Nearly 1,000 freshmen and 35 new, full-time faculty members are settling in as PC begins the 2008-09 academic year. Classes got under way on Tuesday, September 2.

Nearly identical in size to last year's freshman class, the 985-member Class of 2012 comes to PC with an average grade point average (GPA) of 3.47 on a 4.0 scale. Roughly 44% finished their high school careers in the top 10% of their class, and nearly 80% of the freshmen finished in the top 25% of their graduating class.

In addition, the arriving class includes 18 valedictorians, 11 salutatorians, and 12 National Merit finalists, semi-finalists, and commended students.

The average SAT scores are virtually indistinguishable from last year's freshman class with mean scores of 579 for the critical reading portion, 591 for the math section, and 600 for the writing portion.

Some geographic and ethnic facts about the arriving class include:

• The number of freshmen from Massachusetts and Rhode Island stands at 300 and 121, respectively.
• The number of students from the Mid-Atlantic region doubled from 21 last year to 42, as did the amount of freshmen from the Mid-West, which rose from 19 to 39.
• Roughly 8% of the incoming students are classified as AHANA students (those of African-American, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American descent).
• Students of color represent 12.5% of the incoming freshmen population.
• There are 126 first-generation college students in the group.

New faculty changing face of PC
Of the 35 new, full-time faculty hires, 26 are tenure-track, including five who were hired with the rank of either associate or full professor, and 25 hold doctoral degrees. Only four of the 35 are coming directly from graduate school, and all of the incoming faculty members have held a teaching position at another institution.

In all, 19 academic departments have welcomed new faculty members. The departments of Psychology, Management, History, and English each have three new additions, while the departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Accountancy, Philosophy, Secondary Education, and Mathematics each have two.

The school year opens following a summer of extensive campus improvements. Among the many projects were renovations to Phillips Memorial Library, the overhaul of a lecture room in Albertus Magnus Hall, the addition of a walkway from McVinney Hall that leads to the Concannon Fitness Center, a brick walkway that leads from the library to the courtyard of St. Dominic Chapel, and the addition of four classrooms and meeting space in the former Blackfriars Theatre in Harkins Hall. The classrooms are expected to be ready for the spring 2009 semester, while the meeting space is scheduled for use later this fall.