiful outdoor spaces.”

As part of its strategic plan, UofL has invested $87 million in these two Belknap Campus student housing projects over the past two years. Last year, UofL celebrated the opening of NRH’s neighbor and twin, currently named Belknap Residence Hall.

“The opening of this new residence hall is a culmination of over a decade of planning and implementing capital improvements to make the University of Louisville a vibrant learning and residential community for our students,” said Michael Mardis, vice president for student affairs and dean of students. “We at the university are excited to see a large number of new freshmen and returning students choosing to live on campus this year. Students who live on campus both here at UofL and nationally are more likely to be successful students.”

To make room, UofL demolished Miller and Threlkeld halls, which had been home to first-year students for close to six decades.

“Our new residence halls have the amenities students are looking for in the 21st century and will contribute to their success,” said Tom Hardy, executive director of university housing and the resident experience.

NRH was designed with input from students and offers common areas with abundant natural light, classrooms, private study rooms, a game room, a kitchen and several laundry areas. It also features private bathrooms.

Messer Construction was tapped to complete the project. During the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Messer’s Jason Larkin said the company wanted to “meaningfully engage students” throughout the building process and created five co-ops for students to work on the project. Three of those students have since graduated and are now full-time employees at Messer.��

“I had the opportunity to tour the New Residence Hall shortly before construction was complete,” said Dorian Brown, 2022-2023 president of the UofL Student Government Association. “I thought it was pretty cool seeing a friend of mine who graduated from UofL after my freshman year, was on the construction team and was involved in bringing the New Residence Hall to life!”

A time capsule focused on the construction years of 2021 to 2022 was placed near the building’s dedication marker by the main door. It holds items such as the university’s strategic plan, a message from Gonzalez, Covid tests and masks, a newspaper marking the start of the war between Russia and Ukraine and sports updates.

In addition to these halls, UofL Athletics will soon celebrate the opening of the new 128-bed Denny Crum Residence Hall near the basketball practice facility.

While some early move-ins had already taken place, Wednesday’s official start saw a stream of anxious first-year students and their families hauling belongings and sharing laughs, hugs and tears under warm, sunny skies.

Three mini Cardinal Marching Bands provided that traditional college sound at different locations to add to the celebratory mood.

Approximately 3,500 students — 2,000 of them first-year students — will move into university housing before the start of classes Aug. 23.��

More than 450 will be the first residents of the just-opened Belknap Residence Hall, the university’s first new residence hall in 31 years. It joins two other traditional-style halls that are primarily for first-year students, Miller Hall and Unitas Tower.

“The whole experience has been so pleasant,” said incoming first-year student Mary Schook, who was moving into BRH. “The [Belknap Residence Hall] is super nice, my room is much bigger than I thought it would be and everyone I’ve met along the way has been so friendly and so welcoming.” 

Mary’s mother, Nancy, said the pleasant move-in experience calmed some of her parental fears.

“It’s been very easy to move in and everyone is very helpful and I feel comfortable leaving her here,” she said.��

Over at Unitas Tower, Katina Carroll said she broke down in tears a couple of times as she helped her son, Brayden Miller, move onto campus from their home in Corbin.

“It’s pretty emotional. I’m proud of who he is and where he’s going in life, but then again, he’s still my baby,” Carroll said, adding she thinks she’ll probably cry all the way home. “That’s why I brought somebody with me to be able to drive me home, because I don’t know that I can even handle that.”

Other residence halls on Belknap Campus are the suites in Community Park, Kurz Hall, Louisville Hall and Billy Minardi Hall, and apartments in Cardinal Towne, Bettie Johnson, University Pointe and University Tower.

Dozens of Welcome Week activities were planned for incoming first-years and second-years who didn’t get a chance to experience Welcome Week in 2020 due to COVID-19 cancellations. Commuting students and transfer students also have specific activities aimed at getting them settled at UofL.

Just some of the activities include a free welcome-back concert at Cardinal Stadium, the traditional SOUL community service day, a scavenger hunt, yoga and other exercise classes, playtime with puppies, lawn games and late-night ice cream floats.

Natalie Uhl, digital content coordinator in the Office of Communications and Marketing, contributed to this story.

The five-story, 452-bed  is the first of two new halls for first-year students that are part of an $87 million project replacing outdated buildings used for three decades for housing and university offices. The second hall will open in Fall 2022.

“By cutting this ribbon today, we are beginning an exciting new era for UofL students on Belknap Campus,” said UofL President Neeli Bendapudi. “Not only are we welcoming back students, many of whom have been learning virtually due to COVID-19, we are presenting our first-year students with a thoroughly modern residence hall designed to help them achieve success.”

Designed with input from student advisors, the hall is located in the heart of Belknap Campus near classrooms, libraries, dining areas and restaurants, a campus movie theater and other activity spaces in the Student Activities Center and an abundance of tree- and garden-lined grounds.��

In addition to its single- and double-occupancy rooms, the hall includes:

• Classroom space
• Study areas filled with natural light 
• Private study rooms equipped with desks, chairs and whiteboards
• A game room, kitchen and multiple laundry facilities, and
• Proximity to UofL’s new , set to open in October.

“I have to be honest; this project was a big risk, as the debt load will be carried way past my tenure and with the exception of maybe our student leaders, none of us currently working at UofL will likely be here when it is paid in full,” said Director of Housing Tom Hardy. “However, the entire team at UofL knew this was an investment we needed to make to be competitive, but most important to better meet the needs of today’s students.”

Belknap Residence Hall is at full capacity for the Fall 2021 semester. Students will begin to move in this week and a welcoming students back to campus begins Aug. 18; classes begin Aug. 23.

A third new residence hall, the 128-bed Denny Crum Hall, is also being constructed on Belknap Campus and scheduled to open in 2022. It will house a mixture of student-athletes and non-student-athletes.

More details are .