Vanderbilt Visions

Engaging in thoughtful dialogue is not only essential in today’s society, but also is a trademark of the Vanderbilt experience, which begins with the first-year experience on The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons. On Sunday, Sept. 14, author Jacqueline Woodson spoke to a packed Langford Auditorium for the 19th Annual Lawson Lecture and offered a master class for the Class of 2029 on using storytelling to foster discourse and find connection, continuing the 2025–26 first-year programming theme of “Stories that Connect Us.”   Read More

This summer, Vanderbilt’s incoming first-year students will take on a new challenge: learning to listen with curiosity. As part of the 2025–26 Martha Rivers Ingram Commons programming theme, “Stories that Connect Us,” students will conduct interviews during the summer with members of their communities, practicing the skills of thoughtful listening and engaged dialogue.  Read More

A key component of first-year student support is Vanderbilt’s six-week extended orientation program, Vanderbilt Visions. Vanderbilt Visions is co-facilitated by an upper-division peer mentor and a faculty member, called VUceptors. VUceptors support students throughout CommonVU Orientation and for the duration of the Vanderbilt Visions program. Faculty who would like to learn more about serving in the role of a faculty VUceptor are invited to an interest breakfast on Wednesday, Jan. 29, from 9 to 10 a.m. at The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons dean’s residence, located at 1235 18th Ave. S. Read More

Residential Colleges invites all Vanderbilt faculty, students and staff to nominate a book for the Campus Reading for the Class of 2029; next year’s theme is Stories that Connect Us.   Read More

The ability to engage with others in highly divisive times is a particularly timely topic, one that Mónica Guzmán, senior fellow for public practice at Braver Angels, spoke about with first-year students on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at a packed Langford Auditorium. Guzmán delivered the 18th annual Lawson Lecture, named in honor of the Rev. James Lawson, a renowned civil rights activist, professor, theoretician and pastor. Lawson also served as a Distinguished Professor at Vanderbilt from 2006 to 2009. Read More

As part of its annual review of policies and guidelines, Vanderbilt University has updated the Student Handbook. The update includes revisions to the freedom of expression and use of university space policies, which are a vital part of the university’s commitment to discovery and learning.  Read More

The Campus Reading for the 2024–25 academic year will be I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times by Mónica Guzmán. The book was chosen by a committee of faculty and students and launches community-wide dialogue that begins during orientation and continues throughout the year in houses on The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons, in Vanderbilt Visions groups, and across campus. Read More

Each fall Vanderbilt University admits a diverse cohort of more than 1,600 first-year undergraduate students. These students are welcomed to the Vanderbilt family with support through the transition process and a vast network of resources that can help ensure their success.  Read More