Reed Welcomes the Class of ’22

Incoming students include a web developer, a fashion expert, and a trapeze artist.

By Randall S. Barton | August 22, 2018

Smoke from distant fires clouded the skies, but the horizon looked bright at Convocation on Tuesday, August 21, as Reed welcomed the Class of ’22 with fanfare and ceremony.

Some 363 strong, this class is one of the most ethnically diverse in Reed’s history, with 36% of the students identifying as U.S. multicultural. International students make up another 9% and represent 20 countries. Another 30 transfer students made the decision to become Reedies.

While most of the incoming class are undecided as to their major, English tops the list among those who have declared, followed by physics and psychology.  

Milyon Trulove, vice president and dean of admission & financial aid, highlighted some of the new students’ achievements. One is a member of a psychedelic rock band named Rubenstein Drive-By. Another operates a high-end men’s fashion boutique called The Abeyance. There’s a web developer who worked with Amazon to create a mobile game store and a student who created India’s largest platform for doctors to share diagnostic data. One founded the largest LGBT organization in Tianjin, China. Another was the first child in their state to have both moms' names on their birth certificate.

It is also a class chockablock with athletes, including a Russian Olympian, a trapeze artist, a nationally ranked squash competitor, a competitive figure skater, and a finalist in the Colorado state bowling tournament.

One student, who has been an unaccompanied minor since age 15, lived in a car or with friends, wrote essays in laundromats, and came to Reed with straight A’s. As Trulove said to the newly minted Reedies: “You are the class that will make us better. You are here because you are meant to be here. Welcome to Reed, Reedies.”

Tags: Students, Institutional, Campus Life