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Student Move-in Day At The U Of O

Tiffany Eckert

About 3,000 new and returning students flocked from far and wide to the University of Oregon Thursday for the annual "Unpack the Quack" move-in day.

They pull up in cars, trucks, even moving vans. Parents are looking pensive. There are some tears. About 400 upper classmen in bright yellow t-shirts help unload boxes and luggage containing everything the new kids will need to live in a dorm. Volunteers help check students into their housing.

David Oslen drove here from Wisconsin to deliver his freshman son to his new student housing digs. The morning at a Eugene hotel started stressfully when they realized their car, loaded down with gear, wasn’t going anywhere.

Olsen: "We were at the Quality Inn and our car had a flat tire. We didn't know how we were gonna get here, what we were gonna do. And I was talking about getting a cab. And a guy came and said, 'Here, here's the keys to my car.' And I'm driving his car. I don't even know his last name. His first name is Terry. Isn't that amazing? Talk about the friendliness and the compassion of the local people."

U of O President Michael Schill is making the rounds.

Eckert: "Part of your duty is to say hi and introduce them to the institution?
Schill "I think I'm supposed to actually help them carry the stuff--I haven't done that yet but that's coming."
Reporter: "Well, lift with your legs."

Credit Tiffany Eckert
The Oregon Duck welcomes new students at Unpack the Quack at U of O.

University staff say about 367 students are moving in each hour. Students have come from as far away as China and Canada but the bulk of them are Oregonians. President Schill offers some advice to nervous parents.

Schill: "Don't call everyday. Don't email everyday and don’t read all of their work before they hand it in. Make them independent."

Classes start Monday.

Tiffany joined the KLCC News team in 2007. She studied journalism at the University of Missouri-Columbia and worked in a variety of media including television, technical writing, photography and daily print news before moving to the Pacific Northwest.
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