Every year, Shippensburg University hosts five open house events to draw in and inform prospective students. On Saturday, Nov. 22 the last open house of the semester took place all over campus.5
The event is began at 8 a.m. in the Student Recreation Center (ShipRec) and continued to about 1:30 p.m. throughout various buildings on campus — Heiges Field House, Ceddia Union Building, Memorial Auditorium and Grove Hall. Guests received a program schedule listing all the times and locations for each informational session.
During the introduction session students were welcomed by various faculty members including the deans and associate deans of admissions, colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business, and Education and Human Services. Speakers talked about what each college offers and the benefits to being enrolled in each program. Guests were also able to speak with faculty members and current students about their majors of interest.
Nearly 2,200 people registered for the open house and about 60¬–¬65 percent of those registered attended the event on Saturday. Open house events are effective in helping students choose a university and giving a preview to what college life will be like.
“The open house is an opportunity for the campus community to come together and help students decide if SU is for them,” Bill Sommers, associate vice president for enrollment management said.
Sommers said the open house events are a prime example of what SU is about. It takes a great deal of hard work to organize and plan the event, plus the collaboration of faculty and students in showcasing the university.
In addition to each of the sessions, tours of Seavers and McLean II residence halls were led by resident life staff. Bus tours of the campus were also offered throughout the day.
A parent of a prospective student said, “My daughter was so impressed with Shippensburg. She is planning to be a social work major and really enjoyed seeing what Shippensburg has to offer.”
Surveys will be sent to those who attended the event to monitor feedback and see if any possible changes should be made to improve the events.
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