Vanderbilt’s newest first-year students will likely remember Aug. 21, 2017, for a long time to come. Not only did the date mark their official welcome to the university, but the approximately 1,600 students also donned safety glasses on The Commons Lawn to witness the total solar eclipse that appeared in Nashville that day—the first time in 538 years that such a sight had been visible in Middle Tennessee. Ten thousand other Vanderbilt students, parents, faculty and staff viewed the historic event together on Alumni Lawn. Photo by Daniel Dubois.