On #NowATerp Tour, Good News Comes as a Surprise

Three high school seniors opened their front doors earlier this month and discovered human confetti: Testudo, the Mighty Sound of Maryland and pom-pom-waving University of Maryland employees.

There stood James B. Massey Jr., director of undergraduate admissions, with a hearty welcome: They had each been admitted to the university’s Class of 2029. And the surprise celebration began.

This year’s #NowATerp tour stopped in Prince George’s and Calvert counties and Baltimore City in advance of admission decisions going out by Feb. 1 to applicants who applied by Nov. 1. 

The three students who were feted—thanks to their parents making sure they were home—included two valedictorians, two who will be the first in their families to attend college, one whose grandparents met at UMD, and one who was celebrating her birthday. 

“This is the greatest gift I could have ever asked for,” said one #NowATerp student amid the cheering.

Watch as each of them and their families react to the news.