matriculate

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The Word of the Day for October 21 is:

matriculate   \muh-TRIK-yuh-layt\   verb
     : to enroll as a member of a body and especially of a 
college or university 

Example sentence:
     Joan and Kara matriculated together at Harvard, and they 
still get together at least once a year to reminisce about their 
college days.

Did you know?
     Anybody who has had basic Latin knows that "alma mater," a 
fancy term for the school you attended, comes from a phrase that 
means "fostering mother." If "mater" is "mother," 
then "matriculate" probably has something to do with a school 
nurturing you just like good old mom, right? Not exactly. If you 
go back far enough, "matriculate" is distantly related to the 
Latin "mater," but its maternal associations were lost long ago. 
It is more closely related to the Late Latin "matricula," which 
means "public roll or register," and it has more to do with 
being enrolled than being mothered.